What is significant is that, yet again, the current expansion has been driven by consumer credit, and consumers look to be coming to the end of their string:

Millions of Americans are struggling with their car payments, and even economists are surprised.

According to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, more than 7 million Americans have reached serious delinquency status on their auto loans, meaning they’re at least 90 days behind on payments.

Fed economists said this is “surprising” considering a strengthening labor market and economy.

People often prioritize car loans because many need to drive to get to work and earn a paycheck, The Washington Post’s Heather Long reported. The fact that a record number of Americans aren’t making those payments is “usually a sign of significant duress among low-income and working-class Americans,” Long wrote.

“The substantial and growing number of distressed borrowers suggests that not all Americans have benefitted from the strong labor market and warrants continued monitoring and analysis of this sector,” Fed economists wrote in a blog post dissecting the report.

This is supposed to be a historically strong economy, and people cannot keep up their car payments after decades of cut-backs to mass transit.

This will not be pretty.