Toyota Offers 0% Financing on 11 Models

After a disastrous September, Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. is taking action to spur sales, offering 0% financing through its captive financing arm on 11 Toyota-brand models through Nov. 3.

Qualifying models include the Corolla, Matrix, and Camry passenger cars, while 0% financing is available on light-truck models the RAV4, Highlander, 4Runner, FJ Cruiser, Sequoia, Tacoma and Tundra, as well as the Sienna minivan, through Toyota Financial Services.

Loan terms range from 36-60 months depending on the model, Toyota says.

Toyota sales fell 29.5% on an adjusted basis in September, a 21-year low for the auto maker, according to Ward’s data.

“Taking aim at the credit squeeze which has sidelined many of today’s new-car buyers, the attractive offer is unprecedented for Toyota,” says the auto maker.

Zero-percent financing has up to this point been a favorite marketing tool of the Detroit Three, with General Motors Corp. employing the tactic to spur new-car sales and lift the economy following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the U.S.

Mitsubishi Motors North America used the tactic to less success early in the decade, seeing numerous buyers default on their loans and putting the auto maker’s sales into a downward spiral.