A dealer sold me a salvaged car without disclosing it to me and wont take it back?

Question

i bought a 1992 buick park avenue a few months ago for 2000 dollars from valley caddilac and this weekend i was trying to sell the car on craigslist and somebody emailed me and told me that my car had been in a major accident last year and had a salvaged/rebuilt title and i looked at my drivers door latch and noticed a sticker saying that my vehicle was destroyed or declared a total loss and when i tryed to take it back to the dealership they said that the title was clean and didnt know when the sticker was put on the door or that my car was salvaged because on the title it shows my car as being clean and it doesnt say salvaged or rebuilt on it and i talked to a few other dealerships and they said that, that dealership has to give me my money back cause they didnt disclose the information.

So does the dealership have to give me my money back even if they didnt know the vehicle was salvaged or rebuilt cause it doesnt say on the title?

Answer 1

The dammed dealer knows that they don't have to do anything until you sue them and win.  That could take months.

Also it could be in the fine prints that you didn't read.  Go back and check your contract.

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The dealers are pro and you (and I) are rank amateurs.  They can s***w the general public more ways than we can imagine.

But good Luck...

Answer 2

sounds like they tried to burn you. I would talk to the sales manager, tell them you mean business, want them to take the car back, or the next contact they receive will be from your attorney, then a court summons.

Answer 3

If they sold it to you on the bill of sale "AS IS" then they did not have to say a thing about the car. They could tell you it rode like a dream, but if it is an "AS IS" sell then well there is nothing you can do.

Answer 4

Should have said right on the title whether it was a salvage title, normally they are a different color.  Some states let you take a totaled repairable fix it and get it inspected and give it a clean title again..Michigan doesn't do this, once a salvage always a salvage.  

Does pay to have a carfax done when buying vehicles.

I would think if it is a salvage title I would be after a dealer for not disclosing, But you say its not a salvage title so they didn't do anything wrong.  Most dealers buy at auctions or trade ins, they don't run car faxes all they look at is the shape of the vehicle and if they can make a profit.  At an auction if it has a rebuilt or salvage title they disclose it to the bidders.  If not an auction vehicle all they see is the title, they just plain don't run car faxes.  At the most, they may get it detailed and make a few minor repairs.

Anyway if they saw the title as clean and it came back to you as clean they did nothing wrong..

I would check with Secretary of State in your state to find out any further information.

Answer 5

take it to small claims court its under 2500 bucks and yes they do have to give it back too you..obviously you posted enough info about it on craigs list that they ran it thru car fax...thats all you need to do ..to see if its been total lossed ..i suggest you do

Answer 6

That's fraudulent misrepresentation and there's no way the dealership didn't know, you have all the rights to be entitled to a refund!

Answer 7

Depends what state you are in.

In Arizona if you are sold a vehicle that was previously salvaged/rebuilt tile without written consent of the buyer, it is illegal and can be taken to court if they refuse to refund you your money.

Look up your states lemon laws.

Answer 8

yes they do my father sales cars and he always tells the buyer if the car's title is clean or not!!!!

Answer 9

You have the right to know about the vehicles damage and if it was kept secret you can call the BBB and file a complaint.

Answer 10

If they had no idea, they don't owe you anything. If a 1992 was only damaged last year, then it is exempt from damage disclosures and it's very possible the dealership had no idea it was damaged. Salvage is a different thing, because it would state so on the title. Consult with a lawyer to figure out the picky details.

Answer 11

I definitely agree with the other dealerships you spoke with. My family signed the contract for a home and paid the down payment and everything and we came to find out, after the fact, that the house was over the lot boundaries and the information wasn't disclosed to us and the contract was invalidated and we got our money back. You have rights. If you have a friend that is an attorney or has a general knowledge of the law speak with them on the specifics of the situation. Also i would report them to the better business bureau.

Answer 12

I live in the UK but i'm in a similar situation.

Only, my insurance wrote my car off and told me i could buy my car back. But, in order to get it back on the road (nothing wrong with it what so ever), i had to get a VOSA and VIC check on it, to make sure it passed an MOT.

I phoned my insurance up to confirm my car was on it's way back to me and they said no, it's been SCRAPPED. So, i was waiting for my pay out.

Days later, i get a phone call of my insurance for me to send my MOT certificate, Tax disk and what ever else off, because my car has been declared Salvage, not Scrap.

So, what you best of doing is, phone your Car Registration place (the company that holds all your car details, which inform the police and so on).

Once you've spoke to your car people, seek leagal advice. Don't drive the car for your safety, because you might not know what dangers your car holds.

If push comes to shove, take a law suit out against the car dealer and have him done for selling illegal cars.