World Auto News & Reviews

You may already be aware that interest rates for auto loans are higher when the borrower has a bad credit rating or low credit score. Depending on your financial position and the lender that you choose to use, this rate increase may make a small or large difference in the amount of your monthly car payment. From a lender’s point of view, it all comes down to risk. The factors that increase the risk of loan default contribute to a higher rate. Those factors that reduce the risk, result in a lower rate. There are several factors that lenders take into account when reviewing your application and approving your loan.

Buying a new car seemed like a good idea at the time. You set out, hoping to find the perfect vehicle for the perfect price. When you started looking you got carried away and purchased something that didn’t necessarily suit your lifestyle. Even worse than that, you let the guy at the car yard talk you into some ridiculous finance option and now you are not even sure you can make the repayments. Using a car loans calculator before you hit the car yards is always a good idea. When you need a car in a hurry, most of the time a car loans calculator is the best solution. Being able to see how much you will need to repay can set your mind at ease. Car loan calculators can quickly break your repayments into fortnightly or monthly payments, to let you sleep better at night. Once you have decided what you can afford, the next stop is to find the loan.

If there’s been a single reason for hope among auto executives during the past few lean years, it’s been spelled C-H-I-N-A. Despite being a difficult regulatory environment with many hoops for automakers to jump through, the People’s Republic has shone as the industry’s brightest and biggest hope for big volumes and bigger profits. Certainly, the nation has delivered massive sales increases as it has developed into a global superpower, and its population and growing wealth suggests it should be good for many more millions of sales per year. Thing is, recent sales haven’t supported this trend, and the Chinese government is reportedly stepping in to try and remedy the problem.

BMW is leading the 2011 race for the best-selling global premium brand, breezing past its fellow German rivals with a 19 percent increase in sales for the month of May.

The BMW brand sold 121,168 vehicles worldwide in May while Audi sold 113,400 and Mercedes-Benz 108,766 units.

Ford’s C-Max MPV arrived on our shores at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show boasting seating for seven, but that model apparently had an asterisk lurking in the shadows. Ford announced today that the C-Max heading for North American showrooms will only feature seating for five.
In addition to its reduced seating capacity, Ford also announced that the C-Max will be arriving sans a gasoline-only model. C-Max buyers will instead have to choose between a gas-electric hybrid and plug-in hybrid.