What steps to take when your delaership goes down?

The car dealer is required by the purchase contract to return to you all consideration (i.e., everything) given for the purchase, included your trade-in vehicle. If you gave a $2,000 down payment and a car as a trade-in, the car dealer must give you back both the $2,000 and the trade-in when you return the car you purchased.

There may be times when your car dealer may tell you that it already sold your trade-in, and you can be offered the value of the trade -in as listed on the purchase contract. On the other hand the language of the purchase contract does not appear to give the car dealer this option. The return of the trade-in, thus, is being required. However, if the car dealer does sell your trade-in, at the very least, you should tell the car dealer that it has to give you whatever is the highest value for your trade-in out of either (1) the value of the trade-in as listed on the purchase contract, (2) the fair market value, or (3) what the car dealer received when it sold your trade-in.