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benyl
11-10-2004, 10:27 PM
GM offers car now, 2nd later, same rate

November 10, 2004


BY SARAH A. WEBSTER
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

General Motors Corp. really, really wants you.

So badly, in fact, that it is willing to offer you what could amount to a deal of the decade: a chance to lock in a low interest rate on a new GM car or truck, as well as your next vehicle, for as long as 10 years.

The incentive -- to be announced today and called Lock 'n' Roll -- will be heavily promoted nationwide for the next 20 days and is part of a year-end push by GM to recapture market share.

One pitch hitting newspapers and billboards sums up the deal this way: "What's better than 0% APR on your new car? 0% APR on your next one too."

The Federal Reserve is widely expected to bump up interest rates today. But even if there is no rate hike, GM says it believes this deal will still be enticing because it protects buyers from interest-rate changes for an extended period.

"This is a great opportunity to get a low rate and lock it in for your next purchase," said Mark LaNeve, vice president of marketing and advertising for GM North America.

"We think the smart consumer is going to really see the advantage of it and will realize that we're probably in a rising interest rate environment."

The new offer comes at a time when traditional cash-back rebates, some as high as $7,000, and low-interest financing come-ons have been losing appeal in a market flooded by a mind-numbing array of sales and discounts. Dealers have said they prefer big national programs like Truckfest and Keep America Rolling because they cut through the clutter.

The new GM offer is available to those who buy a new vehicle by the end of the month.

However, not all vehicles sold through the program will come with no-interest financing, and not all of GM's vehicles will be included in the program. And as usual with special auto-financing programs, not all consumers will qualify. Those with bad credit could be rejected.

LaNeve said that 98 percent of the vehicles GM sells can be financed with a 0-percent interest rate for 36 months, a 2.9-percent interest rate for 48 months or a 3.9-percent interest rate for 60 months.

So, under Lock 'n' Roll, buyers in one of these programs will be able to duplicate the deal on their next GM product, but with no obligation to buy the same model again or another GM product.

"It's entirely at their option," LaNeve said. "They don't have to use it all. We hope that they do, obviously."

Second buy is wide open
Although the deal is not available on all of GM's vehicles for the initial purchase, it is for the second purchase. So you could buy a 2005 Chevrolet Aveo with no-interest financing for 36 months and then buy a Hummer H3 with the same deal later.

"It's on any future car. It can be on cars we haven't even introduced yet into the market, that the consumer doesn't even know exists," LaNeve said. "It may be super hot and have no incentives. This would guarantee a pretty strong incentive for the future."

The fine print of the deal contains a few noteworthy exceptions. For example, you cannot lengthen the term of your financing deal the second time around. So if you buy a Chevy Malibu with no-interest financing for 36 months, you cannot get your second GM product with no-interest financing for 60 months.

Also noteworthy: If a buyer's credit goes down the toilet during the first contract, he or she may not qualify for the second purchase. GM says the consumer must qualify for both the first and second loans.

LaNeve said that if GM comes up with a better incentive three years or five years down the road -- say a free car with the purchase of an SUV or $5,000 cash back on top of no-interest financing for 60 months -- consumers who participate in Lock 'n' Roll won't be barred from participating.

GM, LaNeve said, will always allow its consumers to opt for the better deal.

The world's largest automaker said it came up with the idea for the new program by borrowing a page from the playbook of home loans, which allow buyers to lock in mortgage rates for extended periods of time.

However, it's unclear what this program could cost GM in the long term. The automaker isn't divulging the details.

But LaNeve said, "This program is not going to put our incentive spend out of line with where we've been at other various times of the year." GM led the auto industry in incentive spending last month, with about $4,051 per vehicle. But sales declined 4.9 percent in October compared to the same period a year ago. That left GM with 27.7 percent of the U.S. auto market for the first 10 months of the year.

In 2002, GM had 28.7 percent of the market, up from 28.3 percent in 2001. But in 2003, it fell back to 2001 levels.

LaNeve said this latest incentive program is part of an end-of-the-year push to gain market share.

"Everything we do is a plan to recapture market share," LaNeve said.

DefektiveVibe
11-10-2004, 11:13 PM
i believe this is a :repost:

rage2 beat you to it?

Redlyne_mr2
11-10-2004, 11:55 PM
Not sure why theyre doing 120 month loans. People dont want to finance a car for that long. Even at 72 months it begins to get ridiculous

benyl
11-11-2004, 11:31 AM
Originally posted by DefektiveVibe
i believe this is a :repost:

rage2 beat you to it?

can't seem to find what you are talking about. :dunno:

DefektiveVibe
11-12-2004, 11:07 AM
ohh mustve something else about GM sorry bout that.