Cash for Clunkers Ticker: $779 Million Left

That was fast. Just hours after updating its “gauge” to show how much money was left in the Cash for Clunkers fund this morning — $854 million — the official government website is now showing the number is $779 million.

That means $96 million of the $1 billion fund has been used just for car purchases. Cash for Clunkers has handed out roughly $32 million a day, which is more in tune with first-hand reports than the $854 million number from this morning. Out of the $1 billion fund, $50 million is earmarked for the program’s administration and another $75 million is exclusively for commercial pickup trucks, aka Category 3.

At this rate, the Cash for Clunker funds will be depleted in just 27 days.