Was cash for clunkers a success?

Question:

After all the media hype and the commercials surrounding the cash for clunkers or CARS program, do you think it was actually a success or did it fail to bring real sales to the automakers?

Answer:

I was always a little weary of the program because the rules that came from the government were a bit easy to find loopholes in and while the automakers did see sales increase dramatically over the past few weeks, the program didn’t last as long as the government had hoped and now the car companies are dealing with the sudden jump in sales with low production.

The sales were only due to the program. If the program had never existed, sales would still be flat. So, in a way it was a success, but overall I don’t think that the government really saw what it hoped for.