7-Year Car Loan
A 7-year car loan might just be the right option for you. Get a quick quote with Savvy today and compare great offers from over 25 lenders Australia wide.
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Savvy Editorial TeamFact checked
Compare 7-year car loans
The term of a car loan can range between one year to seven years. The various loan terms are designed to help applicants in different circumstances. Finding the right term for your loan can make it easier for you to manage your finances.
Lenders determine loan terms based on a car’s age. A car cannot be older than 15-20 years at the end of the loan term. Therefore, applying for a 7-year car loan, it is safest for you to purchase a car that is not older than 8 years. Your age might make a difference, as well. Lenders will determine your situation more carefully if you are heading towards retirement when you apply for a car loan.
Stretching a car loan out to seven years in length is one of the most effective methods to ensure that your monthly instalments are affordable. At Savvy, we’re partnered with a range of lenders who allow you to stretch your car loan’s term all the way up to seven years.
We’re dedicated to finding the best loan for your needs. Our diligent consultants will review the top offers on the market, only considering those that go up to seven years, to help you secure the cheapest and most suitable car finance. You can get the process started with a quick quote, which will only take a few minutes to fill out.
The key features to look for on a 7-year car loan
Manageable instalments
Because of the length of your car loan, you’ll save month to month on repayments and potentially free up further funds to use for other purposes.
Borrowing up to your car’s value
You can be approved for a loan worth up to your car’s sale value, with other on-road costs such as registration and stamp duty also able to be included.
Lower interest rates
Because seven-year loans typically deal with larger loan sums than short-term deals, you can enjoy competitive rates tailored to your borrowing profile from trusted Australian lenders.
Quick funding in just 48 hours
Your car loan is able to be processed rapidly, with as few as 48 hours between submitting your quick quote and having the funds sent to your seller.
Pay out your loan early
Save money on your car loan by choosing one of our many lenders who offer free additional repayments and low or no early settlement fees.
Pay by your own schedule
As part of your loan, you get to decide whether to make contributions on a monthly, fortnightly or weekly basis towards your car financing deal.
Why choose Savvy for your car loan?
100% online application
Enjoy completing your entire application from the comfort of your home, with our web portals even accessible via your smartphone.
Decades of combined experience
Our brokers understand our lenders and their products inside and out, so they’re best placed to find you the perfect deal.
Over 25 lenders nationwide
With a greater number of lenders amongst our partnered panel, you’ll benefit from more choice and more competition.
What are pros and cons of 7-year car loans?
PROS
Lower repayments
As seven-year loan terms are stretched out more than those of average car loans, your repayments will be lower.
Higher financed amount
Lenders calculate your affordability based on your expenses and income. A longer loan term will lower your repayments. These low repayments will also allow you to borrow more from the lender.
CONS
Higher interest payable
The unfortunate reality is that the longer your loan term is, the more interest you'll pay.
Underwater
A car loan is ‘underwater' when the amount you owe to the lender is higher than your car's market value. You need to be aware of the risk that you are taking on with a 7-year loan.
More pressure towards the end of the loan term
Cars often require higher repair and maintenance costs after a certain age. It is easy to overlook these expenses when applying for a 7-year car loan. If you do not take all the expenses into account, you may end up with a cost crunch in the last few years of your loan.
What are my options for paying off my loan early?
Consider a down payment
If you pay a deposit upfront when purchasing your car, you won't need to borrow as much from your lender. Assuming the amount you can afford doesn't change, your required loan term is likely to be shorter.
Add a co-borrower
You can add a co-borrower to your loan so that both of you are contributing to its repayments. This will enable you to pay back the loan at a faster rate. Your co-borrower will usually be your partner, but they can be a parent in some cases.
Go for a 5-year car loan
Although 7-year loan terms have grown in popularity, a 5-year car loan is still by far the most widely used loan term when it comes to car financing. These serve as a comfortable middle ground between longer terms up to seven years and shorter terms down to one.
Refinance
You can also choose to refinance your 7-year loan into a shorter loan. Not only will refinancing shorten your repayment schedule, but if you have a good track record on previous loans, you may be able to get a loan with a lower interest rate. Talk to one of our consultants to find a shorter term loan that best suits you.
Early termination
Most lenders allow borrowers to repay their loan ahead of schedule. However, there might be an early termination fee involved. In this scenario, you should work out whether it's more cost-effective to pay out your loan early or continue to make repayments.
What our customers say about their finance experience
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Frequently asked car loan questions
Yes – unsecured car loans are essentially just personal loans, which enables you to bypass the age restrictions on your chosen vehicle and not put any assets forward for your financing.
They can also be processed far more quickly than car loans at just 24 hours from application to the funds being transferred to your account. However, borrowing for these loans is capped at $50,000 and rates are higher than their secured counterparts.
Yes – you can extend a car lease to seven years from five by refinancing the residual at its conclusion. Aside from this, though, leases, hire purchases and chattel mortgages generally only run up to a maximum of five years in length.
Increasing your credit rating is one effective way of reducing your interest. You can do this by paying off existing debts and lowering limits on your credit cards (as well as getting rid of those which you don’t need). Also, selecting a new or near-new car is likely to improve your interest rate, while you’re at an advantage if you’ve successfully repaid a similar financing arrangement in the past.
Lenders determine loan terms based on a car’s age. A car cannot be older than 20 to 25 years at the end of your loan term. Therefore, when applying for a 7-year car loan, you’ll need to purchase a car whose age fits your lender’s parameters.
Your age might make a difference, too. Lenders will determine your situation more carefully if you are heading towards retirement when you apply for a car loan.
When comparing the top car loan offers, you should be primarily be looking at the interest and comparison rates, the latter of which provides an indication of the combined interest and fees.
You should also consider whether each lender affords you the freedom to make free early repayments, redraw funds and set your own payment schedule.