Cash for Clunkers - Useless for consumers

The recent US govt. policy on offering upto 4500 for old cars to induce consumers to buy new fuel efficient cars, is infact useless to the consumers. Couple of months ago, whatever cars that were being sold for 27K are now being sold for 32k. In reality, its the dealers who get this money. Consumers, in fact should have just stayed away from the dealers . They didn't and the dealers took advantage of it. It has definitely increased the economic activity and again the consumers are the losers!