‘Still scarred from my experience!’
A woman says her first car-buying experience turned into a week-long ordeal involving a vehicle that seemingly disappeared, another that was too expensive, and, eventually, the wrong car altogether.
TikTok user @appleuser3.14159265 says she went into the process knowing exactly what she wanted: a black 2026 Toyota Camry SE Blackout.
She says she found a used 2025 model listed by a dealership with just 12 miles on it and submitted an inquiry. But when the dealership called, she says an employee told her the mileage listed online was an “error.”
That struck her as odd because, she says, the car had already been on the dealership’s website for about a month.
Still, she made the drive.
Once there, she says she couldn’t find the Camry anywhere on the lot. She says employees tried steering her toward other vehicles, but she was set on the one she came for.
The dealership then told her it “couldn’t find it,” she reports.
Eventually, employees located the car “in the back.” But when she asked for the keys, she says they told her someone else was actively buying it.
“Crazy,” @appleuser3.14159265 says.
She tried to leave, but the dealership offered to arrange a “trade” for a similar car at another store.
“I looked at it: It was the exact car that I wanted,” @appleuser3.14159265 says.
The problem was the price.
She tried to leave again. That’s when she says the sales manager came out and told her they could “miraculously” come down on it.
She agreed to the deal and completed the financing. She says the dealership told her it would call when the car arrived.
Two days later, @appleuser3.14159265 says the dealership told her the car was there.
When she returned, she says employees initially told her she still had more paperwork to complete. Then, she says, a woman in the finance department told her what had actually happened: They had delivered the wrong car.
The dealership insisted it was the “same exact car,” she says.
But while the vehicles looked similar, @appleuser3.14159265 says the interior was different and not what she wanted.
She refused it.
That led to another round with the sales manager and another employee, who she says kept trying to convince her to take the replacement.
She says the sales manager also told her they could get the vehicle tied to the VIN she had originally been given, which he said was in Mississippi. But @appleuser3.14159265 says her own research showed the car was actually at a dealership in Louisiana.
So, she called that dealership herself.
The car was there, she says—and it was available.
After hearing what had happened, the Louisiana dealership told her it could deliver the Camry directly to her.
She says she emailed over her previous paperwork and handled the rest by phone, email, and text. She adds that she even FaceTimed with the office manager, who she says told her the first dealership had been using a sleazy “sales” tactic to get her through the door.
“This is a week-long process that should’ve been done in a day,” @appleuser3.14159265 says.
A week later, she says, the car she actually wanted arrived.
“F dealership, F car salesman,” @appleuser3.14159265 says. “At this point, I just wanted my car.”
As of this writing, her video has just under 6,000 views.
The Federal Trade Commission advises shoppers to confirm that a specific vehicle is actually on the lot before making the trip and to get the out-the-door price in writing. The agency warns that some dealers advertise a vehicle, tell shoppers it is unavailable once they arrive, and then try to move them into a different—often more expensive—car.
That practice is generally referred to as bait-and-switch advertising; some states ban this practice entirely.
According to the Law Offices of Jonathan Rudnick, New Jersey is one state where existing laws prohibit dealers from advertising a vehicle as part of a plan not to sell it as advertised. The state specifically flags situations where a dealer refuses to show or sell the advertised vehicle and then switches the customer to a higher-priced one.
That doesn’t mean the dealership in her video necessarily did that. @appleuser3.14159265 doesn’t identify the first dealership or show evidence of the original listing. And viewers don’t see the dealership’s explanation of what happened to the first car.
There are also plenty of legitimate reasons a specific vehicle can disappear from inventory. According to various Redditors on the r/askcarsales subreddit, it may have been sold, moved to auction, or incorrectly listed online.
Still, the FTC’s advice is useful here: Before driving hours for a particular car, ask the dealer to confirm in writing that it is physically available, and verify the VIN and get the full price before leaving home.
In @appleuser3.14159265’s case, the biggest difference came when she called the Louisiana dealership herself. According to her, that dealer confirmed the car was there and arranged delivery—all without needing to meet her in person.
Whatever happened at the first store, her experience shows why confirming the exact vehicle can save a lot of wasted time.
Several commenters said @appleuser3.14159265’s experience sounded painfully familiar.
“After I bought my first car back in 2019 and sat there for 6 hours, I learned my lesson,” one viewer wrote. “Now, years later, with a lot of research on the car buying process + buying a couple of cars later, I don’t even go to a dealership in person until they got everything finished.”
The commenter added, “Dealerships will really waste your time and I don’t got time to waste.”
@appleuser3.14159265 agreed.
“Definitely learned my lesson. Hopefully it will be a while before I have to buy a car again,” she replied.
Another viewer shared a similar story.
“I haven’t bought a car since 2016 but am still scarred from my experience! Had me drive an hour there to pick it up only for them to have already sold it. I literally left in tears lol,” they wrote.
Others thought the warning signs in @appleuser3.14159265’s story were there from the beginning.
“All the red flags were there,” one commenter wrote.
“Don’t let them dealership play with you. Be ready to walk away if u don’t get what u want. They be playing games with you,” another added.
Some viewers were just as annoyed with the dealer, though.
“They really played… like for what though?” one asked.
“Them playing games took away from the experience,” another said.
And some were more interested in the car @appleuser3.14159265 ultimately bought.
“Car dealerships are so annoying. Anyways, congratulations,” one person wrote.
Another viewer asked what @appleuser3.14159265 was paying each month, to which she said $680.
Motor1 contacted @appleuser3.14159265 via TikTok direct message. We’ll be sure to update this if she responds.
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