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FreedomRoad Financial adds retail financing partner

Christini is latest U.S.-based OEM to join lineup

Since 2006, FreedomRoad Financial has provided powersports retail lending to several OEMs, including Triumph, KTM, Husqvarna, MV Agusta and Ural. In 2015, the company added Polaris on-road vehicles and Arctic Cat, and most recently Christini.

Tom Collins, executive vice president and managing director of FreedomRoad Financial, said that the company is very familiar with the powersports space. Collins previously worked for Harley-Davidson Financial for 10 years and says a lot of his employees have similar backgrounds.

“[At first] we signed up a lot of Harley dealers … that’s kind of what we were comfortable with and what we knew. But we always had designed to partner up with an OEM and do their financing,” he said.

Christini’s AWD 450DS has an MSRP of $8,995.
Christini’s AWD 450DS has an MSRP of $8,995.

Triumph was FreedomRoad’s first partner back in 2008. The company also worked with Ducati for five years until Volkswagen bought the OEM, and established their own credit.

Christini Technologies, Inc. has been around since 1999, with the first consumer Christini All Wheel Drive (AWD) motorcycle sold in 2007. According to Christini, its AWD motorcycle technology features “a durable rigid series of shafts and gears to power the front wheel,” and its dual sport motorcycle received its CARB certification to be sold all over the U.S. in 2015.

FreedomRoad saw the potential to support a U.S.-based manufacturer and liked the enthusiasm that founder Steve Christini had in his business: “They have a passion for this business, and that really came through to us, and it’s the same with their customers.”

“We want to help this company be successful. It’s an American-based company. … This is a company we want to see succeed in this marketplace,” said Collins. “We’re all about manufacturers having this success and growing this powersports space and just making it a very full, healthy environment for everybody.”

Currently, FreedomRoad’s offerings include the full-credit five-tier spectrum, from prime loans to the sub-prime market, with corresponding rates. Collins says the program aims to serve as much of the Christini customer base as possible. In addition, the company’s approval rates have been consistent over 2014 and 2015.

For 2016, Collins says the company plans to focus in on its OEM relationships. “We want to develop those relationships and capture a greater share of their finances, a greater share of the retail financing of all of our OEM partners and just further strengthen and build on the relations of our OEM partners and their dealers.”

 

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