3.50%
Up to $100,000
12 to 84 months
600
If you want to get a cheaper auto loan by refinancing with lower rates, Southeast Financial Credit Union (SFCU) offers the lowest starting annual percentage rate (APR) of any lender on this list. You’re not limited to traditional car refinancing, either — SFCU refinances special vehicle loans like RV loans and boat loans. And unlike many lenders, SFCU doesn’t limit car mileage or model year.
As is the case with most credit union auto loans, you’ll need to become a member to get a refinance loan. That said, qualifying is easy and costs a total of $10 or less.
To qualify for a refinance loan with Southeast Financial Credit Union, you’ll need a credit score of at least 600.
You’ll also need to become an SFCU member, which requires creating a savings account with a $5 deposit and qualifying with one of the below:
4.09%
Starting at $250
Up to 96 months
Not specified
Navy Federal Credit Union is a lender that specifically caters to current and former military members, as well as their families. Both active duty and retired members of the military can also receive an APR discount for using direct deposit for their loans.
Navy Federal auto refinance loans can only be used by those with ties to the military, and you’ll need to become a member of the credit union before you can apply for a loan. The lender also doesn’t specify how much you can borrow on its website.
Navy Federal Credit Union doesn’t provide insight into its criteria around what vehicles you can refinance and what credit requirements you’ll need to meet. To become a member, though, you’ll need to fall into one of the following criteria:
4.99%
$15,000-$150,000
48 to 96 months
660
If you don’t have great credit, it can be difficult to qualify for a loan unless you have a co-borrower or cosigner. Gravity Lending allows borrowers to apply for auto refinancing with a second person to improve their chances of approval and potentially get lower rates.
But if you need to refinance a small auto loan over a short term, look elsewhere. Gravity Lending only refinances loans that are at least $15,000, and loan terms start at 48 months.
To qualify for an auto refinance with Gravity Lending, you’ll need a car that is less than 10 years old and a credit score of at least 660.
During the application process, you’ll need to provide the following:
5.24%
Up to $150,000
36 to 84 months
Not specified
In the case of death, disability or loss of employment, PenFed Credit Union offers the option of debt protection for a small monthly fee. In these instances, PenFed can cancel your loan balance or monthly payments with no penalties.
Unfortunately, PenFed doesn’t offer much insight as to what it requires if you want to refinance your auto loan. You’ll also need to become a PenFed member before you can receive your loan funds.
PenFed requires that any vehicle you refinance has less than 125,000 miles on it. Aside from that, PenFed doesn’t offer much more information on how to get an auto refinance loan.
To become a PenFed member, you will need to open a savings account with the credit union and make a $5 deposit.
5.29%
$5,000-$150,000
24 to 96 months
500
If you take out a RefiJet auto refinance loan, you have the option to cash in on the equity you’ve built up while paying off your vehicle — this is known as cash-out auto refinancing. Those with bad credit may qualify for a loan through RefiJet, especially since you can add a co-borrower to your application.
If you have an older car or need to refinance a small loan, consider other lenders. Your car needs to be 10 years old or newer, and you need to refinance a minimum of $5,000 to get a loan with RefiJet.
To qualify for a RefiJet auto refinance loan, you’ll need to meet these requirements:
5.49%
$10,000-$150,000
12 to 96 months
560
Auto Approve isn’t a direct lender — instead, it connects consumers with lenders in its network. To make the refinancing process easier on you, it’ll pay off your current lender and take care of any DMV paperwork for you once you close. You can apply with a co-borrower and may qualify even if you have a low credit score.
If you need to refinance a small car loan, you may need to look elsewhere since Auto Approve’s loans start at $10,000. It also charges a $550 doc fee, which is typically rolled into your loan. Some lenders charge doc fees to cover the cost of filing paperwork on your behalf.
To qualify for a car refinance loan with Auto Approve, you’ll need a credit score of at least 560, a vehicle no older than 2005 and mileage under 125,000.
To close on your loan, you will have to provide the following:
5.49%
$250-$500,000
Up to 84 months
620
Consumers Credit Union (CCU) offers a flexible range of loan amounts — from $250 to $500,000 — so even those with small auto loans can refinance if they need to. CCU also allows for non-U.S. citizens to apply for loans, has a low minimum credit score and offers a 0.25% interest rate discount for setting up automatic payments.
Still, like other credit unions, you’ll need to become a member of CCU in order to receive your loan funds. You’ll also have to pay a nominal one-time fee of $5.
To refinance your car loan with Consumers Credit Union, you’ll need a credit score of at least 620.
To become a CCU member, you’ll have to provide a one-time $5 membership fee. You’ll also need to open a Member Share/Savings account and make a $5 deposit.
5.49%
$5,000-$150,000
12 to 96 months
560
With an iLending auto refinance loan, you have the option to skip up to 90 days of payments if your budget won’t allow you to make your car payment that month. Applying for a loan won’t impact your credit score — and even if you have fair or bad credit, you may still be able to get a refi loan through iLending.
While iLending refinances special vehicles like RVs and boats in addition to cars, it doesn’t specify maximum age or mileage restrictions.
To refinance your vehicle with iLending, you’ll need:
5.49%
Starting at $5,000
24 to 72 months
600
myAutoLoan isn’t a direct lender, but it can provide consumers with up to four offers from lending partners. If you’re approved for a refinance auto loan, you may receive your funds within 24 hours. And if you don’t have good credit, myAutoLoan does allow you to use a co-applicant to boost your odds of approval.
However, if your car has more than 125,000 miles on it, you won’t qualify for a car refinance loan through myAutoLoan. Consumers’ ability to contact myAutoLoan is also limited to an online request form, with no direct phone number or email provided on the website.
You’ll need to meet these criteria to qualify for an auto refinance loan on myAutoLoan’s network:
5.90%
$7,500-$100,000
36 to 72 months
460
With a minimum credit score requirement of just 460, OpenRoad Lending provides flexibility for borrowers with less-than-perfect credit. (However, OpenRoad Lending connects consumers to companies on its lending platform, so you’ll still need to meet other criteria to qualify.)
This company also allows consumers to apply with a co-borrower. This can improve your chances of qualifying and help you land lower rates, especially if you have a bad credit score.
To qualify for a loan through OpenRoad Lending, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:
Each lender has different criteria for an auto refinance loan. In general, you’ll need to meet the lender’s minimum credit score and income requirements, and your car may need to fit its mileage and model-year restrictions. That said, you can refinance your car with bad credit — you’ll just likely pay high interest rates.
Refinancing a car loan means replacing your old loan with a new loan that has terms that benefit you in some way. The new loan can either be with a different lender or the same lender. People typically refinance to get lower rates and/or monthly payments, or to shorten their loan term (and pay less in interest).
How soon you can refinance a car loan will depend on how long it takes for the car title to transfer to you. Typically, this takes 60 to 90 days. After that, you should be in the clear to refinance.
Refinancing an auto loan can affect your credit score, since you’ll need to submit to a hard credit pull when you apply for a loan. This can cause your score to drop by a few points temporarily. However, as you repay your car loan, your score will gradually increase again.
It may be a good idea to refinance your car loan if you’re struggling to keep up with payments or you qualify for lower interest rates.
If you’re having trouble keeping up with your current payments, you can refinance your car loan to see if you qualify for lower monthly payments. This may involve getting a longer repayment term to spread out your loan payments more.
If your credit or market conditions have improved since you got your loan, refinancing could help you qualify for lower rates.
Currently, the lowest starting auto refinance rate on our page is 4.09% from Navy Federal Credit Union followed by Southeast Financial Credit Union at 3.50%.
