Has anyone ever applied for an Auto Loan and got approved for the Blank Check through Capital One. If so what was the process like? Did it really work when you went to the Car Lot to choose a vehicle.
I applied and got approved within 2 hours. Didn't use the check since the dealer arranged better financing, but it was a GREAT negotiating tool. The whole transaction with Cap1 was over the phone, I had to fax them a pay stub.
I applied in Jan '02, when they were still known as PeopleFirst. Got approves with low 600/high 500s credit scores, but at a ridiculous 14% rate. Relatively painless process, faxed a bunch of docs (mostly employment verification) to them, and got the check within a few days. Actually, their staff was very helpful. BUT... I went to a Nissan dealer on a Saturday afternoon to purchase a used -- excuse me -- "certified pre-owned" car. Although I had the BlankCheck, they practically insisted on running my credit anyway to see if they could offer a better deal. They also claimed that those checks were difficult to verify on a weekend (SalesHack clearly insinuated it could be countereit -- you had to be there), and that if you have any lates with Cap 1, they can refuse to honor the check. On the other hand, you can be a lot more bold and demanding when you already have a pre-approved loan. And that is always fun at a car dealership.
Using that check worked great for me. Went in, didn't say anything to them other than I would move immediately for the right price... Got offered some basic in house financing, then I told them I already have financing arranged and if they wanted to make the kickback on sending business to their "preferred" lender, they have to beat my current offer. Low and behold, 1 hour later, .5% better rate for same term. It's a really good bargaining tool considering I applied late one night, got a response the next morning and had the check within two days.
Capital One has two types of blank checks - blue and green. Green is the subprime and blue is for sterling credit. Dealers will typically pick up 3 points of rate, whereas Cap 1 seems to be at about a point. As noted in an above post, there was an offer of 14%. If you have bad credit, to walk into a dealership, put nothing down, and provide some routine paperwork, 14% is not the end of the world. Not everyone is entitled to 0% financing for 60 months, although sometimes I feel FICO scores are discriminitory and unfair. Make sure the dealer has an agreement with capital one. And yes, they will want to pull your credit. All they want to do is find a bank that will finance you for a lower rate, and make some money at the same time. This can be an advantage for both you and the dealer. Best thing about it, is that it is generally a great company, and the check itself is an excellent tool for negotiation.
