I’m Stuck With a $31K Chevy Silverado Yard Ornament, the Dealer Failed To Give Me a Title, Now, 5 Months In They Sold the Store and Closed the Doors

Seriously? She really hasn't figured out yet that the truck is a stolen vehicle?

As a former dealership controller, I can suggest 2 more Checkpoints:

1. Every car manufacturer has zone offices spread across the country. I would lawyer up and make an appointment with the zone manager for that particular dealer

2. Same procedure applies for Chevrolet, the main manufacturer.

Chances are it will stop and remedy at the zone level.

State the problem. Raise some cane if you need to.

In some states like Arizona now, DMV holds your title until you ask for a paper copy.

I bought a 2012 Jeep Cherokee overland in North Georgia and paid cash for the vehicle. When I asked them if they had the title they said yes in the other building. I told them I want to see it and they said they can't get to it right away but will mail it to us. We waited a month goes by we kept calling seemed like nobody new where it was. Finally we sent a letter to the secretary of state and they got a hold of them immediately it was just about a week later and it was in the mail. I just don't know why some dealers give you a hard time like that but if you pay cash for a vehicle and they don't produce the title get your money back and walk away.

The first red flag was the first time she contacted the dealer and they said they were having trouble getting the title. No reputable dealer would put a vehicle for sale on their lot without having the clear title to it. That truck is either stolen and the dealer is a crook, or they just didn't care because they weren't going to be in business long (and they knew this when the truck was sold). In some states you can do a title search or get a title in your name. But the bottom line here is, the buyer is out $31,000, and probably will be out another several thousand before all is said and done.

I purchased a used vehicle from Parker Ford 2 months ago. Now my vehicle is a permanent lawn ornament as well.

They told me it was fully inspected and that there were no issues with the vehicle. That they nee the previous owners personally.

I gave them half the money and was to return the following day to give them the other half and then I could drive it home.

Over the next 24 hours how was I to know so.much would go wrong..

Needless to say I returned with the money, the papers are all signed and I was free to go.

However the dealer had agreed to replace my tires.

I had to consistently call to get them order and then wait. .

On the day I went into have them replaced now it was only the front two tires they were replacing.

While that was happening I heard a loud bang. An employee came running thru the waiting area to the salesman. They both then crossed thru the waiting room. After some time they came back into the waiting room and sat down next to me. He started with so here's the thing.

I immediately responded with what happen.

He told me the sensors in the tires were damaged and needed to be replaced. But the dealer would take care of it.

I said what about the back tires. He said that not our problem.

Weeks and weeks go by I call again and say what's the ETA on those sensors oh let me check. He comes back to the line minutes later and said we should have them in the next few days.

They finally come in, I schedule an appt. I see them jack up the car sideways take off both front tires but only maintenance one of them. I asked them if they fixed both they said No, just one of them. But they say in the car with the wheels off for hours.

Days after this appointment the car takes another toll. It's starting to wobble all over the place. I looked to find the rear tires capping in the middle. The. Shocks in the rear are completely shot. I purchased those online and had no other choice but to get tires for the rear.

2 days later the transmission blows.

So now I have spent every last time I had to purchase this vehicle and now here it sits

Registered
And insured for the next 6 months
Full tank of gas

New front and rear tires new rear shocks
New sensor in one tire in the front

And now nothing....

I'm at a loss, The dealership told me that the vehicle had been safety inspected prior to my purchase. But again told me that they new the original owners personally.

I asked if it had been in any accidents they also said no it had not been.

I should have been more concerned when my boyfriend and I were giving out information for the sale and the sale.an wanted it to be under my address not my boyfriends because my information was Arizona and his was California. He said then we will have to take it all the way to Blythe first so on and so forth. It's cheaper to register in AZ he claimed. It's a cheaper all they way around.
So of course we choose to use Arizona to save buck.

Now here I am carless with a huge lawn ornament..

What are my options now.

I live in an area that has no resources. No store, no gas station, no bus, nothing. How do I work

The dealership said it's not our problem
It yours.

I feel for you I understand I have kinda the same issues but mine is with Valvoline here in Montrose Co. the blew my motor on my 2017 Nissan titan’ XD and is taking no action to fix it and I’ve call every day to get some advice and all the CEO of HR told me to call back when I can have a case number with the police. They know with that property the cops won’t show up due to being private. Idk what to do myself my truck is 33,0000 and 89 thousand miles I still make payment of 950 a month not including insurance and my own insurance company whom is liberty mutual can’t help and I have full coverage explain this to me please I’ve only had the truck for a 1 and a half. 😭😭I’ve lost my job over this and seriously going through it I pray for you and the loved ones.

First who has 30k just sitting in cash ?

Second buy one from bulletin board for much less .

My wife and I purchased a brand new 2025 Tesla model Y and took delivery of it 12/11/2024. We picked it up it in TN, but live in NC. I was giving a Temporary tag that expired 2/10/2025. Prior to it expiring, I called them to see why no permanent plate yet and they said NC takes a long time and they sent me another temporary tag that expired 4/10/2025. Prior to it expiring, I called Tesla again and was assured it would be here. I checked with NC DMV and they said they have not received any paperwork on our car. After the tag expired, Tesla tells me that the Chattanooga dealership is having problems and the TN dealership will take care of it. We resigned title application and now Tesla says it is on it's way to NCDMV, although they have failed to give me proof of a tracking number of sent envelope. In the meantime, I have a brand new model Y Tesla that can not be legally driven that we are making tax, insurance and loan payments on, free trial FSD that can't be used, and they won't give us a loaner vehicle while we wait.

The dealership had to post a "Bond" when they applied for the license to operate. The DMV should deduct any costs of titling her truck from that bond

While traveling out of state visiting family, my car started acting up. I took it to a dealer my family had used before, and I ended up trading it in with a loan on a truck. The dealer actually preferred I get a loan rather than pay cash. They gave me a 60 day tag. They said they would mail me the title in a few weeks. I finished my trip about a month later, but there was no title in the mail. I reached out to the dealer. It took about a week to connect with them. The salesman who sold me the truck sent the title return receipt requested about a week later. I thought I wouldn't need 60 days, but in all it took about 6 weeks to get my title. The DMV in my state collected the title from out of state and sent my new state issued title to the loan company. I would have felt more confident driving home with a Bill of Sale, because a couple of times I was tailed by the cops. Think about it if I had been pulled over, the only thing proving I owned the vehicle was a flimsy piece of paper slapped on the back of the vehicle. The tax receipt served as a Bill of Sale for the DMV, but that came with the title later. New plates are on the truck now, but it surprised me that it took almost 60 days to get it properly registered in my state.

So it wasnt a vehical but a brand new utility trailer from home depot it took me over a year to get the title and plates for it and i had to do 85% of the legwork home depot was horrible and the mgr that i dealt with for the whole sale begining to end was incompetant as all get upi paid $2,000 for it in cash they came out right after i got my tags and gave me like a 400 'refund" for the hassle hassle my ass how about breach of conteact

You paid to much 31k for a 10 year old truck 🤣

I purchased a used vehicle from an independent dealership in the late eighties. I received a similar run around on the title. As I recall I did not have to hire an attorney. Through the vin number with the help of the DMV I was able to trace the sale of the car back to the last legal title transfer. Fortunately the car was legally sold and the people were honest. I was eventually able to get a replacement title.

Look up your Title Enforcement Officer. Each state has someone or group who does this. The title is traceable, they should be able to go back to the original owner and if needed draw up a new title. I would be sure to provide proof of purchasing through the dealership (receipts) because if anything shady is going on that will bring about a prosecution against the dealership, but should get your title. I have done this in another state and was successful.

Go to dmv and see if vin is clear. If so contact previous owner and have them do a lost title form and transfer to you

I am so sorry to hear of this sad story, because I went/still going through the same ordeal. I purchased a car "cash", during COVID and they fraudulently sold me car without a legal title. They informed us that the DMV was busy and behind on sending out Titles. Therefore & unfortunately I had to seak legal action.
Wishing you the best of luck and don't give up - fight the fight! They need to be held reliable!

This is a common occurrence for dealers having financial issues. Very seldom does the dealership own the vehicle free and clear and possess the title. Most vehicles are floorplanned through a bank or finance company. The dealership is basically making payments to the bank and they hold the title until the vehicle is sold and when the bank gets their funds they transfer the title to the new owner. Paying cash allows the dealer to collect the funds and not pay off the lien and you can't stop payment on cash. I've seen it happen several times with failing dealers not just with cash purchase but when they receive the check from the new finance company and don't pay it off. They knew they were closing the doors and probably know exactly where the title is. Take your paperwork to the DMV and do a title search on the VIN and contact an attorney with all the documentation, chances are the title holder is looking for the vehicle as well but they are the legal owner on the title so they will probably repo it from you even though you have paid for it. If you can locate the title holder then you can reach out to them and possibly resolve the situation without involving an attorney. Good luck!

Yep! Had the exact same thing happen to me from a crooked dealership in Georgia that never got the title to my DMV. Had to get the state attorney generals from Texas Georgia and North Carolina involved to make it happen and it still took 4 months. Absolutely ridiculous! Sorry you had this issue, but it's not uncommon. It's kind of worse when it's financed. What they hope for is that the bank, since they didn't get their title as collateral, will cancel the loan. In many cases, the dealership will offer you some ungodly percentage financing or threaten repo with loss of down payment. Lots of crooks out there

Take your vehicle identification number to hour department of motor vehicles and have them run the VIN. They should be able to learn who the last owner of record was and the location of the title. Thank you Bruce