Ford is looking to clear out its 2006 stock by offering 0% financing for 72 months to almost everyone, even those with sub-prime credit ratings. Usually when you see a 0% financing offer the small print excludes anyone with poor credit. Now Ford is opening its arms to everyone, but only through Sept. 4. The program includes all Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles, including the Ford F-Series pickup. Only the Ford GT supercar is excluded from the sale.
Some pundits will point to Mitsubishi offering a similar deal a few years ago and note how it led to hard financial times for the automaker after many buyers defaulted on their loans. For such a limited sale, the impact on Ford should be far less harmful than was Mitsubishi’s long-term program. It seems like Ford is simply saying, “Take a risk on us and we’ll take a risk on you.” We’ll see how it pans out.
[Ford to Offer Zero-percent Financing, MarketWatch]
