| **Concentration of Credit Risk** | 12 Months Ended                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
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| **Concentration of Credit Risk** |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               |
| Concentration of Credit Risk     | NOTE 4 – CONCENTRATION OF CREDIT RISK Our portfolio is primarily comprised of receivables under installment sale contracts, receivables arising from leasing transactions, notes receivable and wholesale financing.  Percentages of the total value of our portfolio (total net finance receivables plus equipment on operating leases, less accumulated depreciation) represented by each financing plan as of December 31, were as follows:   2011  2010  2009Retail Financing:          Customer loans23%  24%  25%Finance (non-tax) leases20%  21%  22%Wholesale financing18%  12%  8%Installment sale contracts15%  18%  19%Tax leases (operating or finance)14%  16%  18%Dealer loans9%  8%  7%Government lease-purchase contracts1%  1%  1%            As of December 31, 2011 and 2010, receivables from customers in construction-related industries made up approximately one-third of our total portfolio.  As of December 31, 2009, receivables from customers in construction-related industries made up approximately 40 percent of our total portfolio.  As of December 31, 2011, approximately 40 percent of construction-related receivables relates to customers in North America.  As of December 31, 2010 and 2009, approximately 45 percent of construction-related receivables relates to customers in North America.  No single customer or dealer represented a significant concentration of credit risk.  We typically maintain a security interest in retail financed equipment and require physical damage insurance coverage on all financed equipment.  See Note 14 for further information concerning business segments. Regarding our derivative instruments, collateral is not generally required of the counterparties or of our Company.  The Company generally enters into International Swap and Derivative Associations (ISDA) master netting agreements, which permit the net settlement of amounts owed.  Our exposure to credit loss in the event of nonperformance by the counterparties is limited to only those gains that we have recorded, but for which we have not yet received cash payment.  The master netting agreements reduce the amount of loss the Company would incur should the counterparties fail to meet their obligations.  As of December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009, the maximum exposure to credit loss was $342 million, $318 million and $283 million, respectively, before the application of any master netting agreements.  See Note 8 for further information concerning derivatives. |

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| - Definition
Description of any concentrations existing at the date of the financial statements that make an entity vulnerable to a reasonably possible, near-term, severe impact. The entity should inform financial statement users about the general nature of the risk associated with the concentration, and may indicate the percentage of concentration risk as of the balance sheet date. Disclosure of any financial instrument credit risk concentration also should indicate the maximum amount of loss that would be incurred upon complete failure of the counterparty to perform and the entity's collateral policies or other policies that limit the loss exposure. This element may be used as a single block of text to encapsulate the entire disclosure including data and tables.
+ References
Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 107 -Paragraph 15AReference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher AICPA -Name Statement of Position (SOP) -Number 94-6 -Paragraph 21, 22, 24
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