Customers and even a former employee said Auto House mislabeled cars to make certain vehicles look like higher-end, more expensive models.
Action 9 investigator Jason Stoogenke spent five months looking into the business. And, now, North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles investigators said they are opening an investigation into Auto House based on what Stoogenke found.
Auto House has two lots: one in Mooresville and one in Salisbury. Several people Stoogenke spoke with believe Auto House took used Nissan Altima S models -- which are more basic models -- and put on SL emblems instead. SLs are top of the line Altimas. That one letter means a big price difference.
Eddie Lowery went to the lot in Mooresville and bought a 2015 Nissan Altima. He said the letters SL were on the trunk. "[I] went to trade it in on another car at a used dealership and they told me that it was an S model with an L sticker on the back," he said. Stoogenke ran the VIN and, yes, it's an S, not an SL. The difference in blue book value is about $5,000.
This article originally appeared on WSOCTV.
