Too old to clunk: why millions of cars aren’t eligible

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So close to clunked, yet so far.

One of the curious quirks of the ‘cash for clunkers’ program is the fact that cars over 25 years old are not eligible -- a loophole inserted in the bill by the classic-car lobby.

Rather than use model year, the federal voucher program bases age on the auto’s date of manufacture, as noted ‘on the safety standard certification lable that is located on the frame or edge of the driver’s door in most vehicles,’ according to the Cars.gov website.

Steve Lowder’s tired old pickup missed the cut-off by a single day.

In response to a story in this paper Thursday about the cash for clunkers age exception, the Monterey, Calif., resident wrote us to tell his tale of woe.

Turns out his 1984 Dodge D-150 with a 5.2-liter V-8 was built in June 1984. But because the program officialy began July 1, his truck was ineligible to be a trade-in, a fact he discovered after calling two dealers in an attempt to cash in on the program.

If it had been built in July, or if the program had started just one day earlier, he would have been able to trade the Dodge in, and since it’s EPA rated at just 13 mpg, it would have been a cinch to get the full $4,500 credit from Uncle Sam.

Instead, he got nothing.

‘This is my only vehicle,’ wrote a frustrated Lowder, who seems stuck with his gas-huffing Dodge for now. He calls the rule ‘nonsense.’

Even more annoying, Lowder wrote, was watching his brother successfully trade in a Ford Explorer for the full voucher, which he used to buy a Ford Escape, an experience he called ‘salt on the wound.’

-- Ken Bensinger