Credit unions’ share had been in a range of about 17% to 22% in the two years before the pandemic. It then peaked at nearly 30% in 2022’s third quarter before falling to a low of 13.0% in last year’s fourth quarter.

The percent of vehicles bought with cash has been increasing for used cars from about 58% in 2023 to 37% in 2025. For new cars, leasing has risen from 19% in 2023 to nearly 25% in 2025.

Overall, captives retained the largest share of the combined total of new and used car loans and leases, but lost the most ground:

• Captives’ share was 29.8% in the first quarter, down from 31.3% a year earlier and 30.6% in the fourth quarter.
• Banks’ share was 26.6% in the first quarter, up from 24.8% a year earlier and down from 27.2% in the fourth quarter.
• Credit unions’ share was 20.6%, up from 20.2% a year earlier and 19.4% in the fourth quarter.

“For the first time in years, we’re seeing banks expand market share and reassert their presence in a growing and competitive market,” Melinda Zabritski, Experian’s head of automotive financial insights, said.

“This shift counters many of the trends we observed in the post-pandemic era, where high interest rates and the re-emergence of new inventory allowed captives to push heavy incentives and capture significant market share,” Zabritski said.

“Credit unions have also seen a slight increase in share year-over-year, but certainly not where they were back in 2023 when they picked up a tremendous amount of market share,” she said.

Credit unions remained at the No. 2 spot for used cars. Banks led slightly with 28.4% of used car loans in the first quarter, up from 27.9% a year earlier and down from 28.7% in the fourth quarter.

Credit unions originated 28.2% of used car loans, up from 27.6% a year earlier and 27.5% in the fourth quarter.

The Experian report released June 5 also showed average credit scores have been rising steadily since the pandemic. Scores for new car buyers rose from 737 in 2019 to 756 in 2025. Scores for used car buyers rose from 655 in 2019 to 684 in 2024 and 2025. Superprime has been rising while subprime and deep subprime has been falling.

While new loan amounts increase slightly, loan payments are up.

The average amount financed for new cars was $41,720 in the first quarter, up 2.7% from $40,610 in 2024’s first quarter and up 1.5% from $41,111 in 2023.

The average rate on a new car loan was 6.73% in the first quarter, down from 6.85% a year earlier and up from 6.64% two years earlier.

The average term was 68.6 months, up from 67.8 months a year earlier, but the same as two years earlier.

The average new car loan payment was $745 in the first quarter, up from $737 a year earlier and $732 two years earlier.

Used loan amounts rose, while payments fell.

The average used car loan was $26,144 in the first quarter, up 0.3% a year earlier and down 1.6% from two years earlier. Loan rates were 11.87%, down from 12.36% a year earlier and up from 11.42% two years earlier.

The average term was 67.2 months, about the same as a year earlier and down from 67.3 months two years earlier. Nearly 70% of terms were for 72 months or more.

The average used car payment was $521 a month in the first quarter, down from $524 a year earlier and about the same as two years ago.

For used car loans, 34% of payments were under $400 per month, and 10% were $800 or more. For new car loans and leases, 10% of payments were less than $400, while 33% paid $800 or more.

Despite rising car values, loan-to-value is down for both new and used loans.

The average new vehicle loan was 109.8% of its manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) in the first quarter, down from 110.1% a year earlier and 113.6% two years earlier.

Used car buyers borrowed an average of 112.9% of the clean retail value of their vehicle in the first quarter, down from 125.1% a year earlier and 123.5% two years earlier.

The 60-day-plus delinquency rate for auto loans was 0.81% of their balance in the first quarter, up from 0.80% a year earlier and up from 0.69% two years earlier. It was 0.78% for new cars and 1.48% for used cars.

Contact Jim DuPlessis at [email protected].