SCHAUMBURG, Ill., June 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- In the spirit
of the upcoming Fourth of July
holiday, Experian Automotive reviewed the resurgence of the
American muscle car — six high-performance models that were born in
the United States. According to
the study, new registrations of American muscle increased 35.4
percent over the previous nine years. In terms of registration
volume, the Ford Mustang took the top spot (77,000 new
registrations), followed by the Chevrolet Camaro (66,000), the
Dodge Charger (55,000), the Dodge Challenger (50,000), the
Chevrolet Corvette (32,000) and the Dodge Viper (1,000).
"The love of the Mustang combined with the reintroduction of the
Camaro, Challenger and Charger has sparked a resurgence of the
muscle car," said Brad Smith,
Experian's director of automotive statistics. "While the growing
popularity might run contrary to conventional wisdom, consumers are
continuing to show their appreciation for a part of American
history and not steering away from raw horsepower to focus solely
on fuel efficiency."
Purchasing patterns of American muscle cars also are
interesting. The study found that consumers who purchased a
Corvette or a Viper were more likely to pay in cash than those
buying one of the other four models. As many as 40.3 percent of
Corvette and 34.5 percent of Viper buyers paid with cash, which is
a 101.8 percent increase over the next highest model. In terms of
leasing, the Charger was leased most often, with 12.3 percent of
consumers choosing that financing option — a full 64 percent
increase over the next model reviewed in the study.
The study also found that of the models that were purchased with
a loan, the Charger and Challenger were the most likely to have
been bought with extended terms. Nearly 52.4 percent of consumers
who purchased a Charger and 49.6 percent of consumers who purchased
a Challenger had loan terms between 73 and 84 months. Furthermore,
both models had the highest rates of borrowers in the subprime risk
category, with 22.8 percent of consumers who purchased a Charger
and 18.3 percent of those who purchased a Challenger having credit
scores 600 or below.
"With the Viper and the Corvette being on the higher end of the
muscle cars reviewed, it's not that surprising that a higher
percentage of consumers paid for them in cash. Our findings show
that those buyers had the highest credit scores (with the average a
full 26 points higher than the other models), which could indicate
that they have more disposable income," said Melinda Zabritski, Experian's senior director of
automotive finance. "Alternatively, what was surprising is the
picture that emerged around Challenger and Charger buyers. With so
many of those buyers falling into the subprime category and such a
high percentage taking out longer loans, these consumers were
probably offered higher interest rates, which motivated them to
find ways to help keep their payments low."
From a regional perspective, Texas was the biggest supporter of American
muscle, with Texans being 79 percent more likely to buy these cars
than consumers in other areas. The next highest-ranking states were
Oklahoma (75 percent),
Louisiana (67 percent),
New Mexico (63 percent) and
Nevada (53 percent).
On the other end of the spectrum, Vermonters were the least
likely to buy an American muscle car, indexing 70 percent less
likely to purchase. The other states that shied away from the
high-performance vehicles include Maine (68 percent), Massachusetts (67 percent), Connecticut (61 percent) and New Hampshire (59 percent).
"Given the regional disparity between the top and bottom states
for muscle-car preference, one could deduce that weather played a
significant role in the buying process," continued Smith. "While I
am confident that there are people in those states that have love
for American muscle cars, the slippery winter roads of the
Northeast and the rear-wheel drive of muscle cars does not make for
a safe combination."
American muscle car buyers also were found to be most likely
male, indexing 21 percent more likely to buy than females.
Additionally, their age is more likely to be under 40 than the
general population (11 percent more likely), and individuals
earning less than $100,000 per year
are 7 percent more likely to buy.
About Experian Automotive
Experian Automotive provides
information services and market intelligence that enables
results-driven professionals to gain the fullest possible
understanding of the market, the vehicles and the people who buy
them. Its North American Vehicle DatabaseSM houses data
on nearly 700 million vehicles and, when combined with Experian's
credit, consumer and business information, provides an integrated
perspective into the automotive marketplace. Experian Automotive's
AutoCheck® vehicle history reports provide dealers and
consumers with in-depth information, allowing them to confidently
understand, compare and select the right vehicles. For more
information on Experian Automotive and its suite of services, visit
our Website at http://www.experian.com/automotive.
About Experian
We are the leading global information
services company, providing data and analytical tools to our
clients around the world. We help businesses to manage credit risk,
prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision
making. We also help people to check their credit report and credit
score, and protect against identity theft. In 2014, we were
named by Forbes magazine as one of the "World's Most
Innovative Companies."
We employ approximately 17,000 people in 39 countries and our
corporate headquarters are in Dublin,
Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; California, US; and Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and
is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year
ended March 31, 2015, was
US$4.8 billion. To find out more
about our company, please visit http://www.experianplc.com or watch
our documentary, "Inside Experian."
Experian and the Experian marks used herein are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Experian Information Solutions, Inc. Other
product and company names mentioned herein are the property of
their respective owners.
Contact:
Roslyn
Whitehurst
Experian Public Relations
1
714 830
5578
roslyn.whitehurst@experian.com
Twitter:
@RozWhitehurst
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SOURCE Experian Automotive