Wells Fargo Auto Finance will offer online services to dealers with DealerTrack, a Web-based system that automates the automobile dealer-lender process. According to a statement released by Wells Fargo Auto Finance, the online services will be offered at no cost to dealers.

DealerTrack provides an advantage to dealers and customers alike, according to Schliesmann. "Until now, the high cost of usage fees has slowed mass dealer adoption of the Internet as a way to submit and approve credit applications more quickly," Schliesmann said. "Now, dealers can enjoy this convenience and efficiency at no cost, while using DealerTrack to maintain control over the distribution of their applications and provide detailed reporting. Faster turn-arounds can mean increased revenues at the dealership if car-buying customers can gain easy access to instant credit decisions on the showroom floor. By year-end, it is planned that 11 different lending institutions will be on this platform, offering dealers a full choice menu.

“Our 12,000 dealer clients have been waiting a long time for something like this,” Schliesmann said. “With DealerTrack, we will be able to provide them a way to submit customer credit applications to multiple lenders, and receive underwriting decisions electronically at no extra cost – anytime, anywhere that the dealer chooses to work. DealerTrack can supercharge the engine driving the whole auto retail industry.”

“DealerTrack breaks away from the pack by offering 24 hours, 7 days a week service,” said Mark O’Neil, president and chief executive officer of DealerTrack. “We offer participating dealers a significant advantage over having to wait for banking hours. And since we are truly a multi-lender platform, we also give them the ability to choose the financing options that best suits their business needs, and those of their customers.”

According to O'Neil, the DealerTrack system marks a significant improvement over the current, fax-based method of transmitting credit applications and waiting for lender decisions. Instead, dealers signing up for DealerTrack can:

- Submit customer credit applications to multiple lenders online

- Segment lenders/lessors by credit grade, and route applications to their choices

- Receive lender decisions instantaneously and electronically

- Receive extensive reports on the disposition of each application

- Send comments and additional information electronically over the Internet

- Avail themselves of the service 24 hours a day, seven days a week, whenever a customer chooses to purchase a vehicle

DealerTrack also presents product information to streamline future underwriting and communications with the dealer. More than 6,500 dealerships nationwide, both individual stores and large dealer groups are currently enrolled with the DealerTrack system, according to Wells Fargo.

About DealerTrack

DealerTrack (www.dealertrack.com) provides an end-to-end loan and lease transaction channel over the Internet. DealerTrack is owned by J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., AmeriCredit Corp. and Wells Fargo & Co.

About Wells Fargo & Co.

Wells Fargo & Co. (www.wellsfargo.com) is a $280 billion diversified financial services company providing banking, insurance, investments and consumer finance services through more than 5,400 stores.