They don't report to the credit bureau, so if you make payments then your credit still wont have any activity placed to it. I would personally just save up a little cash and get something used or go to a regular dealer; that's just me though. Also, buy here pay here places are known for doing foul shyt to people. On the plus side if you ever get tired of the car, you can just stop paying with no repercussions against your credit.
Came in to say this.....
@BrothaZay
You can do 2 things other than pick up a vehicle at one of those "buy here, pay here" lots.... You can try to find an individual seller that has the car you want that is also in good condition, or you can just bite the bullet by going up to the dealership to see if they can work some magic. It will improve your credit in the long run AND you SHOULD have a decent, clean car that won't break down... and if it does, it'll be under warranty.
I've done the "buy here, pay here" lots. If you know how to shop for cars, then you should be able to pick up one that won't be shytty after you leave from the lot (as in my case). As
@1 other person has stated, most of those lots that do their own financing, don't report to credit bureaus, so you're paying into nothing but the dealership's bottom line with that high interest, and sometimes multiple payments per month (Car Mart is notorious for this). I wouldn't purchase a car from these types of lots unless I've exhausted every avenue possible and/or they have the car you want (in good to great condition).
I had very fukked up credit when I got my 2011 Malibu, but I was patient and smart about my purchase. I have a repossession on my history and several delinquent bills on my report (I'm black too... lol). My local Toyota dealer got financing for about 10-13K. It was a shock because they usually help everyone, but they had to work a miracle for me. What killed the deal was that these fools wanted to sell me a YARIS...... I couldn't do a YARIS, no matter how bad I needed a car (I'm a big dude and it's a compact car... hell naw to the naw naw naw). I walked away from guaranteed financing over a Yaris! (Sure did).
So I went to plan B, which should have been plan A.... Get your loan through your bank, or better yet, your CREDIT UNION. If you have a good credit union in your area, open up at least a savings account(both would be ideal). Stack bread in that savings account... 5K is a good starting point. The more, the better. Next, if you have any delinquent bills that are still in collection, PAY THEM OFF, preferably to the person to whom owe the debt(never pay the collection agency that bought your account... it will save you headache and trouble in the long run). PAY THEM ALL OFF, INCLUDING CREDIT CARDS, AUTO REPOS, ETC!!!
I got a loan for 15,000 from my local credit union because although I had a repo and delinquent bills, I paid them off. That showed good faith. Secondly, all that money I told you to have in that savings account will show that you ain't broke! They will look at your accounts to see if you have the money and make the money necessary to pay off the loan. I had about 7.5K between all of my accounts... my car was 14,895.00.... so I had half of the total in my account. Makes for an easy decision. Lastly, I had consistent work history for almost a whole year.
These factors got me my whip... (from my local Chevy dealer) I wanted a truck but they are expensive(new or used), so I had to settle. It was a car I liked, so I was happy to settle.
This is basically how I got my car with a credit score in the low 500's. With a very fair interest rate (Credit Unions are generally more fair than dealerships).