Car in storage at $75 a day for 170 days in another state. We've only known for about 2-3 weeks.
I apologize if this is the wrong place to post this, but we are kind of lost at this point.
I will try to make this short.
Context: For those who are probably going to ask why we don't know where a car we own is located: In 2020, we put a $6000 down payment on a brand new VW Tiguan for our daughter. We are the primary on the vehicle and she is the cosigner. I don't know why the dealership did it this way.
Fast forward to 2026, she has moved to New York. We got into an argument because she said she hates the car and doesn't want it anymore and stops making payments in 2022. Needless to say, this has caused tension between us and we haven't spoken for a few years. We did all of that for her because she always been an amazing kid and she's just flipped the script.
We kept making the payments because she has a daughter and we wanted her to have a safe ride for them both. We kind of get the scoop from family members on what's going on but it's vague. Like we've known where it was until recently.
We get a text from a family member that she is talking about the car in past tense. So we call the last place she lives. It takes almost two weeks to get a call back saying they had it towed.
We get in touch with the tow lot and he says he just wants it off his lot because he can't do anything with it because it still has a lien on it. He's willing to work with us on storage fees. We've just got to get the ownership papers to him so we can get the ball rolling. At this time, we are informed there are no keys and the tow company that's willing to bring it to NC needs the keys. That's $390. For a car that could be worth $4-9K, a few grand to get it here, sell it, pay it off and be done, not a problem.
We get in touch today to arrange for the VW to be towed to dealership. He needs the $200 for the initial tow and $150 to tow it to the VW lot. Perfectly reasonable. Then he says again that he will work with us on the storage fees. I am thinking it's going to be something like $35 a day. Previously he said the car had been on his lot for about a month. Now it's 170 days @ $75 per day. So we aren't negotiating a $6000 bill anymore, but closer to $13,000 with taxes. He won't give us a number, he wants us to give him a number. I thought that there was a cap on storage fees, but apparently not?
He sent some pictures and the interior is trashed. He said it has a pretty severe mouse infestation and lists all the things that could be wrong with it. Says that once the key is made, they can do diagnostics and repairs there. Then says if worse comes to worse, it can just sit there until it is paid off and they will dispose of it for us.
What bothers me about this whole thing is that I googled this company and in this group someone said they paid $35 a day for storage with the same company. He did make an attempt to contact the dealership and they never returned his call. The dealership didn't bother to contact us either. I am not really complaining because I know it's nobody's responsibility to chase after us. Just saying there was no way for us to know.
The car is gross and has a few dents, but doesn't look like a total lost cause that needs to be crushed. It's just a kick in the gut to still be paying on a $32,000 car note and be over such a barrel. We aren't rich. We pulled money from retirement for the down payment. We could barely afford the payments. My car is a 2007 Pontiac Grand Prix that barely runs anymore. I feel like by the time the keys are made, the storage fees are paid, and we have it towed here, it's going going to be more than it's worth and we will still be paying on it. The alternative is to let the clock run out and just give this guy this car.
I am pretty charitable with my assumptions about people, so I am not trying to trash the guy. He deserves to get paid. I just have no clue how I should proceed. What would be a good offer on 170 days of storage or what would you do if you were in this situation?
I already know we put ourselves in this situation through our own series of poor decisions. Believe me, we have paid handsomely for our mistakes, both financially and emotionally.
I know it was long and if you made it this far, I appreciate you. Any advice on going forward will be appreciated.