'Cash for Clunkers': Who Really Sold More Vehicles?

While many believe the CARS Act, also referred to as 'Cash for Clunkers', was initially designed to help revive the ailing domestic automakers, the latest report from the government indicates the imports, specifically Toyota and Honda, benefited from the brief new-vehicle sales campaign. However, another trusted industry source, Edmunds.com, says the information being provided by the government isn't providing the American public with an accurate picture.

According to the latest government report, the compact size Toyota Corolla was the top new-vehicle purchased under the CARS Act, yet, Edmunds.com reports that the Ford Escape compact crossover was actually the number one vehicle purchased under the CARS Act. Which source is accurate?

A recent story in Automotive News, an industry trade magazine, reported that the government's list counts each vehicle with a different drivetrain separately. For instance, consumers who purchase the front-wheel drive Escape and the four-wheel-drive Escape was counted separately on the government report, as opposed to being combined as one vehicle on Edmunds report.

That's not the only difference. While the government's database covers all submitted clunker deals, the government have not released unit sales for the vehicles on its top 10 list. Furthermore, as of now the government hasn't released a full list of vehicles and clunker transactions beyond those 10, according to Automotive News.

If you use Edmunds.com list, which is gathering the information directly from the dealers, as your guide, American automakers accounted for 60 percent of the vehicles on the top 10 list, while the government's list only attributes 20 percent of American vehicles being on the top 10 list. Conversely, CNN.com reported earlier this month that domestics had accounted for 80 percent of the new-vehicle sales on the top 1o list. Regardless of which report you use the American consumers benefited from the government aid. I guess, until the final numbers are audited, we really want know which report is truly accurate.