Late Car Payments Are High, But Lenders Are Still Lending - Jalopnik

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Happy Monday! It's August 24, 2026, and this is The Morning Shift — your daily roundup of the top automotive headlines from around the world, in one place. This is where you'll find the most important stories that are shaping the way Americans drive and get around.

In this morning's edition, we're looking at the availability of auto credit in these times of delinquent loans, and not one but two NHTSA investigations into GM. We'll also look at European EV sales, and a GM union contract in Canada. 

If you'd like a recap of the latest auto news sent to your inbox each weekday, you can sign up for Jalopnik's free Morning Shift newsletter here.

1st Gear: Late car payments are almost at record highs, but credit is still easy to get

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Car loan delinquencies are almost at record highs — second only to the record set earlier this year. You might think that would make lenders tighten their restrictions, rein in their loans, but you'd be wrong. In fact, more credit is available for auto loans than ever. From Automotive News: 

Lenders remain eager to finance dealership customers despite a near-record portion of auto debt falling three months behind on payments during the second quarter.

The Dealertrack credit availability index rose to 105 in July, up 6.9 percent from a year earlier to signal potentially the loosest auto credit environment in nearly 11 years, according to Cox.

And the Federal Reserve's surveys of senior bank loan officers this year found most haven't changed their auto lending policies, and the few who did tended to ease up.

"We're seeing credit availability healthy out there," Asbury Automotive Group CEO Dan Clara told Automotive News on July 28.

Meanwhile, 5.5 percent of the nation's auto debt was at least 90 days behind on payments during the second quarter, up 0.5 percentage points from a year earlier, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, whose research incorporates Equifax data.

It was second-highest rate of "serious" delinquencies in the more than 20 years the New York Fed has been tracking the statistic, just shy of the record 5.6 percent during the first quarter of 2026.

Sure, yeah, bubbles are "bad" or whatever, but have you considered they're also very fun and shiny? And that it's exciting to see them pop? 

2nd Gear: NHTSA is looking into GM's engines and brakes

Cadillac

Today's not a great day to be General Motors. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating the automaker not only for its engines, but for its brakes. From Reuters:

WASHINGTON, Aug 21 (Reuters) – The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Friday it has upgraded and expanded a probe ​into nearly 1 million General Motors pickup trucks and SUVs over engine failures ‌that led to a recall in 2025.

The agency said it was opening an enginering [sic] analysis, a higher-level investigation than the a formal review it began this year to determine ​if the company's fix was effective.

An engineering analysis is a required ​step before the agency could seek to compel an expanded recall ⁠or additional repairs.

The vehicles under investigation are Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Suburban, ​Tahoe and GMC Yukon, Sierra 1500 models equipped with L87 engines from the 2021 ​to 2026 model years.

GM in 2025 recalled nearly 600,000 vehicles from the 2021 to 2024 model years to address engine failure concerns, citing a supplier's quality issues. In many ​cases, engines failed while vehicles were moving.

And from the Wall Street Journal:

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expanding its investigation into GM's electronic braking system after receiving several complaints.

The administration's office of defects investigation had opened a preliminary evaluation in April after receiving complaints about a loss of brake assistance in 2023 MY Cadillac Lyriq vehicles.

The NHTSA is opening a further analysis after receiving more complaints to assess the safety-related consequences of a failed eBoost system when braking. The agency is also expanding the scope of its investigation to encompass all GM vehicles that use the system.

The expanded evaluation includes nearly 1.2 million vehicles that could be potentially affected. There have been 745 total reported incidents, including 22 crashes or fires and five injury incidents.

Luckily, there are no vehicles that use both the engine and the braking system that are under investigation. Still, not a great look to have the things that make your cars go and stop under investigation at the same time — especially when the latter investigation extends beyond just your own cars, and into the Honda and Acura models badge-engineered from your work. 

3rd Gear: EVs are still hot in Europe

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The U.S. has thrown in the towel on electric car sales, but Europe is still interested in having a habitable planet past the next eight years. As such, electric cars are firmly there to stay on the continent — and sales numbers reflect it. From Reuters: 

LETCHWORTH, England, Aug 24 (Reuters) – Electric vehicle sales accelerated across much of Europe in July, as high oil prices, subsidies and availability of more ​affordable models encouraged consumers to ditch their combustion-engine cars, data provided to Reuters showed.

EV sales have soared across Europe since the Iran war began in February ‌and caused pain at the pump. The big question for many in the auto industry is whether consumer interest will fade if and when oil prices retreat, while a lack of public charging options remains a major concern.

"People are looking for ways to protect themselves from volatility in fuel prices and EVs are a great way to do that," Renault (RENA.PA), opens new tab UK managing director Adam Wood told Reuters at the French automaker's ​dealership in Letchworth, 40 miles (64 km) north of London.

"We're at a tipping point where EVs ... are part of the mainstream."

Two years ago, just 10% of Renault's UK sales ​were electric. By contrast, in July this year EVs made up more than 50% of the company's orders and the Renault 5 – a ⁠revived version of the top-selling Renault model originally launched in 1972 – was last month Britain's best-selling electric car, its original boxy shape having evolved into a more curvy design offering ​what Renault's website says is a range of up to 250 miles.

Imagine that, actually normalizing alternative fuels in hopes of keeping your planet habitable for the future. I wish we could do similar in the United States, but it's simply not possible here. Because of distances, or rural voters, or something.

4th Gear: GM and Unifor have tentative agreements for four Ontario plants

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As trade negotiations between the U.S. and Canada falter, particularly around the automotive world, GM still seems committed to making things work across the border. As such, it's come to a tentative agreement with Canadian union Unifor that pertains to four Ontario factories. From Automotive News: 

Unifor and General Motors have reached tentative agreements covering more than 4,600 unionized workers at four GM facilities in Ontario, setting the stage for ratification votes later this month.

The agreements cover members of Unifor Locals 222, 88, 199 and 636 at GM's Oshawa Assembly Plant, CAMI Assembly Plant in Ingersoll, St. Catharines Propulsion Plant and Woodstock Parts Distribution Centre.

The deals were unanimously endorsed by Unifor's GM Master Bargaining Committee, the union said Aug. 22.

"Our bargaining committee worked diligently to reach these agreements, which deliver strong income and benefit gains, amid some of the most challenging times in our history," Unifor National President Lana Payne said in a statement.

The negotiations began Aug. 10, shortly after Unifor members at Ford Motor Co. ratified a new collective agreement that established the pattern for bargaining with the Detroit Three automakers.

That deal locked in three-per-cent annual wage increases, $10,000 signing bonuses and a more than $1-billion investment commitment from Ford to support ongoing vehicle and engine production in Canada.

Good for the Canadian workers. Hopefully this deal isn't shattered by our ongoing extremely dumb trade war. 

Reverse: A Stonewall heroine

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History.com doesn't have an article for it, but today is Marsha P. Johnson's birthday! 

The Fuel Up

AAA

We're down from last week! A less scrupulous outlet would allow you to bet on these swings, and skim some off the top as fees, but we've got scruples coming out of our ears over here. 

On The Radio: Mimi Zima - 'Back of the Truck'

I finally watched "The People's Joker" last night, after putting it off for years out of comic book movie fatigue. I shouldn't have postponed, it's a great one. This song was used excellently in it.