CitiFinancial- Citibank-Citigroup Citibank Purchased a vehicle from Auffenberg dealership. Citifinancial financed it for $5,000. over blue book. I tried to trade it in for a more reliable car at same dealership was told I owe $5,000. over b Belleville, Illinois

In my experience in purchasing vehicles have taught me that most dealerships ripoff customers on the daily basis.  Banks will approve 180% over what the car is worth.  The value of a vehicle goes down monthly.  There is no real way to NOT pay more than it is worth with "dealer fees" and misc, charges they add.  First you need to go in the dealership knowing what you want.  What you are willing to pay and DON'T put all your "cards" on the table.  Don't sway from your original amount no matter what they tell you.  Don't be afraid to walk away from the table. QUESTION and READ EVERY line BEFORE you sign the CONTRACT.  Check the Blue Book value of the vehicle you are wanting to purchase BEFORE you go.  Basically, educate yourself about the values of what you want and what you can afford.  Put your foot down BEFORE the deal because it takes almost an act of congress to get them to help you AFTER the fact.  They are trained to make you see the "good" in the deal and sway you with the shiny new car.  Remember a "good deal" at the present time is not necessarily a "good deal" a month from now.

The financing company has nothing to do with this.  If there is any problem it is with the dealer.  But if the dealer ripped you off you let them do it.

However, before you start claiming RipOff you need to think about a couple of things.  I don't know if you have ever bought a car or not but cars loose value.  So you will always owe more than it is worth(upside down) for about 2/3 to 3/4 of the loan term.  This is especially true if you added additional things to the loans such as Extended Warranties or Gap insurance.  Also, when ever you buy a car you need to do your own research on the car's "value" before you buy it.  This involves you checking the "Blue Book" value.