Consumer Car Buying Advice Blog

The Auburn Hills Michigan-based automaker rolls out its nationwide participation in the Michigan Credit Union League Invest in America program.

$10 billion in auto loans

Back in early December, Auto Credit Express Car Loans reported that the Michigan Credit Union League announced that it had joined with the Illinois, Indiana and Ohio credit union associations in a partnership was intended to fill the gap when other lending sources in the Midwest retreated from the retail auto lending market. As a result of this action, 4 million credit union members in Michigan, alone, are eligible for a number of special offers that will run through June of this year.

In the original program, MCUL partnered with General Motors to offer their members the GM supplier discount on any eligible new General Motors vehicle. At the same time, the MCUL also announced that they would be coordinating the pilot program and both Ford Motor Company and Chrysler LLC were invited to participate.

Four days later, Chrysler announced its participation with an even more broadly based program: more money than GM up front (from $500 to $1000 on top of other incentives) with eight more states added to the program.

Further expansion by Chrysler

This week, Chrysler LLC announced a further expansion of their program to cover the entire U.S. The plan remains unchanged with the company offering credit union members $500 or $1,000 in additional discounts on nearly all Chrysler, Jeep(R) and Dodge vehicles; but with the expansion to all 50 states and the addition of more credit union participants, this means that 90 million credit union members will have access to discounts as well as $80 billion for auto loans.

Here is the press release from Chrysler:

AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Jan. 7  – Chrysler LLC announces the nationwide expansion of its participation in the “Invest in America” credit union loan partnership, which offers affordable financing and added vehicle discounts to credit union members anywhere in the U.S. Organized by the Michigan Credit Union League (MCUL), the program allows members who finance the purchase or lease of a new vehicle through their credit union to receive a “Credit Union Member Cash” discount of $500 or $1,000 on nearly all Chrysler, Jeep(R) and Dodge vehicles. This discount is in addition to most existing cash incentives that Chrysler offers on its vehicles.

“Chrysler joined the ‘Invest in America’ program in December as a pilot initiative, and the result was a significant sales lift in the participating states,” said Steven Landry, Chrysler Executive Vice President of North American Sales, Marketing and Mopar Parts and Service. “Financing is a critical concern right now, and the program provides considerable value to our credit union customers and the economy. We are glad that we are now able to offer it nationally.”

Approximately 8,000 credit unions, including the UAW Credit Unions, will participate in the “Invest in America” program, allowing access to $80 billion in auto loans. Nearly 90 million customers will be eligible to take advantage of the discounts and low-cost financing. The program is scheduled to run through June 30, 2009. To gain access to the discount, eligible credit union members must finance their purchase or lease through their credit union.

“The ‘Invest in America’ partnership is very timely for domestic automakers,” said David Adams, president and CEO of the Michigan Credit Union League and CUcorp. “The exclusive credit union member discounts, along with credit union financing, creates a great opportunity for 90 million credit union members nationwide to purchase a new vehicle. The traffic on the lovemycreditunion.org Web site in four weeks has been overwhelming. Consumers are looking for new vehicles and we hope with credit union credit available they can now purchase those new cars and trucks.”

The Bottom Line

As we previously noted, this expanded program is a boon to car buyers all across America. Because in addition to saving money, the new program also ensures that you will have an enjoyable buying experience. Because the price is fixed, you won’t have to haggle with salespeople, nor will you have to go from dealer to dealer to find the lowest price. Here at Auto Credit Express Car Loans, we see it as an expanded win-win situation for all consumers.

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