California What to do with this dealer

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Dodino

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On the weekend, we've been in a car dealership negotiating our first Wrangler. a Trade-in option came to the discussion for five minutes, then we took it off the table when the dealer offered us a very low price for the trade-in. for few hours, we were discussing buying and leasing options and prices until we ended at what looked like a good leasing deal with $0 down.
During signing the contract, the financial manager kept repeating there's no trade-in, this will make everything faster. but when we went home we noticed that they mentioning a trade-in at the amount they offered, but not mentioning what Make, model...etc, but this didn't affect the final price.
Two days later, the dealer called and asked me to go back because they found better bank approval and we will need to change the contract, but when I went there, he told me that there was a mistake in the contract and the whole calculation, and he admitted it's their mistake because they forgot to remove the trade-in from the computer when they were quoting us, and all the calculation were based on that trade-in. and now they giving us those options:
1- Pay the trade-in amount in cash ($5000)
2- give them the Trade-in car.
3- Void the contract and return the car.
4- increase the monthly pay.

We don't like any of those options, what should we do ? we left because it was late and we should start a new round of negotiation today.
 
Edit to prior post:

Like @Boinked said contact and attorney. I believe the dealer called you back not for a better financing rate but because they already noticed the mistake and needed a way to get you back in the building.

No make and model on the paperwork..... Give them a $100 craigslist beater and call it a day. :p

In all seriousness the dealer has a "good will fund" they can tap into in cases like this and surely they left some profit on the table with your sale. I don't think you will get away with 0 since the paperwork did include a 5k trade in but I certainly don't think you should need to pay the full amount.
 
Dealers are notorious for wanting to change contracts. Each case is different but a signed contract is valid. If they made a mistake it is theirs to own. You don't have to do anything that they are demanding. They can pursue you legal action against you. However, if it is clearly in the contract that your were provinding a trade a judge might side with the dealer. It will be assumed that you read every line of the contract at the signing and were aware a trade was involved. I would compare your final price without the trade to a website that gives average real prices paid and see if yours is in line. If it looks like you are paying about $5k more then tell them to take you to court. If you are coming in a lot lower then you could try and negotiate with the dealer and find a compromise. If they are agreeing to take the Jeep back with no money owed by you then that would be a good option. No dealer would cancel a sale unless there was a big reason. If you decide to negotiate start with the the return option. It will put them in the position of trying to salvage the sale even if they don't make the desired profit.
 
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Stand your ground. Tell them that there was no mistake on your part, only theirs. The dealership doesn't want the car back, it wants to make a deal. You have the better bargaining position.

If worse comes to worse you can always sign an agreement voiding/rescinding the deal with no money owed by you, then go to another dealership and make a new deal on another car.
 
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Mr. Bills said:
BTW, if you go back to the dealership be sure to park your new car someplace where they can't see it, block it in, etc.
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If he wants them to think he will actually return it then he might even want to park it right out front and bring a different car other then the trade in in question so they think he may actually return it.
 
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05 Blue Unlimited said:
Not advising that at all, rather simply speak to an attorney to see where you stand then debate the moral implications.
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Indeed! It isn't like only ONE person signed the contract. Two or more people did and one of those people does it for a living. It wasn't his job to correct the financial officer who repeated to him several times that there's no trade in.
 
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I work for one of the largest auto groups in the country. Believe it or not, these mistakes happen. Typically speaking, it's an honest mistake on the underwriter's behalf. They're probably not trying to bait and switch you.

While it was the dealer's mistake, in all fairness, you've taken $5000 that doesn't belong to you. No dealer will take a $5000 hit on a used car sale. It'll eat up most if not all of their already thin margins.

Think of it this way. You're checking out at department store. You pay for your goods by handing the cashier a twenty, and in return, they owe you $6 in change. Instead of giving you a single and five, they hand you 2 fives. Their mistake right? So you should keep the second five and not point it out? That's the moral decision you need to make.

IMO, they messed up, but they didn't $5000 mess up. They should work with you to make a deal that benefits both parties. If they aren't willing to work with you, void the deal and take your business elsewhere. There are always other Jeeps out there.
 
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ShredAZ said:
I work for one of the largest auto groups in the country. Believe it or not, these mistakes happen. Typically speaking, it's an honest mistake on the underwriter's behalf. They're probably not trying to bait and switch you.

While it was the dealer's mistake, in all fairness, you've taken $5000 that doesn't belong to you. No dealer will take a $5000 hit on a used car sale. It'll eat up most if not all of their already thin margins.

Think of it this way. You're checking out at department store. You pay for your goods by handing the cashier a twenty, and in return, they owe you $6 in change. Instead of giving you a single and five, they hand you 2 fives. Their mistake right? So you should keep the second five and not point it out? That's the moral decision you need to make.

IMO, they messed up, but they didn't $5000 mess up. They should work with you to make a deal that benefits both parties. If they aren't willing to work with you, void the deal and take your business elsewhere. There are always other Jeeps out there.
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I agree.
 
Thank you for all responses and advises. they were supposed to call me tonight but never heard back from them. Let me explain something here, if it was an honest mistake I wouldn't hesitate to return the car and compensate them. However, I strongly believe it was a typo mistake that they tried to get advantage of. First, during negotiations, they tried to offer multiple offers that included down payments and different monthly payments. second and the most important, my payments (without the 5K ) represent 35% of the car value, which is inline with any car I leased before and may be more (I went back to all my previous car leases). Also, my payments + the mentioned residual in the contract represent the car price + $2250. (Tier 1 interest ?). with the 5K, they will make $7250 over the car value!!!
Looking from different directions, I believe they found the mistake and tried to scare me to get some extra money.... what do you think ?
 
Dodino said:
Also, my payments + the mentioned residual in the contract represent the car price + $2250. (Tier 1 interest ?). with the 5K, they will make $7250 over the car value!!!
Looking from different directions, I believe they found the mistake and tried to scare me to get some extra money.... what do you think ?
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Not necessarily. They are assuming majority of the risk when they offer you a trade in amount. The risk being they'll turn right around and sell the car at auction OR on their lot and hope they recooperate the trade-in value they gave you (which is why dealerships typically low ball trades).

In all fairness, I assumed we were talking used car sales. And in all honesty, I'm not as familiar with the lease side of the business. You might be right.

Either way, the stunt the dealership pulled gives you all the cards. In no way does it benefit them, and as you've come to learn, it has put them in quite the predicament. Let us know how things work out. Either way - welcome to the forum!
 
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