General Motors Scales Back Car-Sharing Service Maven

General Motors Co. reportedly is scaling back its car-sharing service, Maven, by stopping the service in eight markets after launching more than three years ago. A GM spokeswoman confirmed the OEM plans to shut down the service in major markets like Chicago and Boston "within the next few months," the Wall Street Journal reported. However, Maven will […]

• Nicole Casperson
• May 21, 2019
• Innovation & Mobility, Operations, Strategy

Leasing’s New Look: Financiers Give Lease Options a Makeover

From the February issue: With new-car purchases lagging and used-values increasing, captives and OEMs are reimagining lease products to keep their customer bases growing. Roughly a decade ago, 1.4 million new vehicles were leased — a 16% penetration rate. Fast forward to 2019, and lease volume is expected to reach 4.1 million, with penetration as […]

• Nicole Casperson
• February 13, 2019
• Features, Innovation & Mobility, Operations, Sales & Marketing, Strategy

Catching the Wave: The Impact of Direct Lending on Auto Finance

The wave of direct lending is starting to swell, and lenders are working to initiate their programs before it crests. “[Direct lending] is still small for us, and we’re looking at trying to stay in front of the fact that consumers’ expectations around, predominantly, information is evolving,” Jeffrey Danford, Ally Financial’s senior vice president of […]

• Nicole Casperson
• November 28, 2018
• Features, Innovation & Mobility, Strategy, Technology

NMAC to Offer Subscription Service if Demand Persists, President Says

Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. has plans in the works to offer consumers a subscription service if that’s where the market continues to shift, company President Kevin Cullum told Auto Finance News. The captive is looking into several options to support the market demands toward the subscription space. Although he said the subscription model is more […]

• Nicole Casperson
• August 31, 2018
• Operations, Technology

Volvo Subscription Service Limits Vehicle Choice, Lengthens Term to Keep Prices Down

Volvo Financial Services’ subscription model Care By Volvo undercuts other luxury OEM programs on the market with a subscription that’s less flexible but more affordable to a younger audience, said Peter Wexler, Volvo Cars USA’s director of mobility. Where similar programs such as Book By Cadillac and Porsche Passport start at $1,800 and $2,000 a […]

• William Hoffman
• February 2, 2018
• Strategy

Bank of America Enters Car Subscription Space With Volvo

Bank of America is the finance provider for Volvo Cars’ new subscription service launched late last year, David Hollodick, the bank’s senior vice president of consumer vehicle lending, told Auto Finance News. All of Volvo Car Financial Services’ loan and lease originations end up on Bank of America’s balance sheet, Hollodick explained, including subscriptions to […]

• William Hoffman
• January 24, 2018
• All Posts, Innovation & Mobility, Operations

Volvo Eyes Financial Services for Future Growth

Volvo Financial Services is still an “untapped potential” for Volvo Group and is key to deepening the relationship with customers, Chief Executive Martin Lundstedt said in the OEM’s third-quarter earnings report last Friday. “Volvo Financial Services delivered a good return on equity with low credit losses,” he said. “Financial services are key in our work to […]

• Emma Sandler
• October 23, 2017
• All Posts, Archives, Capital Markets, Earnings, Innovation & Mobility, Strategy, Technology

Volvo Sticks to Finance Strategy Amid EV Push

Volvo Cars became the first automaker to commit to producing a full line of electric or hybrid vehicles by 2019 last July, but this plan is not prompting a shift in the OEM’s financing strategy. “We see no difference in how we approach electrified cars from our finance company perspective,” a company spokesman told Auto […]

• William Hoffman
• October 4, 2017
• All Posts, Innovation & Mobility, Operations, Strategy