How do you navigate payments with Toyota Financial?

Let’s start by saying last time I had a car payment was early 2000…
Calling Toyota and having a little discussion and making sense of their operation and practices in regards to the loan, I find out paying reoccurring larger monthly payment only buys you last time to pay off the loan and the additional funds, do not go to principal only to my understanding.
Maybe just a wash at the end, but maybe somebody smarter than me can give me some perspective?
I was going to throw an extra minimum of $100 a month on top of my normal payment.
They also explained to me there’s no way to set up auto pay for principal only payments, I have to go in and manually do it monthly…
Is there a work around?
How do you guys navigate this?
My understanding it makes more financial sense to throw the additional funds into principal only versus just making a monthly larger payment.
End of the day it would cost less doing it that way, but sounds like more drama and just have to do it manually monthly.
I think I’m done rambling, maybe…
Thanks!!

this better explains what I’m trying to say:
toyota financial Paying $100 extra on my car payment versus making separate principal only payments

 

Yes unfortunately they make it so you have to click more buttons to do a principal only payment. It’s likely set up that way to confuse us because it benefits them if we don’t know how to do it properly and or forget to.

I don’t have auto pay set up at all, so for me it’s just habit to do a regular payment then principal only on top of it.

 

You can do this on the web page or app. You can choose monthly. You can choose pay towards principal. No way to set up reoccurring towards the principle though, sorry. Just setup reoccurring monthly and go on once a month to make a payment towards the principle. Maybe some months you can swing more than 100, so maybe it will work out more in your favor.

 

Can't you got to your bank and get a loan and pay off the balance?

Then you can pay off the note monthly and specify that any extra money goes to the principle.

 

So regardless, hands-down, it still does make more sense to do principal only payments versus just giving them a larger monthly payment. End of the day more money in my pocket doing the principal only…
Even though it’s more drama, but I get it..
Thanks for the brain massage again..

 

I bank with a credit union, San Diego county credit Union, but Toyota giving us 3.9% interest rate right now, my bank isn’t gonna touch that…
Also, now it’s considered a used car so you get a higher interest-rate if I do some sort of refi, won’t make sense…
I put a nice chunk down, so I’m not in a bad position…

 

True, but if you make extra payments, does the interest rate really apply? You are paying on the principle, so in reality the IR would be much lower.

 

I am really struggling with your advice... He has a low interest rate, why open another loan which will have a higher one?

If you pay more on principle there is less to put the interest against, thats kinda the whole point.

 

You can pay 2 payments each month if you want, I mean normal payments then you send principle payment separately.

or

Leave the normal reoccurring payments alone and you can save extra money on the side and when the balance is good enough for you to pay it off, then grab large sum of cash or a check then head to the financial office to pay it off. Your truck is officially yours for good.

 

Dont come to offroad enthusiast forum for financial advise, got it....
No cheat or hack to simplify & put it on autopilot,
just make the minimum monthly auto re-occurring payment...
Then an additional monthly "principal only payment" via Toyota Financial website or the app using the P.O.P. tab...
Got it!

 

If you make extra payment along with your monthly payment in 1 payment, the extra money does not go to principal only...
The additional overage that youre assuming goes to principal only, infact goes to paying down the interest you owe also...
It doesnt go to principal only.
let say my monthly is $200 & I pay extra $200, so 1 large payment monthly of $400, the $200 overage doesnt go to principal only...
cuz of the fact that its 1 payment & not separate.

 

Ah that’s sad they design their system to not credit the over payment to principal, and instead as credit to future interest at the end of the loan. It’s definitely putting profits over people. Good on you for actually realizing it and doing the right way to benefit you. Sadly most people don’t get it these days…

 

I had to specifically ask to setup my mortgage to allow me to even do that. Lots don't allow it at all. Some mortgages if you pay twice a month you can cut months off the end of the payment term. And thats without paying extra, just paying half 2 weeks into the month.

Lots of folks dont understand interest, and I am far from an expert.

 

Check out this link.

https://www.toyotafinancial.com/us/en/TFS_ThoughtFuel_Blog/Principal-Only-Payments.html

 

Yes, as TFS explained it to me as such...
But figure it was like other various loans, like your mortgage payment, other loans, credit card payment etc....
In those scenarios, any overage goes directly to principal only.
No need to make separate payments & spell it out for them, "principal only", every month...
Seems dumb & antiquated to me...
Ive had plenty of loans over the years where you just make a simple one-time call & they set-up the acct with the understanding that any overage goes to principal only every time.
Most, you dont even need to make the call...

 

TFS is pretty dumb and antiquated. They just recently updated the site to make it look the way it does. Hell, not every page has been fully updated yet and I’d say it’s been close to a year since the roll out. Half the time when I go to log in, it says “Sorry, there’s and error on our end. Try again later” and 9 times out of 10 I can just close that box and log in just fine.
It’s an awful site.

 

If Toyota can't figure out a way to discourage people from buying their products that have nothing to do with the vehicle.

I'd just pay the monthly term agreed upon when you bought the vehicle.

 

Set the 100 / mo aside and make a $1k payment to principal every 10 months

Refinance at a CU if you can score a better rate.

 

Nnnnooooooo
Why would you do that to yourself????
Should always be in a position that your payment is in a range where paying extra isn’t going to kill you….
Why would you want to take the full term of the loan to pay it off and give them all that extra money and interest?????
Tossing a few extra consistent $$$ at it monthly would considerably shorten year term and expense…

 

I wasn't thinking about the interest, and you are right paying the loan off early will save you on interest.

I was just thinking about what I would have agreed to at the time of the loan, and I would have been comfortable with rate and able to make the payments for the length of the loan.

I try to get intrest free loans it's one thing that motivates me at the time of purchase, but that usually isn't the case with Toyota, I have seen dealers advertise 0% on Toyotas but I think that's the dealer incentive and not TFS.