Ditch Your Ancient Car and Get $3,000 Towards a New One
Author: Nick
Category: Money
Topics: transportation
…at least in parts of Texas, starting later this year.
Some lucky Texans driving cars from before 1996 will be able to trade in their clunkers for vouchers good for $3,000 off a new or late-model used vehicle priced up to $25,000 (or a $3,500 voucher for a hybrid vehicle).
The reasoning behind the move to pull older cars off the road is that advances in fuel injection and computer technology have improved today’s vehicles to the point that they’re 10-30 times less polluting than ones from the mid-1990s and before.
If you’re a Texan making under the $61,000 maximum annual income, but your beater car is just a little too new to met the program guidelines, you can still take advantage of (i.e. scam) this program to help you save some serious cash on a new ride. Here’s how:
- Buy a pre-1996 vehicle that passes state inspection for as little money as possible. Expect to spend no more than $1,000 on this–maybe even as low as $500.
- Trade it to the junkyard for your $3,000 voucher.
- Sell your beater.
- Apply the voucher and sale money to a new car purchase.
- Hop in your brand new Hyundai Accent or Kia Rio for little or no money out of your pocket, partly thanks to the taxpayers of Texas.
Kudos to Texas for acting to clean up the air, but if you want to do the job a lot cheaper, I know a few guys in the city who can make all those jalopies “go away” for just a few hundred a piece.
UPDATE: The program is now live. Apply for your voucher here.
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10 Responses »
1.
Patrick
August 10th, 2007 at 1:26 pm
That’s awesome! But, what a waste of taxpayer money!
I used to live in Texas… based on my past experiences, I would wager that the majority of those vehicles end up in Mexico, or get put right back on the road. (I know that Mexico passed a law that cars older than a certain age could not be brought into Mexico, but it still happens).
2.
Kim
August 10th, 2007 at 9:40 pm
This is brilliant! It makes me wish I still lived in Huntsville! (I was at the college, not the prision). I hope Maine does this!
3.
fcc
August 13th, 2007 at 3:58 pm
That’s insane! I also believe that those cars will find their way back onto the streets, haha.
4.
Leslie
August 14th, 2007 at 4:39 pm
When they give us vouchers for the remaining purchase price and the additional insurance, I’ll give up my 1990 car that still runs very well, but not until then.
5.
tom
January 22nd, 2008 at 2:11 am
Where can i find out more information on this?
6.
Nick
January 22nd, 2008 at 1:38 pm
tom, the voucher program is now available here:
http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/implementation/air/mobilesource/vim/driveclean.html
7.
neoplasm
March 29th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
From the program’s FAQ
“Vehicles that are turned in under the program will have their engines and emissions systems destroyed, so the cars cannot be sold or returned to the road to pollute Texas air.”
8.
Laura
April 8th, 2008 at 11:59 am
i think it´s important to hace auto insurence because it´s safe.
laura.
buy used cars
9.
Huntsville Real Estate
June 2nd, 2009 at 12:18 am
his is brilliant! It makes me wish I still lived in Huntsville! (I was at the college, not the prision).
Where can i find out more information on this?
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