Dealer Gives Up License to Sell Mercedes Cars in DMV Probe

An Encino car sales company has surrendered its state license to sell Mercedes-Benz cars, according to an official of the state Department of Motor Vehicles, which has been investigating the dealership.

The DMV wanted the license returned because the company, Terry York Imports, which sells a variety of foreign and domestic cars, had refused to open its books to DMV investigators, said Vito Scattaglia, the DMV’s supervising investigator in the San Fernando Valley.

The action does not affect the dealership’s sales of other cars, Scattaglia said.

The DMV had planned to suspend the company’s Mercedes-Benz license on Wednesday, but the company voluntarily relinquished it on Tuesday, Scattaglia said.

He said investigators want to examine such documents as Mercedes-Benz sales contracts and mileage statements, but would not say why the DMV had requested the documents.

Terry York, the company’s owner, could not be reached for comment.

Terry York Imports is considered a “gray market” seller of Mercedes-Benz cars because it is not licensed by the manufacturer to sell, Scattaglia said. Gray market dealers import cars that were built for German customers, not Americans.

Gray market cars can be sold legally in this county as long as they are modified to meet federal safety standards and smog control requirements in California.