Toyota offers interest-free loans in bid to boost sales

Toyota Motor Corp., trying to reverse a U.S. sales slump, said Thursday that it was offering no-interest loans on 11 models for the next month, the first time the company has used free financing across so many models.

Shares of the world’s second-largest automaker fell to a three-year low after the news, dropping as much as 4.9% to 4,100 yen, or $38.61, in early trading today in Tokyo.

Starting this week through Nov. 3, customers with good credit can take loans lasting 36 to 60 months, spokesman Xavier Dominicis said.

The program “recognizes that there are a number of consumers who think that auto loans are tough to come by,” Dominicis said. “If you’ve got good credit, that’s not the case.”

The program applies to purchases of Matrix hatchbacks, Corolla small cars, Camry sedans, Highlander, RAV4, FJ Cruiser, 4Runner and Sequoia sport-utility vehicles, Sienna minivans and Tacoma and Tundra pickups, he said, excluding hybrid versions.

On Wednesday, Toyota reported a 32% drop in U.S. sales last month, the biggest such decline since 1987.