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As auto loans stretch longer and negative equity piles up, one former prosecutor explains why transparency—not pressure—might be the most profitable move dealers can make.

Robert Steenbergh didn’t come up through the showroom—he came from the courtroom. After years as a prosecutor and later representing dealers as an attorney, Robert saw both sides of the auto industry’s biggest tension point: compliance versus profitability. What surprised him most wasn’t dealer intent, but how over-regulation, fear-based selling, and rushed F&I processes quietly eroded trust with customers.

In this conversation, Robert breaks down why today’s affordability crisis isn’t just about higher prices—it’s about longer loan terms, growing negative equity, and decisions that feel “possible” today but hurt both dealers and customers tomorrow. From bi-weekly payment acceleration to why fully compliant dealers actually see higher penetration, this episode challenges some of the most common assumptions in modern F&I—and offers a practical path forward that benefits everyone in the deal.

Timestamped Takeaways

00:00 – You Were There, But You Weren’t There

01:44 – From Prosecutor to the Car Business

03:26 – Why Compliance Feels Impossible for Dealers

04:10 – Transparency Is More Profitable Than Fear-Based Selling

05:56 – Training, Tracking, and Firing to Protect Trust

06:45 – Customers Don’t Say No Because of Information

08:06 – Why F&I Feels Like a Timeshare Experience

10:07 – The Case for Putting F&I Education on Dealer Websites

12:18 – The Real Risk of 84- and 96-Month Auto Loans

13:38 – The $6,500 Negative Equity Wake-Up Call

14:00 – How Bi-Weekly Payments Accelerate Equity Without Pain

17:49 – Using AI to Design the Next Product, Not Just the Next Feature

18:49 – Turning Affordability Into a Retention Strategy

22:10 – Trust Isn’t a Buzzword—It’s a System

Connect with Robert Steenbergh, Esq. at https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertsteenbergh/

Learn more about AutoPayPlus at https://autopayplus.com/partners/

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