Bad credit car loan buyers can take advantage of the latest report from IntelliChoice to help them find the right pre owned vehicle
Better and more reliable used cars
Here at Auto Net Financial, we realize that a majority of bad credit auto loan shoppers will end up purchasing a used car. Unlike twenty years ago, this is not necessarily a bad thing. Over that period of time, used cars, as a whole, have become much more reliable. Advances made by the manufacturers in assembly techniques, quality control, and reliability mean that even the average car can be expected to last at least 100,000 miles, with many vehicles capable of lasting much longer.
During that time, we have also seen a shift in the types of vehicles these lenders will finance. While earlier “tote the note” dealers usually had lots full of older, high-mileage vehicles that were barely above “beater” status, modern special finance lenders usually require either new or newer, low-mileage used cars that modern new-car dealers are happy to sell.
The reason for this is quite simple: if a customer, even a bad credit customer, is driving a newer and more reliable vehicle, they are more likely to make their payments on time.
And when you combine this with the fact that the average new car loses between 15% and 30% of its value as soon as you drive it off the lot, we can see why so many bad credit car loan shoppers decide that it is more cost effective to go with a 2 or 3 year old pre-owned car rather than a new one. Now these same consumers are faced with another decision: should they buy a regular used car or a certified pre-owned car?
What is CPO?
Real certified pre-owned cars are vehicles that are either traded-in or returned off-lease (once the new car lease is finished) to a dealer. Based on certain factors (year, mileage and general condition) that qualify them for the manufacturers CPO program, these vehicles then go through an inspection and certification process (that involves replacing worn and broken parts) in order to qualify for the manufacturers CPO vehicle status.
Because of these requirements, certified pre-owned vehicles are more expensive than their non-certified counterparts. The costs of an inspection, the required replacement of warn and defective parts as well as a fairly expensive service contract all add to the price of a CPO vehicle. But, in many instances, it’s hard to put a price on the peace of mind buying one these vehicles can bring to bad credit car loan customers.
IntelliChoice survey
With that in mind, IntelliChoice.com has just announced the winners of its 11th annual ranking of CPO manufacturer-sponsored programs. And while IntelliChoice ranks both luxury and non-luxury vehicles, we are listing only the non-luxury brands, since these are the most appropriate cars for bad credit car loans.
The overall winner and best categories are pretty self-explanatory, while the 100% inspection score is based upon the manufacturers required vehicle inspections versus a baseline inspection scorecard developed by IntelliChoice as well as the following criteria:
- Extended manufacturer warranties
- Title verification
- Certification inspection process
- Roadside assistance – special financing
- Return exchange policies
- Program/dealer compliance
- Brand value
And the 2010 winners are:
Non-Luxury Brand
Overall Winner: MINI and Volkswagen (Tie)
Best Warranty: MINI
100% Inspection Score: Ford, Mercury, Nissan, and Suzuki
Strongest Brand Quality: General Motors and Honda (Tie)
Ranking:
Manufacturer Ranking
1. MINI (Tie)
1. Volkswagen (Tie)
3. Hyundai
4. Honda
5. Kia
“Volvo, Mini, and Volkswagen continue to dominate the rankings with a focus on consistency and quality in their programs,” said Eric Andersen, senior analyst, Intellichoice.com. “We are very impressed with the improvement Kia has made with a relatively new program. Kia now joins Hyundai in the top five non-luxury programs and demonstrates a strong and aggressive push from the Korean manufacturers to strengthen their brands in the U.S.”
The Bottom Line
As you can see, there are a lot of choices out there if you’re a bad credit car loan shopper looking at a pre-owned car. Although you will have to decide for yourself if a CPO car is worth the difference in price, knowing how the various programs stack up against each other can be an important factor in the decision-making process.
For more information on bad credit car loans and the bad credit auto loan buying process, visit our web site at www.autonetfinancial.com.
