What happens to the clunkers?

TYLER-U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood predicts the senate will pass legislation pumping the $2 billion more dollars needed to save the "Cash-for-Clunkers" car-buying program. But what many want to know is what happens to those clunkers traded in?

Since the program officially kicked off just a few days ago, many local car dealers say its been wildly popular. But now these dealerships are left with the responsibility of destroying these cars. Dozens of videos on youtube.com have recently surfaced showing step-by-step what happens to these cars after they are traded.

"You drain the fluids from the car, pour the engine full of liquid glass and run it until the engine seizes," Brad Hall of Hall Buick, Pontiac, GMC in Tyler said.

Many are wondering why the feds are requiring this, considering some of these are perfectly good cars.

But Mr. Hall says they're not crushing the clunkers until Uncle Sam shows them the money.

"We are definitely concerned about being able to get reimbursed from the government insince we're fronting their money to our customers with the expectation of them reimbursing us for the money we've already spent," Hall said.

And destroying these perfectly good cars will eventually cause yet another problem.

"On the older model cars, a lot of times, they'll go through a local auction but they end up in South America or Africa or developing countries were those cars are needed," he said.

By taking thousands of what we consider clunkers out of the market, Hall says now we've created a shortage of vehicles for other nations.

In an interview with MSNBC, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood declined to discuss options if the senate does not act before it goes on its summer recess at the end of the week.