General Motors Financial Co. launched a prime lending pilot program in the first quarter as it prepped for a more widespread rollout this summer. So far, commercial floorplan dealers in two states are testing the product offering. “We do believe that the rollout of our prime product this summer that will help our progress here,” GM Financial President and Chief Executive Dan Berce said in an April 24 earnings call. “Dealers continually tell us that they would like to have a single source for all of their needs, whether it’s commercial or consumer, loan or lease. And with prime, we will for the first time have a complete product suite and, therefore, we think we will get more adoption of all of our products toward the end of 2014 and into 2015.” A prime lending product would “round out” the captive’s product line, Berce said.
Meanwhile, GMF tacked incentives backed by parent company General Motors Co. onto near-prime loans originated last quarter. “We also expanded our near-prime subvention programs,” Berce said, “Heretofore, we had only participated in GM’s subprime, or less-than-620-credit subvention programs. So we have now begun near-prime, as well.”
Separately, GM is offering an employee-discount incentive to owners of cars involved in its recent ignition-switch recall. Employee pricing sets the cost of a vehicle at just under the invoice price. The deal can be used on a new 2013, 2014, or 2015 model year Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, or Cadillac.