Stripped! Crushed! How the Clunkers Program Works

U.S. auto sales soared in July. Auto analysts like The Takeaway’s guest Tom Libby, a Detroit-based independent auto analyst, say the government’s Cash for Clunkers program is giving a big push to the numbers. The program, which gives people $4,500 to buy a new car when they trade in their rusted hulks, blew through a billion dollars in its first week. Now the Senate is deciding whether to allocate another $2 billion to the program. The House already agreed to the re-up. So what happens to the cars when you trade them in? And are dealers really making a mint? The Takeaway talks to Brian Willian, sales manager for the Albany Honda dealer in Albany, Georgia, and J.C. Cox, owner of an auto salvage business in Moultrie, Georgia, to find out the cradle-to-the-grave of Cash for Clunkers.