The rise in late auto loan payments is a symptom of an increasingly unaffordable vehicle market, experts say. Households with the lowest incomes are suffering the most.

Auto loan debt is not yet at a crisis point, according to analysts. But economists are closely following late payments as a potential indicator of wider economic stress and trouble for the U.S. auto industry, which has become increasingly reliant on high-price, high-profit pickups and SUVs.

According to a Nov. 24 note from the Federal Reserve Bank, "auto loan debt increased to levels not observed since the Great Financial Crisis (GFC), raising concerns about the health of household balance sheets."

Late payments have been trending up since 2020. About 3.88% of auto loans were past due as of the end of October, according

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