$1,000 Payments New Normal as Loan Amounts Grow in Q1
Experian’s latest State of the Automotive Finance Market report finds sales of full-size trucks, vans and sports cars pushed $1,000 monthly payments to nearly 19% of all auto loans in the first quarter.
The average loan amount was $43,925 for new units and $27,070 for used, up by 5.1% and 3%, respectively, compared with Q1 2025. Average monthly payments spiked for subprime (up $34 to $792), deep subprime (up $30 to $763) and nearprime (up $28 to $811) borrowers.
Terms of at least 73 months accounted for 35.6% of all loans, up from 30.8% a year ago and 28.2% in Q1 2024. Longer terms correspond with incremental gains in subprime and deep subprime market share, which together stand at 15.8%, up from 13.8% in Q1 2024.
“Affordability continues to shape financing decisions across the automotive market,” writes Melinda Zabritski, Experian’s head of automotive financial insights, in a release. “While shoppers continue to lean toward larger, more expensive vehicles, we’re seeing more consumers take advantage of longer-term loans to offset rising monthly costs.”
