You should get on the horn...or better yet go there and deal with the manager. A sales rep has no interest in fighting for you. Then if you don't get satisfaction you should contact MINIUSA.
If I were in your position I would start out really, really nice. "We have a problem and I'd like to know what you are going to do to correct it?"
MINIUSA is more likely to be helpful because it's not as if you are deserting MINI to buy a FIAT or other brand. They should want to keep you happy.
If sugar doesn't work, then turn to vinegar. Contact the BBB. Let the dealer know you are going to broadcast their inflexibility over the internet forums.

 

I've been very nice so far and explained my frustration. I placed a dispute with my credit card company over the deposit. If that fails I will send a letter to the GM. If that fails I'll probably take them to small claims court. I'm really surprised they didn't just say "I'm sorry" and return my deposit.

My last email was very friendly. I asked for my deposit returned and said I hoped we could do business in the future.

Right now I'm happy that I have a order number (from the other dealer) and I'm on my way to getting out of my rental car and getting a car that I will hopefully enjoy for many years.

I was hoping they'd be nice and give my deposit back but it appears they're going to continue to make this a frustrating process which otherwise would have been very fun and enjoyable.

 

It's hard to fathom a bigger screw-up. Your MA "didn't know" the factory closed for the month of August? Oh, please -- you were lied to, plain and simple. The fact that they were unresponsive to your attempts to communicate is just unacceptable. They have no legal right to keep your deposit. I'd be more than a little bit steamed and would have stood there in the middle of the showroom refusing to leave until I got my money back. You might also mention that the local TV stations just love to take up,the cause of a consumer that has been wronged.

 

So far no luck on the deposit refund. All the sudden they have lots of time to talk to me which is new. In my last email I said that if you're not going to refund my deposit I would like to talk to the general manager. He gave me the GM's name and I said I would call him on Monday.

Hopefully he'll be more helpful. I'll try to be nice and not put him on the defensive while I explain how his sales staff pissed me off so much that I put a $1000 deposit at another dealer thats an 150 miles further away (I'm up to a 4.5 hour drive) rather than deal with their BS any more.

 

How about a national phone-a-thon to the general manager.

"Hello, I'm calling from Maryland (Texas, California, Florida...) to find out why you are willing to trash your reputation by refusing to return R. Dowty's $1,000 deposit. It will cost you many times that amount to repair the damage."

 

I spoke to the general manager Wade Higgins today. He was very nice and before I even had to go into the details said he was going to refund my deposit. He seemed very concerned that I was having troubles and wanted to make sure that it didn't happen to anyone else in the future. He also told me if I needed anything in the future I could contact him directly. At this point I'm basically happy and would do business with them in the future and wouldn't tell others to avoid them.

 

Glad to hear that all's well that ends well.

 

The GM understands that you may need service in the future...even if you buy your car elsewhere! Congratulations.