Nothing new really. Some auto mfr's have been doing 8 year loans for a long time. Think Navigator, Expedition, the extra large SUV's and the expensive trucks. The auto loan industry has been talking about a balloon in the waiting, a la housing collapse, calling it the auto loan collapse that's not if, but when. Some people want their extra large SUV for image purposes and they'll do anything to get it, including rolling debt into a new loan that has an 8 year term. I've read about 10 year terms also, which is just crazy.
Add to that the cost of vehicles going up and up. ADAS (automated driving assistance systems) bring more complexity, more ECU's, more sensors, and much more cost. Average price of a new vehicle in the US used to be 30k, it's now 37k, and the mfr's are already predicting 40k average price next year with many auto mfr's putting ADAS as standard equipment on their vehicles, even the lowest trim, pushing that average cost to 40k.
But these facts, figures, and warnings don't define all. I've run 2 loans at one time many times in my life. No terms more than 60 months, 5 figure down payments, and I don't eat outside my kitchen and don't spend my discretionary income the way most do, ie going out to eat a lot, shopping, wasting fuel driving around doing nothing. A lot depends on the individual. I can definitely see someone wanting a Cayman or higher end vehicle, and making the sacrifices necessary to make it affordable. Cutting out pricey vacations, eating out, etc. And some elect to not have children, so that's another massive expense they don't have. But the vast majority, yes, the facts or figures don't lie, they are stretching themselves too thin to keep up with the joneses and the auto loan bubble will burst at some point. I have friends in banking and the banks are already planning for an impending recession.