Volvo buyers had the highest average credit score in a recent study from Experian Automotive – not a more prestigious brand like Mercedes-Benz, say, or Porsche as you might expect.
That means Volvo had the most-creditworthy customers, with the least debt and best record of paying their bills, reports Forbes.com.
“We have the highest average in the industry,” said Tony Nicolosi, President of Volvo Car Financial Services in the US LLC, in a recent interview.
Volvo’s average in the third quarter of 2012 was 818 on a 1,000-point scale. The industry average for new-vehicle loans was 755, Experian said.
That’s good news for Volvo because the Swedish brand has been trying for years to take its brand image upscale.
Volvo wants to be a “must” on the shopping list for high-end premium brands, like the German luxury makes or Toyota’s Lexus Division, but Volvo isn’t usually seen as being in the same league.
In the Experian study, Lexus, Acura, Audi, Infiniti, Jaguar, Porsche, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz and Lincoln were also among the top 10 brands.
That’s also particularly good news for Lincoln. Parent company Ford Motor Company recently re-launched the Lincoln brand in a renewed effort to re-establish Lincoln’s luxury-brand credentials.
The Experian results come with a couple of cautions.
One is that there’s a strong element of self-fulfilling prophecy in a brand’s average credit score. A brand could get to the top of the list if its preferred lender is too picky, even if that means some shoppers get turned down.
Conversely, a prestigious brand like BMW could miss the top 10 by being a little more permissive, without endangering its high-end image in the long run.
The other caution is that credit scores are an important factor auto lenders use to approve or disapprove a loan, but not the only factor.
There’s also the so-called “structure” of a loan, especially how big the down payment is, relative to the total value of the deal. A bigger down payment could more than make up for a less-than-perfect credit score. Some auto lenders also concoct their own customised credit scores.
Lenders use your credit score to help them decide how likely it is that they will be repaid on time if they give you a loan or a credit card, according to the Experian web site.
Your personal credit score is built on your credit history, such as how often you make late payments.
It also takes into account how much debt you have, and how many different accounts, like auto loans, credit cards and mortgages.
Experian Automotive is a unit of Experian plc, one of the three main credit bureaus, with US headquarters in Costa Mesa, Califonia.