Co Signed For A Car With My Ex Girlfriend

Location: NY (upstate)

About a year and a half ago, my ex girlfriend and I broke up and we both signed a loan for a car. We broke up and she didn’t have a license so she told me to keep the car. Well she told me that she wants her name off the loan about a year ago so I’ve tried. I cannot refinance it because it’s upside down too much and I cannot trade it in unless I have the negative equity difference in cash as a down payment.

Now she’s threatening to take me to civil court and her mother is threatening to pay for a lawyer to help her and she’s telling me “it won’t be pretty”. They are demanding I pay the $5,000 to refinance the car into my name only or to mine and someone else’s.

This is all in text. I never signed a legal binding document stating that I would get her name off the loan, I only said I would try. I’m getting threatening and harassing messages from her girlfriend now as well as messages from her mother.

I’ve been nothing by respectful and tried to work things out with them. I called to surrender the vehicle and they told me that they need her authorization as well. I tried telling her that and she’s refusing to cooperate and is now threatening to take me to court.

Is there a case here? What can I do? I can’t afford a lawyer and I don’t own any assets and I’m poor as hell. So what can I do to protect myself? Or will this all be thrown out because we both signed for the loan so we’re both responsible.

She’s also claiming that the late car payments are effecting her credit which I can understand.