A Viper owners worst nightmare...

[2014GTS]

Back in December, I purchased a 2014 GTS from a dealer out of state. Last Saturday (3 months later), I was sitting on my couch when my wife asked who was driving my car. Confused, I got up and opened the front door to see someone backing my car down the driveway. I asked him what he was doing and he said, 'I'm taking the car.' What?!?

He said he had a court order to repossess it. Since I had a clear title from the dealership, I immediately called the police. As the guy was leaving, he held out a piece of paper. I started walking towards the car and he slammed on the gas in reverse only to smash into his wife that was driving the tow truck behind him. They sped off and all that remained was photos my wife was taking along with shattered tail lights on the ground.

The police said it was a repossession, so I called the dealership. They said they'll look into it and told me they got the acar from an auction. After a week of hiring attorneys and getting to the bottom of this issue, someone allegedly had a lien placed on the car in another state. They sold the car to a national chain that didn't ensure the title was clear before taking it to auction and selling it to my dealer. My dealer never discovered this lien and sold the car to me. The state I live in issued a clear title and didn't discover a lien either.

On Friday, I found out the lien was originally 6K. Of course, no one was responsible for giving me a heads up on it and I was shocked a judge would issue a repossession order for such a little amount compared to the value of the car. Fingers crossed, I get my rear ended car back tomorrow. This has been a nightmare so far. Between legal fees, satisfying the lien and fixing the car, I have quite a bit of money invested and now get to attempt restitution with the dealership. Even though I put less than 1,000 miles on the car, I've enjoyed every minute of it. Any other car, I probably wouldn't have fought so much to get it back.

The crazy thing in all of this is that each state maintains their own records and doesn't check all of the other states to ensure there are no liens against a vehicle. Good thing to know when buying a used vehicle. I purposely left out specific parties in this story since the issue hasn't been fully resolved. I'm looking forward to getting the car fixed and on the track where it belongs.

 

[denniskgb]

thats just a nightmare situation. I would handle in the following manner: get your money back and have the dealer who sold you the car unwind the deal. I see no other logical solution to that.

 

[broomrider]

What the hell??!!!!! I have never heard of anything like this before. I would agree that this event would be awful. You are a better person than I am. I can tell you
The dealership would be on the line or the $6k as well as a great deal more. I.e. damages to your car at the least. They should have to explain to a judge
Their irresponsible, careless and down right shady business dealings.

 

[2001ViperGTS]

Wow, that's crazy. Sorry for your troubles, hopefully it's all resolved soon!

 

[MerlinsGarage]

Could be the case of an unpaid loan - Lien.

If the owner moves (or simply applies) to another state for a lost title, that issuing state may not catch the lien history. Some states do not research as well as others. A lien can be even more difficult to find if the note was carried by an institution other than the Manufacturer. If the OEM held the original loan and say a Credit Union (innocently at first for a lower rate or longer term) refinances the loan, the lien history will show the original loan to be satisfied. There can be a small window of non-overlapping loans depending on the loan institutions clearing the original and filing the second.
It becomes a crime when that owner generates a clean title knowing there is debt attached to the vehicle.
Additionally when a first note is satisfied sometimes the title errantly gets sent to the car owner instead of the second lending company...............you can guess what happens after that.

B.

 

[Bonkers]

I went through a rough patch in my life long ago. During that time
I missed two payments with GMAC on my Yukon. Coincidentally I
had found a new job at that point, but when I informed GMAC of the
situation, by 9am the next morning my truck was on a rollback. Before
my first paycheck even cleared the bank (9 days) the truck was taken to
SC, sold at auction, and my credit was ruined. Last time I trusted big
banks.

Everyone always tells me about "what should have happened" but at the
end of the day, if youre finianced through a national bank then I wouldnt
be surprised at whatever corners were cut. Good luck.

 

[denniskgb]

unwind the deal and move on

 

[ViperJeff]

I think the thing that bugs me the most is the bank knew where you lived yet made no attempt to contact you in an effort to collect the debt

 

[George Farris]

I think the thing that bugs me the most is the bank knew where you lived yet made no attempt to contact you in an effort to collect the debt

THAT is the bottom line ...

 

[2014GTS]

I think the thing that bugs me the most is the bank knew where you lived yet made no attempt to contact you in an effort to collect the debt

They are incentivized not to contact me. They tried to get the car out of state immediately after I called them. They were going to sell the car to themselves to cover the lien. After that, they own a 85K car for 11K (6K lien plus outrageous fees) and can turn around and sell it or keep it for awhile.

I got the car back today and it's sitting at the shop waiting for an estimate. Now I have to try and get reimbursed by the dealership for the lien and attorney fees. Repo company is covering the repairs. Lessons learned.

 

[ViperJeff]

They are incentivized not to contact me. They tried to get the car out of state immediately after I called them. They were going to sell the car to themselves to cover the lien. After that, they own a 85K car for 11K (6K lien plus outrageous fees) and can turn around and sell it or keep it for awhile.

I got the car back today and it's sitting at the shop waiting for an estimate. Now I have to try and get reimbursed by the dealership for the lien and attorney fees. Repo company is covering the repairs. Lessons learned.

You should read the documentation at the FTC on debt collection, based on what you've said, they may have violated the law when it comes to debt collection. I used to do debt collection and there appears to be a lot of holes in this process you went through

 

[denniskgb]

Now you have a story car with oops this and oops this on a carfax....get rid of it, get your money back and walk away.

 

[2014GTS]

Now you have a story car with oops this and oops this on a carfax....get rid of it, get your money back and walk away.

Actually, CarFax didn't show any of the previous lien/title issues. I've also heard that some major insurance companies don't even report accidents to CarFax. I understand your point and wish it was that easy. However, CarFax is a joke.

 

[broomrider]

Now you have a story car with oops this and oops this on a carfax....get rid of it, get your money back and walk away.

I'm going to agree with Dennis. You don't need a car with gremlins and a history like that. However, it is your car and your decision. I just think that there has been lot of wrong done on this deal.

 

[2014GTS]

I'm going to agree with Dennis. You don't need a car with gremlins and a history like that. However, it is your car and your decision. I just think that there has been lot of wrong done on this deal.

Trust me, I definitely understand and appreciate your points. Unfortunately, in order to get to the bottom of all of this and protect my financial interests, I had to shell out some significant cash which is not guaranteed to be recouped. Since the damage from the crash is cosmetic, I plan on using it as a track car and enjoying what I can out of it. It's still a very low mileage car and exciting to drive. It's worth more to me to keep than to get rid of it at this point. I fought against the lien on principal and figured that I would get everything I put into the fight back. That's turning out not to be the case, but there is still a chance it happens. It's definitely not over yet. We'll see how it ultimately turns out. I want to be clear, though. I really do appreciate all of your input and advice.

 

[wirepaladin08]

You are a lot nicer than I would be in this situation. I understand that you have decided to keep the car. That being the case, I would make a written demand on the dealer's president that they reimburse you for the costs in dealing with this mess that you are still out of pocket and give them ten days to respond. If the response is unsatisfactory, I would file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau and also write the zone manager for Dodge (assuming you bought from a Dodge dealer), copying the CEO of Chrysler Corp on the letter. I would give that a couple of weeks and if you are still getting the stiff arm, I would begin posting reviews on websites for the dealer, explaining that it is dangerous to buy a car from them because they represent that the car they are selling is free and clear of any liens and that your situation is living proof that they don't live up to that promise. You could also contact the consumer advocate for a couple of the local television stations in the dealer's home market -- they love stories like this. Bottom line is if the dealer wants to play hardball and not cover your legitimate costs for their error -- then two can play hardball.

 

[2014GTS]

The insurance company deemed it a total loss today. Too much damage and risk associated with trying to fix it. Time to start looking again....

 

[ViperJeff]

Can you share pics (and maybe a VIN so I can add it's status to my DB)

 

[broomrider]

The insurance company deemed it a total loss today. Too much damage and risk associated with trying to fix it. Time to start looking again....

Crap! What bout the money that you have put out to clear things up? Dude, you need to put your boots on and go kick some ***! I would make that situation come out to my benefit if I were you.
That's total bull $hi*

 

[2014GTS]

Can you share pics (and maybe a VIN so I can add it's status to my DB)

Yes, I can do that. Please give me a week so I can settle with the insurance company.

 

[2014GTS]

Crap! What bout the money that you have put out to clear things up? Dude, you need to put your boots on and go kick some ***! I would make that situation come out to my benefit if I were you.
That's total bull $hi*

I am going to talk to the dealerships involved to try and recoup some money. I'm tired of paying attorney fees with nothing to show for it. Since I live in MI, I would need to hire attorneys in FL and GA. I get sick just thinking about it.

I have located a 2014 Viper GTS in Baton Rouge. It's never been titled (I triple checked) and for sale at a local Dodge dealership. It has most of the options as my previous Viper except for color. Any chance you live near there and could take a peek at it? I hope to fly down later this week and check it out. It's at Salsbury Dodge.

 

[netapp]

I watch good morning america almost everday. Lately, they have had the ABC news fixer help people out with good results. I would contact them and see if they could help out, a google search will pull up the contact info for them. And it's free... This would be a good news story.

 

[broomrider]

I am going to talk to the dealerships involved to try and recoup some money. I'm tired of paying attorney fees with nothing to show for it. Since I live in MI, I would need to hire attorneys in FL and GA. I get sick just thinking about it.

I have located a 2014 Viper GTS in Baton Rouge. It's never been titled (I triple checked) and for sale at a local Dodge dealership. It has most of the options as my previous Viper except for color. Any chance you live near there and could take a peek at it? I hope to fly down later this week and check it out. It's at Salsbury Dodge.

I would most definitely do that and consider it an honor to do so but I am about 4 hours North of Baton Rouge. However, I do have a Viper friend down that way and
I will try to get in touch with him to see if he can go look at it for you. I will tell you this from looking at it on line I can say it's the most beautiful color ever
But I am somewhat biased being my car is Gtsr blue pearl also. That color is so sharp. The Pearl in the sun is gorgeous.

 

[ViperJeff]

Yes, I can do that. Please give me a week so I can settle with the insurance company.

No rush

Thank You Sir, looking forward to seeing your New Viper

 

[7TH_SIGN]

Wow. You are handling this much better than I would. There would be hell to pay. I wouldn't keep that car man. Let whoever is at fault take the financial hit and walk away. Get your self another Viper.

 

[2014GTS]

I would most definitely do that and consider it an honor to do so but I am about 4 hours North of Baton Rouge. However, I do have a Viper friend down that way and
I will try to get in touch with him to see if he can go look at it for you. I will tell you this from looking at it on line I can say it's the most beautiful color ever
But I am somewhat biased being my car is Gtsr blue pearl also. That color is so sharp. The Pearl in the sun is gorgeous.

Thanks for responding! I'm heading down there tomorrow to pick it up. I thought it was a good deal and didn't want to sit on it. Looking forward to driving it tomorrow from LA to MI. Should be fun!

 

[2014GTS]

https://flic.kr/s/aHsku2aZsV

 

[broomrider]

Thanks for responding! I'm heading down there tomorrow to pick it up. I thought it was a good deal and didn't want to sit on it. Looking forward to driving it tomorrow from LA to MI. Should be fun!

Which way are you taking that beautiful snake home?

 

[2014GTS]

Which way are you taking that beautiful snake home?

I haven't decided yet. Open to suggestions.