Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, the top United States car salesman in recent weeks, has cited the Obama administration's best-seller list of mostly smaller, fuel-saving cars like the Ford Focus to describe the success of the Cash for Clunkers rebate programme.

But what LaHood and other administration officials usually do not mention is that some trucks and sport-utility vehicles that get less than 20 miles per gallon, (8.5 kilometres per litre) like the Ford F-150 truck and one version of the Cadillac SRX Crossover, also are being purchased with the new government subsidies. Both are bulky vehicles weighing more than 6,000 pounds (2700 kilograms) when loaded that boast at least 248 horsepower.

Rebates

Just how many consumers used the federal rebates to buy these larger, not-so-green vehicles is unclear. The Obama administration has declined so far to release detailed records of purchases under the programme being compiled by the Transportation Department, listing every clunker deal requesting rebates. The Associated Press requested the data July 31.

The Transportation Department distributes regular summaries of sales from the clunkers programme and has used the electronic sales information from dealers to bolster arguments that Americans are dumping gas guzzlers for gas savers. But its failure to release detailed records means the public can't verify those claims.

"Today almost 200,000 new fuel-efficient automobiles averaging 25 miles per gallon (11 kilometres per litre) are on the road instead of gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs," LaHood wrote on his official blog just before Congress voted to spend $2 billion more for the government rebates last week.

fuel-efficient cars

Even the Top 10 list of mostly smaller, fuel-efficient cars that LaHood has cited as evidence of the programme's success is being questioned. A different Top 10 sales list produced by Edmunds.com, an auto consumer Web site, shows fewer small cars and more large vehicles like trucks and utility vehicles make up the best sellers.

A list of eligible vehicles has been available available to the public on the clunker program's Web site, www.cars.gov, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.

Edmunds.com determined the list of top sellers and trade-ins under the programme from weekly sales data collected directly from dealers, company chief executive Jeremy Anwyl said.

Both lists of top sellers include, for example, the fuel-saving Toyota Corolla, and the clunkers programme by its definition is encouraging consumers to dump older, less fuel-efficient cars for new, more efficient models.

gas savers

But the programme, now expanded to $3 billion and offering rebates of up to $4,500, is not limited to the best gas savers on the market. And that is good news to Beny Ledesma, general sales manager at Williamson Cadillac-Hummer in Miami.

The dealership has sold three 2009 Cadillac SRXs - the six-cylinder engine model - through the clunkers programme, he said, and is finishing paperwork on two more. Ledesma hopes to sell the other 14 at the dealership, along with some of the Hummer H3Ts on the lot that are eligible for clunker rebates.

Both vehicles get about 18 mpg (8 kpl), considerably less than the 25.3 mpg (10.7 kpl) average that LaHood has attributed to new cars purchased under the clunker programme.