Mazda Australia is in the process of rolling out a finance division across its national network of 140 dealerships in an attempt to combat tightening credit requirements putting the squeeze on new car dealers across the country.

The introduction of Mazda Finance will give the car manufacturer the opportunity to offer a guaranteed buyback on trade-ins, as well as delivering more enticing finance deals for customers and the dealership.

Mazda Australia head of marketing, Alastair Doak, believes the introduction of in-house financing options will deliver greater benefits to the customer and provide a boost for the declining new market sector.

“Once people understand what that means, it does mean cheaper repayments and you can change your car more often,” said Mr Doak. “That’s good for the consumer and that’s good for us.”

Introducing a finance division could see Mazda make more money on kickbacks from finance deals than they would make on some sales. And with new car sales in decline for the past 19 consecutive months, this could bring a big boost for many dealerships.

However, Mazda claims the introduction of a finance division is not in response to tougher measure to protect consumers laid down by the Banking Royal Commission.

Introducing a finance division is not a new thing among auto manufacturers. Companies including Toyota, Nissan, Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes and Audi already offer financing for customers.

Consumers are still encouraged to shop around and find the best deal for them when it comes to financing, with Mazda still able to help arrange financing through outside lenders.

However, Mazda believes their finance division will allow customers to return their vehicles every three or four years and receive a new one for little to no additional cost.

Original source: Caradvice | Mazda poised to introduce guaranteed future buyback, expand finance division to boost sales

28 Nov 2019