Ford Credit has achieved some impressive results in recent surveys, including a first-place finish in J.D. Power’s 2022 Canada Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study and 2022 U.S. End of Lease Satisfaction Study, as well as a third-place ranking in the organization’s U.S. Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study. However, the automaker announced late last month that it is aiming to expand its financing offerings in the future by opening Ford Credit Bank, though it didn’t provide too many details regarding why the automaker was looking to get into the banking business. However, Ford Credit CFO Brian Schaaf recently elaborated on that topic while speaking during a fireside chat with JP Morgan Chase.
“Not so much the vehicles, but I would say more that…today, we’re very much focused on the new vehicle transaction. That part is we’re well prepared to sell the new vehicles. It’s just as you get charging stations, you may want to get a charging station six months before you get your vehicle and have it installed so when you get your vehicle, or maybe there’s a different product cycle on charging stations. You want to upgrade that during the life of the vehicle,” Schaaf said.
“Same with accessories that you would add to a Bronco or whatever or the over-the-air upgrades, or things like that that you can get. It’s more that somehow we need to be there to help Ford customers finance that part of the journey. Today, quite frankly, with the way we’re structured, we’re so focused and so good at financing the new vehicles that those other parts of the journey though, the newer financing needs, aren’t something we’ve had to do in the past.”
Ford Credit Bank aims to do precisely that – provide financing for new vehicles, but also parts and services to supplement those purchases such as EV charging boxes, optional power-ups or software updates, and vehicle accessories, in addition to consumer deposit and savings products that could include sustainable savings accounts for EV contracts and other climate-related lending products. The bank would have direct lending capability like all banks do, and would operate solely online with a headquarters in Salt Lake City, though it’s currently pending approval by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and Utah Department of Financial Institutions (UDFI).
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You’re going to need more financing on an already expensive vehicle(s)!
From Livewire Aug.15, 2022
Citing “significant material cost increases and other factors,” Ford’s announcement revealed price hikes between $6,000 and $8,500 for its electric vehicles. The F-150 Lightning Pro, for example, will sell for $46,974 — a $7,000 increase from the $39,947 charged for last year’s model. GM likewise increased the cost of its electric Hummer by $6,250 last month.
The price hikes are comparable to the $7,500 tax credits for new electric vehicles included in the $740 billion Inflation Reduction Act, which currently awaits President Joe Biden’s signature. The legislation earmarks a total of $369 billion to combat “the existential crisis of climate change,” according to remarks from Biden.
You are lucky if you can afford and can finance one of these EVs, little alone afford and finance accessories for it.