Rising gas prices, high rates add to affordability woes

Despite a rise in subprime financing share in the fourth quarter of 2025, affordability remains a key focus for auto lenders and dealers as lower-income consumers continue to be disproportionately affected by higher everyday costs.

Subprime share of total vehicle financing in Q4 2025 stood at 15.3%, up from 14.5% a year earlier, according to Experian data. Prime borrowers continued to lead market share for new-vehicle financing as subprime customers remain challenged by high vehicle costs, but Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and tax refunds will potentially bring some relief in 2026.

Affordability challenges contributed to a slowdown in retail vehicle sales across much of the country in the first part of the year, evidenced by trends in the March 3 edition of the Fed’s Beige Book. Dealers across many Fed regions reported flat to decreased new- and used-car sales as higher interest rates and rising gas prices further tightened consumers’ wallets.

The war in the Middle East has contributed to higher oil and gas prices since the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, which could raise funding costs and prompt a shift in investors’ strategies.

Meanwhile, powersports lender Octane has shored up additional funding as it aims to grow originations and its captive-as-a-service offering. New York-based Octane’s originations rose 29% year over year to $2.1 billion in 2025.

In this episode of “Weekly Wrap,” Auto Finance News Editor Amanda Harris, Deputy Editor Johnnie Martinez II and associate editor Aidan Bush discuss top trends across macroeconomic dynamics, affordability, funding and powersports lending for the week ended March 6.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(335)

Chase Auto head of pricing, credit strategy says granular decisioning key

Auto lenders must strengthen fraud controls, improve operational processes and lean more into precise, data-based decision-making as they look toward 2027, Manish Chhabra, head of auto pricing and cre...

15 Sep 12min

GM Financial's Kyle Birch reflects on captive build-out, career ahead of retirement

Communication is key to GM Financial's continued success under new leadership, according to retiring GM Financial President of North America Operations Kyle Birch. "There'll always be challenges for l...

19 Aug 18min

Arivo Acceptance eyes increased auto ABS cadence

The auto asset-backed securitization market remains resilient as a funding outlet for many issuers and originators. “It's an important source of capital for us,” Michael Gustafson, chief financial of...

10 Aug 19min

Ally Financial, Capital One, Huntington Bank auto originations mixed

Ally Financial, Capital One and Huntington Bank posted mixed results in the second quarter for auto originations and credit performance. Ally Financial’s auto originations rose 20.9% year over year i...

27 Jul 7min

Wells Fargo Auto, Chase Auto originations jump in Q2

National and regional bank second-quarter earnings point to mixed performance as larger banks lean into auto production while regional banks held steady or scaled back amid market volatility. Wells F...

20 Jul 6min

Subaru Motors Finance to target first-time buyers, expand credit access

Subaru Motors Finance plans to expand its underwriting to attract more first-time buyers, Managing Director Michael Cottone tells Auto Finance News in the latest episode of “The Auto Finance Roadmap P...

13 Jul 23min

BMW Financial’s lease penetration normalizes post-EV tax credit

BMW Financial Services’ lease penetration has normalized following the elimination of the federal electric vehicle tax credit, says Ole Jensen, chief executive and president of the captive in North Am...

6 Jul 23min

Rising insurance costs add to affordability woes

Car buyers are facing a tough market as rising insurance costs add to vehicle ownership expenses and lenders are mindful of high loan-to-value ratios. The national six-month auto insurance premium ro...

29 Jun 11min