Dealership Is Holding My Deposit After I Backed Out

Location: Winnipeg, Canada

So recently I got ‘manipulated’ or convinced into buying an Infiniti QX60. I was fairly happy to purchase the vehicle but deep down I knew the salesman was spewing a lot of bs. This is the first dealership I’ve been to, and I have a much better perspective after being to multiple dealerships this week.

The salesman told me he could let me to drive off the lot today if I wanted. He got me to make a $1000 deposit on it, and then set me up with the financial manager. The financial manager made some calls and told me he could only finance it if there was a cosigner. I asked my wife if that was something she was comfortable with, she wasn’t. So before I left the dealership I asked him to find a bank that would finance it just for myself, and he agreed to look for me.

So I gave him almost a full day to find something and gave him a call. He told me there was nothing and that I had to cosign. I asked him to call the banks again and see if I put more money down on a vehicle (about $5000) if they would finance it. Then he called me back and told me it wouldn’t make a difference. He wanted me to cosign so I told him that I would talk to my wife about it a little more.

The next day he called and convinced us to see if we could get approval together, and that she would just have to provide some financial information. She reluctantly agreed but he wasn’t pressuring her into cosigning so she didn’t see the harm. We both thought if we are pre-approved and eligible to continue then maybe she could make the decision to part of the financing.

The next day we talked about it, and she told me she thought this was possibly a bad idea. She didn’t want to be tied up in this financial commitment as a cosigner on my vehicle in case she wanted to finance her own in the future. I absolutely respected her decision, and we both decided the cosigning thing was a sign the dealership was trying to sell a vehicle too expensive for me. It was already too late to call the dealership so I did it the next day.

When I called him and explained our situation he told me that wasn’t a good idea. The thing is that the car was being sold with a package that included an undercoat for rust protection. He told me that it was already put on the car, and that I’d owe them a few thousand dollars if I backed out. He said we should make it work out somehow. I was baffled and said I need to think about it

The next day I told him I was backing out of the deal and I wanted my deposit back. He was trying to convince me to stay in the deal and that we’d work something out. He said he’d even find me a bank that would finance it by myself. I told him was over it and I just wanted out. Then he told me that he wouldn’t give the deposit back because I owe them for preparing the undercoat for me. I was angry and asked why he would install it on the vehicle before we signed off on the deal especially when my wife wasn’t committed to cosigning. He said it’s too late because we got approved by the bank for they were just being good to us by preparing the vehicle ahead of time. I demanded the deposit back and he said it wasn’t his decision and the general manager would have to sign off on it. But when we wanted to speak to the manager he said he was very busy and he’d have to call us when he’s ready. Been a day and still haven’t heard back, if I don’t hear back in one or two days then I doubt he will.

I went to different dealerships after and most have treated me very well, and I now purchased a Toyota Rav4. I felt like such a chump, just another young sucker being screwed with by some greasy car salesmen. I now have learned a lot from my mistakes. Any advice on how I could possibly proceed in obtaining that deposit? Or am I the unreasonable one and the car salesmen are justified in their practices. I’m fairly new to this so let me know what you think.