Also Google around for that dealership on reviews, maybe they've tried this before too.
(I got a lot of results for yo-yo scams for my dealership, before I bought from them)

good call.

Holy crap! I didn't realize it until now but my dealer did this to me :icon18:. They called me a week later and said that the loan was "only pre-approved" and that the terms have changed. Obviously, my reaction to the guy on the phone was "WTF?!" (literally). I went through they're finance department to get the loan, and I was happy with the results. But they called back and gave me some BS. I simply replied "that's BS I have excellent credit, I'm sure I can find an even better rate myself, give me a few days I'll call you back with a new lender." I got a call back a few hours later from the same guy saying " ok the lender has approved your current loan, nothing has changed, no need to re-sign anything". Wow, you learn something new every day!

Exactly, thats exactly what a yo-yo scam is.

I believe the dealer is on this one. They would have to prove you did not give them the $1,000. As stated earlier the dealer should not of let the vehicle go w/o a signature for a note showing the $1,000 to be paid at a later date. The dealer giving you the vehicle confirmed the transaction was complete. If you were trying to return the item then I would say the burden would be on you. A lawyer should be able to tell you the laws regarding this type dispute. This dispute has happened before & will happen again in the future & there will be case law on it.
Good Luck.

This is what google turned up... Mixed reviews only 2 but still. The bad review further proves my eperience with their I'm right you're wrong attitude.

NISSAN OF SAN BERNARDINO - San Bernardino, CA, 92408 - Citysearch

Well the only lawyer that I spoke to said he can't represent me if it went to small claims court saying most likely since it's not a "large" sum of money. It is to me damn it! He also said to let them take legal actions further saying that the contract should be enough to prove in my favor.

Do you have a bank reciept showing a withdrawl of 1,000. cash?
ATM or otherwise?

I realize money is money, but since the amount is not that large, have you considered just paying it to clear your credit?!

Have a written letter from them that it was paid in full.

Then turn around and sue them in small claims, only after the issues cleared on your credit.

I had the cash in hand. I get paid in cash sometimes and the day that I went in was exactly pay day 04/30/10 I went straight to the dealers after work.

That doesn't sound like a bad idea... But what guarantees do I have if any that I will see that 1000 again. Plus doesn't that make me more of a "suspect" if I willingly pay them?

I really believe that your auto purchase contract/finance document is a legal and binding document that will stand up in court (or arbitration if required). I believe that there is a requirement called the "One Document" rule governing a new car purchase. If the document shows a down payment, then the dealership will have a difficult time proving otherwise. There is an attorney in SoCal that specializes in these auto fraud and dispute cases. His name is Hal Rosner, of Rosner, Barry & Babbitt. The phone number is (800) 466-5366. By the way, I believe that Rosner answers auto dispute/fraud related questions for free on a website called UCAN.org.

my two cents worth. its all BS and your in the middle.
but when the dealer signed the contract and then you signed the contract
and you drove off it should be a done deal.

but once when i bought a car. and it was a week later the dealer called me and said they needed more proof of income. and i had already traded my old car in and drove the new one for a week,and i'm thinking what the heck.

+1

OP is likely at the point where he needs more than opinions from fellow forum members. Real legal advice on how to proceed is a good idea.

Thanks for that info buddy. Will check out the site and give him a call and see what he says.

No doubt... This has stressed me out to the point I couldn't sleep last night.

Best response so far.

Just left a question on the site.. Let see what he says.

not gonna add any thing to the great opinions already stated. just saying good luck.

RECORD whatever u talk to them about now on, on ur cellphone.

Thanks. Will do.

I am curious to know what Rosner or one of his associates tell you. If for some reason he does not respond on the website, call him and explain the situation. It might only take a letter from him to the dealership to shut this down. I am SURE that the dealerships know him. I deal with attorneys every day. If Rosner does not respond, let me know. I have several attorney friends that would provide me with counsel on this gratis (free). They owe me for referrals.

Great. Thanks again. I will wait until Monday to see if I hear back from him and I'll let you know.

Thanks.

Update.
 

E-mail Nissan of North America Pretty much saying they will investigate the situation and get back to me within 2 days.

Spoke to another lawyer. Told me over phone that the contract in my case "should" act as a receipt.

On UCAN.org

1000.00 cash disappears after 2 months?

reply
CASH deposit Missing... ?
On July 19th, 2010 Anonymous (not verified) says:
Same thing happened to me about 17 years ago when I was 21... I had paid $500 by deffered deposit, $500 by credit card, and $4000 in hard cold (sweaty, but cold) CASH... a couple weeks passed and I received a call from the dealership telling me that they had misplaced my $4000 check and if I could please write them a new one... ? ... After telling the dealership rep that I paid $500 by credit card, $4000 in cash, and that the only check I wrote was for the $500 deferred deposit and that I have BOTH recipts to prove the manners in which I paid my deposits - they proceeded to argue with me for about 15-20 mins until I finally hung-up on them. Well, long story short - this went on for about another month until I was taken to court by the dealership... All I did was show the judge the copies of my recipts - One that said BY CREDIT CARD and the other that said CASH - and it was all over. Judgement in my favor...
Life lesson learned at 21 years of age: KEEP YOUR RECEIPTS!!! =)

reply
Oh yeah...
On July 19th, 2010 Anonymous (not verified) says:
Oh yeah, I almost forgot...
About 3 weeks after I won the judgement... I FINALLY received my registration and tags.

reply
I have my tags and license
On July 19th, 2010 Anonymous (not verified) says:
I received my tags and license already. I never received a receipt from them.. Which leads me to believe that this was a set up scam to begin with since the saleman insisted that I bring the 1000.00 in cash.

I wonder if the contract will hold up as receipt if this goes to court.

reply
yes the contract will hold
On July 21st, 2010 Anonymous (not verified) says:
yes the contract will hold up,,,it states that you gave them a down payment,,,thats your reciept,,they are just trying to scare you into bringing them money,,,the saleman probably kept the money and did not tell them, however that is not your responsibility,,,,David Dealer NC

Final update.
 

To all you who have shown concerns regarding this matter I thank you for the support.

Here is what the Nissan of North America e-mailed me this morning.

I wanted to give you a final update: The General Manager at Nissan of San Bernardino stated that the situation has been discussed within the dealership, and they have decided to "write off" the $1000.00 down payment. You should not receive any further contact from Nissan of San Bernardino in regards to this matter. Thank you for being a part of the Nissan family!

Repecfully,

Axxxxxxx

Looks like someone at the dealership has an extra $1000 tax free. Glad it's not your problem anymore

Thanks,

yeah I was so relieved when I read the e-mail this morning. I really anticipated going to court and dealing with the whole mess. Taking time off work would have cost me a lot of $$$.

Happy ending...:tup:

How do I give rep points? Well deserved for most of you.

On a post you find particularly worthy click the http://www.the370z.com/images/buttons/reputation.gif below their "Rep Power" number

Ahhh... I have to go back and find the posts? lol

Told ya. effin STEALERSHIPs..

It just sucks that we share the world with so many rip off artists. I once had a mortgage broker attempt to add thousands in fees at signing time, and I suspect she would have pocketed all that money herself, when I challenged her, she could not explain what she was doing, why the numbers had changed. Anyone not as adept at numbers, a customer who did not do the math themeselves ahead of time, would have been a victim.

I have also had auto mechanics shops, often dealers, attempt to steal from me on many occassions. My wife once got an $800 repair estimate that ended up requiring a fuse to resolve. I am not kidding. I went to the dealer, had a talk with the mechanic, and asked him to show me the parts I needed, which he actually made up names for - not even real parts. I have also had shops charge me for work not done - in one case I got a refund when I showed the management the brand new spark plugs their mechanic installed, which in fact had no electrodes left - discovered when the car started running on 1 cylinder.

Congrats, SoCal! I'm glad to hear that the issue is resolved.

I've been following this thread but didn't post since I do not have any experience w/ this. I'm happy that everything is resolved. GO ENJOY THE Z =]

Congrats man! Glad to hear you didn't have to go to court or anything. I hope members can learn from this experience or avoid dealing with this sales person.

Thanks all... Can't give out more rep points for today so more to come tomorrow.

So Cal...
Do not worry about "rep points" with me. I am really glad that this resolved, and you can focus on enjoying your Z. I will always help anyone with subject matter that I have experience in. Legal is one of those matters. I really believe that a Nissan Sales person (perhaps even a second one if there was collusion) is $1 grand richer, but the Nissan head honchos knew that your contract would hold up in court, so they called the dealership and told them to "back-off". What a pisser that you had to suffer through this sh*t at all.

Thanks, yeah I can enjoy my Z without any stress now. Agreed the head honchos of Nissan took care of it right away and I'm glad that they took care of it before it became a bigger mess. Props to the Heads of Nissan.

Great! :tup:

been there done that. once had a chevy dealer tell me my vette needed a complete ac unit which would run about 1200. took it to my local guy the ac belt had broken off cost me 49.95 to fix.

Good job on getting Nissan of North America involved. I've had a lot of success in resolving issues with big companies simply by sending a well-engineered letter straight to the top. I wonder if they will investigate the thief who pocketed your money.