As of Wednesday morning, auto dealers have 316,189 vehicle voucher requests with a value of 1.33 billion U.S. dollars, up 179 million dollars from the 1.15 billion dollars on Monday, according to department data. That means dealers have submitted requests averaging 90 million a day this week, or just over 21,500 deals a day.
Analysts say the remaining funds in the 3 billion "cash for clunkers" program could run out in the next few weeks as deals are increasing.
Last Friday, U.S. President Barack Obama signed into law a 2 billion extension of the "cash for clunkers" program that gives drivers a rebate of up to 4,500 dollars to trade in passenger cars that have a combined fuel efficiency rating of 18 mpg (18 miles per hour) or lower and are up to 25 years old. The vouchers must be used on vehicles at least 4 mpg more efficient, while slightly different rules apply to light trucks.