The Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Act (CARS), also known as "Cash for Clunkers," established a program for owners of gas-guzzling cars and trucks to receive tax credits worth up to $4,500 for purchasing newer, cleaner automobiles. The trade-in vehicle had to get a combined city and highway fuel economy rating of 18 miles per gallon or less.

On 8/7/2009 the President signed a temporary $2 billion extension in funding for the Cash for Clunkers program. The first $1 billion was nearly exhausted within a week after the program’s opening on July 24, 2009. The additional funds became immediately available. Government officials expected the $2 billion extension to last until September 7, 2009. However, on 8/20/2009 the Department of Transportation announced that the Cash for Clunkers program would end on 8/24/2009, fearing that vouchers would exceed $3 billion and after dealerships were overwhelmed with applications.

On 8/26/2009 the Dept. of Trans. reported that nearly 700,000 clunkers were traded in. The release also stated that rebate applications totaled $2.877 billion, under the $3 billion allocated for the program.

On 9/10/2009 the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) released a report on the economic impacts of the Cash for Clunkers program. The reported concluded that the while 60 to 70 percent of auto sales during the program's duration were likely borrowed from future demand, GDP in the third quarter was boosted by around 0.2 percent and over 17,000 jobs were created or saved. The report also noted that there is widespread consensus in support of shifting future demand to the present during contractionary periods through programs such as Cash for Clunkers.