Great caveat. 
But I did this myself, and although they didn’t hold the car, they *still * ran a credit report on me. Not that that’s a huge bad thing, but it likely cut a couple points off my FICO score.
It’s not that I disagree with the very good advice to read what one signs. It’s that the person in the wrong here is the one who lied to the OP’s face. There’s no “get out of fraud free” law that says you can break a contract if the other party didn’t read it. Enforcing one they didn’t read is another matter entirely, of course.
I’m no lawyer, but I do know car dealerships. Personally, I hope the OP reads the odometer before accepting delivery. With them holding your money and your car, I wouldn’t put it past them if your car was now used for every lunch-run, test drive, and DOT round trip made from that dealership during the next 10 days.
(Check with a Real attorney, but there may be a mileage limit in your state that if they exceed before delivery may nullify the contract. ie: you signed a contract for a ‘new’ car; cars with over XX miles on it might not qualify as ‘new’. Also, on what you did sign, may I suggest you turn it over and read all the small print on the back? I’d bet you a beer that there’s some relevent data printed back there.)
California
Yes, the paperwork the finance manager and I signed reads that they are to deliver the car the day the paperwork is signed. It also says they can cancel the contract if they can’t find me financing. It says nothing about waiting for any payments to clear.
I remember back somewhere around the early 1990s the laws changed to where SSN couldn’t be used for identification purposes on checks. At one of my jobs (retail) if a customer paid by check, we had to write down their credit card information on their check. If the check bounced, the company charged the CC for the purchase amount. AFAIK, neither of those can be used on checks any more and SSN still can’t be used for identification purposes.
I explained that I would be okay with them holding the car until the check funded, knowing with my CU it would be a matter of days. Wednesday (tomorrow) sounded reasonable since they had to order and install the stereo anyway.
The finance manager changed from “up to 10 days” to “10 business days regardless of when the loan funds” (Friday the 29th). When we questioned this, we were both told that they would not be releasing the car until the 29th no matter when they receive payment from the CU.
Anyway, none of this is in writing. What is in writing is that they will release the car when the sales contract is signed.
And I won’t argue with you on the insurance. We called yesterday and the insurance company made a notation on the account that we are not in possession of the car. I have this fear that the car will be stolen before we take delivery and the dealer telling us it’s not their fault since I own the car and they were just storing it.
I read the front and it read like a standard bill of sale–not like a contract. It listed the sales price and the extended warranty, VIN, odometer (3 BTW), etc.
I never had any intentions of driving off the lot with the car because it needed the stereo ordered & installed. I thought I would be picking up the car on Wednesday. In my mind, that was enough time for the loan to fund and the stereo to be installed.
I didn’t find out until yesterday that the stereo is installed and the car is ready. It’s just not being released.
No, I was never in the military. My membership is by way of my father.
First thing this morning I called my credit union. The rep said if I give them the fax number, they’ll fax the verification of funding. I couldn’t locate the fax number, so it took about 3 hours before I could call them back. The second rep I spoke with was nice as pie and said she didn’t understand why they weren’t releasing the car if I endorsed their check over to them. She said, “You might want to talk to legal counsel about that.”
I gave her the fax #. She said it would take about 15 minutes. I called the dealership around 3, to confirm they had received the fax and that I could pick up the car. “What fax number did you fax it to?” I told him the one listed on their webpage. He tells me, “Well that fax number isn’t any good.” “You have a bad fax number on your website?” “Yep.” Okay…I asked for a working fax number and he wouldn’t provide me with one. He didn’t want to help me and hung up on me.
Fortunately, I have tomorrow afternoon off so I can deal with this some more.
Why don’t you get the money back and go buy your car from somewhere real?
No, they left a message on my answering machine saying they were holding the car for 10 days.
AFAIK, I was signing a binding contract. I guess I didn’t realize that only I am bound to it, but the dealer is not.
The insurance company (another military CU) sent the dealer a fax confirming a back-up source of funds. Guess what? They still refused!
It’s a Scion.
Not in the military.
Fight dirty. Call your local news affiliate and let them know about this situation. If it’s a slow news day, they’ll send a camera crew and a mouthy in-your-face type “investigative journalist” hungry to make a name for him/herself out to [del]badger[/del] interview the dealership. End result - car is delivered immediately.
Of course, you will never be able to take your car back to that dealership for warranty service, but you may be at that point already.
You might want to check this page for some resources.
Dealerships in California are regulated by the DMV, but I found this on the page on filling complaints against dealers
Here is the DMV section on Car Buyer’s Bill of Rights
I also found this on the DMV site, and think it is an excellent idea
I am thinking that the average consumer reporter beats off at night thinking about a set up like this. 
A well written letter to Toyota about the way you have been treated, would also be in order. Car companies hate it when their dealers screw the retail customer, it makes the car company look bad.
Exactly- why would you want to deal with these people for the duration of the warranty on your car?
I should’ve mentioned that particular dealer can’t be the only dealer selling that particular car. When I lived on California’s Central Coast, there were two big places to go comparison shopping: Seaside for us lazy folks, and Gilroy for those who wanted to actuall comparison shop for their new rides.
I asked for money back. I told the manager, finance guy, and the owner in no uncertain terms to either give me back my check or deliver the card. Each time they said no (“We don’t have your check; it’s been deposited”). They have made it clear to us that they are either running a credit report on us or holding the car for 10 business days. When I tried to call my CU last night, they were already closed.
I’m going to talk to the CU again today to find out what my options are. They are usually pretty quick about funding loans (my mortgage is through them as were 2 or 3 previous car loans). I hope it doesn’t come down to having to stop payment on that check, wait for a new check and starting the process again at a different dealership.
Wow, that sucks. I’m looking to possibly buy an xB in the near future. I keep hearing that Scions are so easy to buy and the salesmen don’t give you any run-around. I guess you never know.
Huh. I wonder if something happened to the car while they had it – someone backed into it while installing the radio or something – and they are stalling while they do some quick and dirty bodywork. I’d examine the car pretty carefully if and when it ever shows up.
No wonder. That’s a Toyota product. Wonderful cars, but their sales staff are the worst in the business- most crooked, etc. Scion is supposed to be different, but old habits die hard.
Stop Payment on that check. You’re dealing with crooks. Report them to various agencies, etc. CA has Lawyer referal services- look in the Yellow pages, the BAR assoc will refer you to a lawyer who will give you a free or de minimus consultation.
Rick:“A well written letter to Toyota about the way you have been treated, would also be in order. Car companies hate it when their dealers screw the retail customer, it makes the car company look bad.”. More or less true. Toyota- not so much. :mad:
The hell?
You ask for the fax number and they hang up on you?
They have deposited the funds from a military CU and they still want to do a credit check on you?
I know it would be a pain, but isn’t there a law that allows people to return cars within 24 hours. Take delivery turn around and demand your money back.
I would also agree that something might have happend to the car.
Boy is it ever time for a letter to Toyota.