BANDON, Ore. — Subprime approvals in March showed gains for the used- and new-vehicle sides of the market, according to the latest analysis from CNW Research, which said this uptick in approvals follows what has been the trend during the last half year, the firm indicated.

"As we've seen over the past six months, subprime approvals are up," explained Art Spinella, president of CNW. "This is for both new and used vehicles."

For the new-vehicle market in particular, the hike in March was stronger than 28 percent year-over-year, CNW noted. Spinella pointed out that: "Slightly more than 12 percent of all subprime finance applications are now receiving positive loan authorizations."

Drop in FICO Scores

Continuing on, CNW also pointed that that FICO scores were down again this month, noting that shoppers who "were just a year ago marginal buyers" continue to get green-lighted for car loans.

It indicated that for an average new-vehicle buyer, the score is 688.15. Leasing and balloon-note options are both included in this figure.

Since January 2010, the average FICO has been on a rather consistent drop.

"The share of FICO scores for new vehicles under 670 flattened out somewhat on a trend basis, but continues to climb incrementally and now stands at roughly 12.78 percent (projection for March)," Spinella noted.

Used Financing Numbers

Moving along, CNW shared some of its financing data on the used-vehicle front. The firm found that in February the number of used vehicles that were financed came in at 851,802 units. In February 2010, 734,077 used units were financed.

Furthermore, the share of used transactions that were financed came in at 47.26 percent, up from 45.53 percent a year ago. Cash transactions were at 52.74 percent in February, down from 54.47 in February 2010.

"As with the new-car side, financing is becoming somewhat easier, which in turn is diminishing the need to buy a car or truck with cash," Spinella explained.

He added that although the 851,802 used units financed in February is smaller than the 943,200 financed the month before, "the overall vehicle sales decline is well within the norm for the two-month comparison, especially considering the impact weather had on floor traffic."