Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told the National Automobile Dealers Association Wednesday that 478,000 of the nearly 700,00 car vouchers for the Cash for Clunkers program have been paid.  That amounts to about 70 percent of the cars sold under the program.

The amount of the paid vouchers rounds out to about $2.5 billion.

Cash for Clunkers, or CARS, allowed car buyers to qualify for incentives of up to $4,500 to trade in their old car for a new vehicle.

Dealers across the country complained about not getting their reimbursements on time. But LaHood was grateful to the dealers for "hanging in there and being patient."

He told dealers that the government was "stunned" when 250,000 vehicles were sold in the first four days, giving the program instant success.