Published: Monday, 3 Aug 2009 | 2:26 PM ET

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Nearly half the vehicles sold under the U.S. government's "Cash for Clunkers" incentive program were made by General Motors

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[MTLQQ  Loading...      ()   ], Ford Motor and Chrysler, according to preliminary data provided by an Obama administration official on Monday.

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Passenger cars represented 60 percent of the estimated 80,500 sales reported to the government by retail dealers through Saturday, and the top-selling model has been the Ford Focus.

The official, who requested anonymity, was not authorized to discuss the program for attribution.

The information was the first detailed assessment of how the program had been received by consumers, who are offered up to $4,500 in federally backed rebates to trade in older vehicles for more fuel-efficient new ones.

Government and industry estimate nearly 250,000 vehicles have been sold under the $1 billion program over the past month. The government began tracking sales 10 days ago, and a logjam of paperwork has slowed reporting.

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The Obama administration credits the incentive with helping to stimulate the economy during recession and is pressing the U.S. Senate to approve a proposed $2 billion extension or face suspension of the program as early as midweek.

President Obama's chief spokesman said the popular cash for clunkers rebate program may not survive beyond Friday if the Senate doesn't provide a $2 billion cash infusion.

The program ran out of money last week. The House voted to provide another $2 billion before leaving for summer break last Friday. But the Senate must also vote before its August vacation starts Friday.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs says the rebate program is up and running. He says anyone who wants to trade in a less fuel-efficient vehicle for a higher-mileage one should do so.

But if the Senate fails to act by Friday, Gibbs says it's unlikely the program will be available next weekend and beyond.

Fierce lobbying for keeping the program running came from several quarters. The National Automobile Dealers Association and the American International Automobile Dealers said they were contacting thousands of dealerships and encouraging them to bombard the Senate with phone calls and e-mails.

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"This is the one true stimulus that seems to be working out of all the things that have been tried in the last few months," said Cody Lusk, president of the international dealer association.

LaHood had said earlier that if the $2 billion isn't approved, "we would have to suspend the program." At the same time, LaHood told C-SPAN's "Newsmakers" show Sunday that the administration would "continue the program until we see what the Senate does and I believe the Senate will pass this."

"Any deal that is made (Monday) or the next day and that is in the pipeline, ... the dealer will be reimbursed and the car buyer will be reimbursed," the secretary declared.

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But, he added, "there is no doubt that that very extraordinary response is a very important indicator that the state of confidence in the economy is beginning to pick up." If the incentive program had gone into place six months ago, he said, "it would have probably been a dud."

The program helped lift Ford Motor

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[F  Loading...      ()   ] to its first monthly sales increase in two years, the company's top sales analyst said Sunday.

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