WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Reserve announced the latest auto finance trends on Wednesday, and in an interesting turn, the average amount financed at auto lenders showed a significant drop.

This figure came in at $24,405 on new-car loans in August, compared with $28,866 in July and $28,215 in June. The last time this statistic was this low came in the fourth quarter of 2008 when it stood at $24,400.

Continuing on, the Federal Reserve also found that the median loan-to-value ratio dropped in August to 86, compared to 92 in July and 91 in June. In the first quarter of this year the ratio came in at 87, which is the closest to the most recent figure.

Also at auto finance companies, the Fed discovered that the average interest rate on new-car loans is climbing. The most recent figure came in at 4.06 percent, compared with 3.43 percent in July and 3.88 percent in June. During the first quarter the statistic was 4.71 percent.

Meanwhile, the average loan maturity declined a bit to 61.8 months in August, compared with 62.7 in July and 62.7 in June. In the second quarter, this number was 62.1 months.

Over at commercial banks, the Fed said that the average interest rate on a 48-month new-car loan came in at 6.61 percent for the month. Unfortunately, this statistic was not available for July or June; however, this figure was 6.79 percent in the second quarter.

Overall, the Federal Reserve said, "Consumer credit decreased at an annual rate of 5.75 percent in August 2009. Revolving credit decreased at an annual rate of 13 percent, and non-revolving credit decreased at an annual rate of 1.5 percent."