Good news, everyone. If we can manage set aside about $37,000 over the next couple of years, a Tesla Model S, a used one, will be ours. That's one of the findings in a Bloomberg Industries study on Tesla's financing, vehicle buyback and resale programs. Wit
US auto loans are at their highest level since before the start of the great recession, according to a report from Automotive News. Originations increased 11 percent during the second quarter of 2013, to a combined $91.8 billion for all credit tiers, while overall sales were up nine percent overall.
The length of car loans in the US keeps on growing as more and more consumers look for ways to save money every month to pay off obligations and necessities. Extremely low interest rates and more durable automobiles have become key factors in driving these new longer-term car loans, which can last anywhere from six to 10 years.
Tesla Motors announced Tuesday that it's unveiling a lease-to-own program that could bring the cost of ownership, for some buyers, to less than $500 a month.
Interest.com has taken a look at the 25 largest metropolitan areas in the US to determine which median-income households in those areas can afford to purchase a new car. As it turns out, only those living in Washington, D.C. can realistically swing the payment on an average-priced model. In 2012, new cars and light trucks carried a median MSRP of $30,550, and Interest.com used the 20/4/10 rule to examine what exactly is affordable in each
Experian, the US credit reporting agency, recently concluded a study into the financing and credit scores of US car buyers. One of the prime findings was that Volvo buyers enjoy the strongest credit scores among new car shoppers from all brands (nota bene, these are Experian's own numbers and can differ from other agencies). Unlike the Forbes report on the same story, though, we don't find that surprising at all, nor do we think it necess
We all remember the financial crisis that began several years back. At its core was a splurge of subprime lending for housing loans. The housing bubble burst, triggering a collapse of the mortgage-backed securities market. Apparently, those types of loans still exist in the automotive industry, and the market share for these types of "nonprime, subprime, and deep subprime," loans has grown 13.6 percent compared to the third quarter a year ago.
In a move that welcomes former pieces of General Motors back into the fold, GM Financial has reached a deal with Ally Financial, formerly GMAC, to buy a piece of the company's international operations. The $4.2 billion deal is for Ally's Latin America, Europe and China operations.
Automotive News reports Chrysler owes some of its recent sales success to a resurgence of subprime loans. Chrysler has a history of working with customers burdened with questionable finance histories, and lenders have begun to loosen credit restrictions. As a result, 29 out of every 100 auto loans for new Chrysler models went to buyers with a credit score under 680 in the first quarter of this year. Experian Automotive classifies loans tie
It looks like electric-motorcycle company Brammo just found a way for potential customers to get access to some of the juice.
Another piece of General Motors' IPO puzzle has been solved: in spite of CEO Ed Whitacre's desire to add a captive finance arm to GM's operations, the company looks set to go without. Acquiring in-house financing always stuck out in Whitacre's aggressive battle plan for getting an IPO done later this year and the hurdles of get
General Motors just posted a 12-percent sales increase for the month of February, and now the automaker is hoping to continue its strong sales trend by offering 0 percent financing for 60 months on sales that occur during the month of March. Curiously, this announcement comes just a few days after Steven J. Ewing
Porsche is profitable and it owns a big chunk of the far larger Volkswagen, yet cash seems to be in short supply. Automotive News is reporting that the world-renowned luxury sports car maker's 1.75 billion euro ($2.45 billion USD) loan request from German state bank KFW has been rejected, leaving Porsche to search elsewhere for funding. Porsche secured 10.75 billion euros ($15.1B) in financing from banks in March to feed its 9 billion euro debt ($12.6B) mountain, but it's looking for al
Ford's dealer development program works to help people become dealer principles who might not otherwise have the chance. The 64 members of the program, most of them black or Hispanic, are set up with stores by Ford and then buy out Ford's interest in the dealership with revenues. To give them a boost and, presumably, free up Ford money, Automotive News is reporting that Ford is offering dealers in the program an offer they'll have a hard time refusing: complete ownership of their stores
GMAC has loosened the purse strings, with General Motors' finance arm allocating $6 billion for auto loans for the next 60 days. The 60 day mark is critical to GM, as it is the government's drop-dead date to satisfy Auto Task Force viability requirements. The cash infusion will help struggling dealers with dried up credit channels, but it will also be used to finance cars and trucks to people with credit scores under 620. The under 620 crowd is referred to as subprime, a term that is now synonym
In light of the automaker benefits and car buyer assistance in the recently-passed stimulus package, analysts at R. L. Polk & Co. estimate there will be an average rebate of $330 for every vehicle sold this year. By allowing buyers to deduct the sales tax from a new vehicle purchase from their income taxes, Polks sees a sales increase of 94,000 units this year.
The French government has put €6 billion ($7.79 billion USD) on the table for car companies. And as part of the effort to make sure that every drop of the money goes toward maximizing performance and retaining jobs, the French government has asked that Peugeot/Citroen and Renault company bosses take a pass on their bonuses.
Show me the money. With apologies to Cuba Gooding Jr., that is exactly what many General Motors dealers are saying to GMAC Financial Services.
Remember that horrible "Saved by Zero" campaign (no, not that one) that Toyota ran late last year? Besides producing some of the worst commercials the world has ever seen, it was a failure when it came to its singular goal of selling more cars and trucks. Toyota was the only automaker in the top five that actually lost market share at the end of the year, despite running its 0% financing deals. So, what's next? Incentives.
