Takeaway contributor, Beth Kobliner is concerned about subprime car loans. The loans allow buyers with low credit scores to find a way to pay for their cars, even if this means that they are taking on loans with high interest rates. As a car buyer, says Beth Kobliner, pay attention to your credit score; if you have good credit, be sure to find a loan that is right for you.

We’ve heard it before, but this time it might just stick: The Department of Transportation announced yesterday that the popular Cash for Clunkers program, which allows you to trade in your old gas-guzzler for up to $4500 towards a new fuel efficient car, is done as of Monday, August 24^th. Although Congress added $2 billion to the program just weeks ago, the program's popularity means the money has run out far sooner than expected. To explain what is happening we talk to Micheline Maynard, senior business correspondent for the New York Times. We also talk to Brian Willian, the sales manager at Albany Honda in Georgia. He is awaiting a check from the government to reimburse him for the clunkers he's paid for under the program.

U.S. auto sales soared in July. Auto analysts like The Takeaway's guest Tom Libby, a Detroit-based independent auto analyst, say the government’s Cash for Clunkers program is giving a big push to the numbers. The program, which gives people $4,500 to buy a new car when they trade in their rusted hulks, blew through a billion dollars in its first week. Now the Senate is deciding whether to allocate another $2 billion to the program. The House already agreed to the re-up. So what happens to the cars when you trade them in? And are dealers really making a mint? The Takeaway talks to Brian Willian, sales manager for the Albany Honda dealer in Albany, Georgia, and J.C. Cox, owner of an auto salvage business in Moultrie, Georgia, to find out the cradle-to-the-grave of Cash for Clunkers.