Toyota clamors for kids in virtual cars

For children living in the United States, with its record budget deficit and a population affected by credit-card-itis, it may never be too early to learn about debt.

And now tweens can get a debt-financing lesson in Whyville, a virtual world online for ages 8 to 15, thanks to its deal with Toyota Financial Services. As previously reported, Toyota has teamed up with Whyville to lend "clams," the virtual world's currency, so that members can finance their own Toyota Scion xB, a two-dimensional car that kids can drive about the island, taking friends for rides. The Scions were introduced to Whyville in May, through an earlier deal between the two companies. That was a project meant to teach kids about car technology while having a little fun.

But only wealthy Whyvillians could buy the cars, which cost between 15,000 and 35,000 "clams." (Kids earn clams in Whyville by running businesses or participating in games and activities.)

The Toyota loan center opens doors to others who want the cars but don't have the clams. In the loan process, members learn about interest rates, down payments, leasing and credit history, finding out their own "WhyCo" score. The loan center opened this week.

"The Scions are a huge hit with our kids," said Jen Sun, president of Whyville's parent company Numedeon. Roughly 1,200 members have bought Scions so far. "We've set up the motivation for them to learn what it means to take out a loan....and, perhaps most important of all, being responsible."

That means that defaulting on a loan has consequences in Whyville. Kids can lose their car and ruin their credit history.

That's something Toyota would surely like to avoid with its real-life customers.

"We'd like to have educated customers down the road, and this program is a terrific opportunity to help tweens understand the process of financing a vehicle," Maria Tirado, interactive marketing manager for Toyota Financial Services, said in statement.