Daniel Martin

Here’s a warning to future Wagner customers who live outside the Tyler area. I texted one of their salesmen on Memorial Day 2025 after finding my preferred CT5-V in their inventory. He responded the fol outside the Tyler area. I texted one of their salesmen on Memorial Day 2025 after finding my preferred CT5-V in their inventory. He responded the following morning and we began arranging the purchase. I live two hours away from Tyler, so everything was done over text, phone calls and email. I met this salesman two months ago when I visited the dealership for a test drive, so I felt comfortable with this approach. I offered to make a deposit to hold the car until I could visit the dealership the following weekend, but was told they don’t take deposits. Over the course of a single business day, we negotiated a fair trade-in value and I agreed to pay cash for the remainder due. I received a final price quote from the sales office, and was then told I would need to immediately wire the remainder due from my bank account to secure the car under my name. I have never been asked by a dealership to secure a car purchase in this manner and found the request strange, but the phone number and email address were authentic so I reluctantly wired $46,000 to Wagner so I wouldn’t lose the car. Unbeknownst to me, they were actively negotiating with another buyer for the same car at the same time and let her purchase the vehicle while I was arranging my wire transfer. This morning, I received an email saying my wire transfer was complete alongside a text message from Wagner saying “management made the decision to sell the car last night to another customer.” For several hours, no one at the dealership could confirm receipt of my wire transfer, so I had to entertain the possibility that I had been scammed with fake routing information by a rogue employee. Ultimately they were able to reverse the wire transfer by the end of the day. I spent two hours on the phone with the finance manager and general sales manager who were apologetic, but they could not fully rectify the situation since the car was sold to someone else. I was told the employees involved were reprimanded and that HR has handled the matter internally. I asked to speak with the owner of the dealership given the gravity of the situation, but he was unavailable. Wagner Cadillac is owned by Gabriel/Jordan Auto Group who control seven dealerships across East Texas. If something like this can happen at their luxury dealership, you should approach all of their dealerships with extreme caution. If you are negotiating in person at the dealership, you’re probably fine. But if you are attempting to purchase from elsewhere, do not send them any money. You may find yourself out of a car and a $25 wire transfer fee. More

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