Americans have never had this much car debt… experts warn it could start a 2008-like recession

The soaring cost of cars and insurance is pushing millions of Americans to the financial brink — and Wall Street is worried it could be the spark for the next recession.

Drivers owe $1.66trillion in car loans — a bigger burden than federal student loan debt or credit cards, and up 20 percent since 2020.

At the same time, years of high inflation have drained household budgets, leaving less money for everyday expenses.

That squeeze is showing up in more missed car payments.

‘Delinquencies, defaults, and repossessions have shot up in recent years,’ the Consumer Federation of America warned in recent analysis.

‘It looks alarmingly similar to trends that were apparent before the Great Recession.’

Back in 2008, banks had been approving car and home loans to poor families who could barely cover monthly payments.

It was this pile of risky loans brought down the economy when interest rates jumped and families couldn’t cover higher payments. That year, 3.1 million homeowners lost their homes.

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