To take your subprime sales success to the next level, it’s essential to stock the right inventory. We want to make sure your customer succeeds with a solid, affordable and reliable vehicle that will help them re-establish their credit. As such, it’s important to know the top vehicles being sold to subprime customers. By having the makes and models that work for these customers in stock, you’ll be ready to rock when they roll onto your lot.
Additionally, it’s particularly important to know which vehicles are being sold to subprime buyers in your specific region. We know this because our data indicates that there are significant differences amongst the top subprime vehicles when both national and regional data sets are compared. Tailoring your subprime inventory to your region’s preferences will automatically give you a huge advantage.
So if you’re looking to increase your subprime sales’, analyzing your inventory against what is selling in your area will give you the insight you need to make it happen. And to show you how to take this strategy to the next level, we’ve gathered data that shows which vehicles work best for both consumers and dealers.
Comparing National and Regional Top Subprime Vehicles
To start, here is the national data for top-selling subprime vehicles, based on what our consumers have purchased in the last few months:
Now take a look at which vehicles are being sold the most to subprime buyers in Phoenix, Arizona:
It’s interesting how the 2016 Kia Forte that tops the national list doesn’t even show up in the Phoenix data. A lot of dealers see the Forte as the go-to subprime vehicle, but in Phoenix, AZ, the Nissan Versa is apparently the car to stock.
What should you stock in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas? According to the data below, that 2016 Kia Forte is back on top. But two different pickup trucks have made the list, along with the 2016 Subaru Forester:
Now that we’ve shown you how you can use region-specific data to boost subprime sales, let’s take it another step further and look at how this knowledge can help you increase profits.
Finding the Best Subprime Vehicles in Your Region
In the tables below, we’ve taken each of the top-selling subprime vehicles and cross-referenced them with recent auction value (RAV) data.
We’ve included the NADA Clean Trade for each vehicle, the recent auction value and the difference between these numbers.
The logic here is pretty simple. Basically, you can create a nearly fool-proof auction strategy by doing three things:
- First, get hard data on which vehicles are being sold the most to subprime buyers in your region.
- Next, book these vehicles and subtract their recent auction values from their NADA Fair Trade values to find out which makes and models make the most sense for your consumers.
- Finally, make sure these vehicles are solid, affordable and reliable so your customer will be successful in re-establishing their credit.
Sounds like a pretty good game plan, doesn’t it?
If you need region-specific information for your subprime department, we can provide valuable data. We also offer all of the additional tools and information you’ll need to support your subprime sales.
The team at CarsDirect and Auto Credit Express understands the importance of finding the right lenders, maintaining the right inventory and using the right processes to get the job done. For a personalized market-analysis report for your dealership, fill out this form, or give us a call at 888-535-CARS (2277).
