It probably is an 8 year old car. The monthly payment is so high because A) the buyer paid a hugely inflated price, B) it's probably got an incredibly high interest rate, and C) it might even have leftover debt from the previous car (that probably also got repossessed*) rolled in.
Remember, places that prey^W specialize on bad-credit buyers are not really car dealers; they're loan sharks that incidentally let you borrow a car. Here's their business model:
- "Sell" car to bad-credit buyer at an inflated price (because such buyers have no bargaining power), financed with a huge interest rate.
- Collect mostly-interest payments (and remember, interest on a balance inflated thousands of dollars higher than what the car should have cost) for however long the buyer can scrounge up the money.
- When the buyer defaults, repossess.
- "Sell" the same car again to the next sucker, rinse, and repeat.
(* Is it possible to still owe money on a car after it's been repossessed? I don't know, but it's certainly possible to claim to a bad-credit car buyer that they do.)