SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — Officials from Automotive Credit Corp., based in Michigan, reached out to SubPrime Auto Finance News late last week to report the company is thriving and expanding.

In fact, Tony Stallworth, vice president of sales and marketing, said, "We doubled our dealership base last year, and that is split between franchised dealers and independent dealerships."

Moreover, the company also added six new states to its coverage, including Kansas, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Alabama and Maryland.

In a statement, ACC officials said, "There has been some recent confusion between our company Automotive Credit Corp. based in Michigan and a separate, independent entity Automotive Consumers Corp. based in California.

"Current articles have announced ACC (California) as out-of-business with little clarity as to which company they are referring to," the release indicated. "This has prompted many banks, media outlets and dealerships alike to contact our office to find out more about the status of Automotive Credit Corp.

"Our company, however, is healthy and prosperous with 2008 being the most successful year to date," according to the statement. "While many of our competitors have closed their doors or scaled down their operations, ACC has stayed a leader in the subprime finance industry with consistent strong management, consistent buying and consistent funding."

Dealers interested in signing on with ACC are invited to e-mail Stallworth at [email protected].

More information is available at www.automotivecredit.com.