How big is the car-loan market behind my rate?
Consumer motor vehicle loans and leases were about $950 billion in 2021, over 50% of the $1.8 trillion that U.S. finance companies held, which had grown 41% since 2015 (Federal Reserve Survey of Finance Companies, national).
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Consumer motor vehicle loans and leases, 2021 | about $950 billion |
| Finance company receivables, 2021 | $1.8 trillion |
| Growth 2015 to 2021 | 41% |
| Receivables in 2015 | $1.3 trillion |
| Share of all finance company receivables | over 50% |
Which credit scores get car loans, and for how much?
760+ leads at 40.9%.
What it shows: 760+ is the largest at 40.9%, followed by 660-719 at 19.0%; the smallest shown is 720-759 at 10.9%.
On $25,000 financed at 7.5% APR, the calculator's payment ranges from $1,125/mo over 24 months to $432/mo over 72 months. The loan term drives almost all of that gap.
Borrowers filed 11,019 CFPB complaints about trouble making car payments, and only 6.4% ended with relief for the borrower. Choose the payment you can carry for the whole loan before you sign.
What borrowers reported to the CFPB about trouble making car payments
Lenders named most (25)
| Lender | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Santander Consumer USA Holdings Inc. | 987 | 9% |
| Ally Financial Inc. | 820 | 7% |
| Credit Acceptance Corporation | 789 | 7% |
| Wells Fargo & Company | 766 | 7% |
| Capital One Financial Corporation | 566 | 5% |
| Santander Holdings USA, Inc. | 495 | 4% |
| Westlake Services, LLC | 422 | 4% |
| Bridgecrest Acceptance Corporation | 379 | 3% |
| General Motors Financial Company, Inc. | 304 | 3% |
| Exeter Finance, LLC | 284 | 3% |
| American Credit Acceptance, LLC | 239 | 2% |
| Toyota Motor Credit Corporation | 232 | 2% |
| JPMorgan Chase & Co. | 227 | 2% |
| Hyundai Capital America | 220 | 2% |
| American Honda Finance Corp | 185 | 2% |
| Nissan Motor Acceptance Company LLC | 179 | 2% |
| Global Lending Services LLC | 155 | 1% |
| Fc Holdco LLC | 147 | 1% |
| Ford Motor Credit Co. | 142 | 1% |
| Consumer Portfolio Services, Inc. | 125 | 1% |
| Truist Financial Corporation | 122 | 1% |
| Byrider Franchising, LLC | 108 | 1% |
| Navy Federal Credit Union | 107 | 1% |
| Carmax, Inc. | 104 | 1% |
| BMW Financial Services NA, LLC | 90 | 1% |
Full dataset: complaints by year and by state
Complaints by year received
Complaints by state
| State | Complaints |
|---|---|
| FL | 1,174 |
| CA | 1,026 |
| TX | 983 |
| GA | 674 |
| NY | 594 |
| PA | 493 |
| IL | 452 |
| NC | 449 |
| OH | 405 |
| NJ | 383 |
| MD | 337 |
| VA | 324 |
| MI | 294 |
| AZ | 274 |
| SC | 230 |
Source: CFPB Consumer Complaint Database (full file), product "Vehicle loan or lease", data through 2026-09-24. Complaints are not a random sample and are not adjusted for each lender's size; a complaint count is not a measure of how a lender treats most customers.
What banks charge for a new-car loan: Federal Reserve rates since 2015
Worked example: this calculator's default: $30,000 price, $5,000 down, 4-year term
| This page's loan | At 5.28% (2021) vs 7.47% (2026) |
|---|---|
| Monthly payment on $25,000 over 48 months | $579 vs $604 $25 more a month |
| Total interest over the loan | $2,788 vs $3,998 $1,210 more over the loan |
Other loan terms the Fed publishes (latest vs five years earlier)
| Series | Latest | Five years earlier |
|---|---|---|
| New-car loan rate, 60 months, commercial banks | 7.14% (2026-05-31) | 5.05% (2021-05-31) |
| New-car loan rate, 72 months, commercial banks | 6.97% (2026-05-31) | 4.77% (2021-05-31) |
| New-car loan rate, finance companies | 6.31% (2026-06-30) | 4.86% (2021-06-30) |
| Average maturity, new-car loans, finance companies | 66.8 mo (2026-06-30) | 67.4 mo (2021-06-30) |
| Average amount financed, new-car loans, finance companies | $41,705 (2026-06-30) | $33,915 (2021-06-30) |
Source: Federal Reserve G.19 Consumer Credit, Terms of Credit (data download), not seasonally adjusted, retrieved 2026-09-26. Payments are our calculation with the standard amortization formula, payment = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n), r = rate ÷ 12. Bank averages are not a quote; your rate depends on credit score, lender and the car.
Car payment relief denied: 5,020 borrowers complained their lender refused a lower payment
In CFPB complaints from borrowers having trouble making car payments, a denied request to lower payments was the biggest issue, named by 46% of borrowers. That is more than the repossession and deficiency-balance complaints added together.
Complaints rarely changed the outcome. Lenders closed 92.8% of the 11,019 complaints with an explanation only. So a payment you can't afford at signing is unlikely to get cheaper once you are struggling.
Car payment set at signing: $432 over 72 months vs $501 over 60 on $25,000
Borrowers most often report being refused a lower payment later, so the term you pick at signing sets your payment. On the calculator's default $25,000 at 7.5% APR, 60 months costs $501/mo and 72 months costs $432/mo.
Car payment hardship complaints split evenly between repossession threats (2,713) and leftover balances (2,767)
Borrowers reported repossession problems at two stages in about equal numbers. 2,713 complained about a lender trying to repossess or disable the vehicle. 2,767 complained about a balance still owed after the car was repossessed and sold.
Losing the car did not end the complaint for about a quarter of these borrowers, because the debt was still there.
Car payment hardship complaints peaked at 1,937 in 2023
Complaints ran between 1,011 and 1,397 a year from 2018 through 2022, then jumped to 1,937 in 2023, the highest year in the data. As of 09-24, 2026 had 817.
Car payment complaints to captive lenders: Toyota 232, Honda 185, Ford 142
Borrowers named the carmakers' own finance arms less often than the largest names in this data: Toyota Motor Credit in 232 complaints, American Honda Finance in 185 and Ford Motor Credit in 142. Credit Acceptance was named in 789 and Westlake Services in 422. These are raw complaint counts, not adjusted for how many loans each lender holds.
Frequently asked questions
How much is car payment on 25000?
At 7.5% APR, $25,000 costs $1,125/mo over 24 months, $778 over 36, $604 over 48, $501 over 60 and $432 over 72. Lenders closed 92.8% of the 11,019 hardship complaints with an explanation only, so the payment set at signing tends to stick.
How long should my car payment be?
On $25,000 at 7.5% APR, 60 months costs $501/mo and 72 months costs $432/mo. The most common complaint from borrowers was being refused a lower payment later, which 5,020 borrowers reported, so the term you pick at signing sets your payment.
Sources
Data shown on this page
- Federal Reserve Board, Survey of Finance Companies 2020-21 file downloaded survey of 2021, published January 2025
- Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Household Debt and Credit Report file downloaded 26:Q2
Terms: Federal Reserve Board data, cite the source; Federal Reserve Bank of New York, cite the source.
Reported: figures as reported by the publisher, not independently verified. Observed: records as filed; owner reports are unverified and are not failure rates.
What is our own estimate
The price range comes from our calculator's formula. Its parts prices, labor hours per job and shop-rate tiers are CalcScrape estimates, not a published price dataset. Methodology