If you’ve searched for American Car Center and found locked doors, a disconnected phone number, or a completely different dealership at the same address — you’re not imagining things. The company is gone. It closed permanently in early 2023, and it happened fast.
This article covers exactly what happened: when American Car Center shut down, why it closed, what became of employees and customers, who took over loan servicing, and what to do if you still have unresolved title or plate issues.
American Car Center Closed in February 2023
American Car Center ceased all operations in February 2023. This was not a pause, a restructuring, or a regional pullback. The entire business shut down.
Employees were notified on the day of closure that the company was shutting down. They were told their jobs would end by close of business that same day. The Memphis headquarters closed, and locations across the Southeast went dark at the same time.
If you’ve driven past a former American Car Center location and seen a different dealership operating there now, that’s a separate business. Some former locations were later taken over by new dealers, but they have no connection to the original company. American Car Center itself no longer exists as an active retailer.
Why American Car Center Shut Down
The most direct cause was a financing collapse. Just before shutting down, American Car Center pulled a $222 million bond sale. That means the company tried to raise $222 million from investors and failed. When that deal fell apart, the company lost access to the capital it needed to keep running.
To understand why that was fatal, you need to know how the business worked. American Car Center was not just a used-car dealer. It was also a subprime auto lender. That means it sold cars to customers with poor or limited credit, and it also financed those purchases directly.
Think of it like a store that runs its own in-house credit card program. If the credit program stops working, the store can’t sell anything on credit — and since most of their customers relied on that credit, the whole store stops functioning.
That’s essentially what happened here. When American Car Center lost access to new financing, both sides of the business collapsed simultaneously. It couldn’t fund new loans, which meant it couldn’t sell cars, which meant there was nothing left to operate.
This didn’t happen in a vacuum. The subprime auto lending market was under significant stress at the time. More borrowers were falling behind on payments, which put pressure on lenders across the board. American Car Center was caught in that broader squeeze at the same moment it failed to raise the capital it needed. The combination was fatal.
What Happened to Employees After the Closure
The closure was abrupt by almost any measure. Employees across multiple states learned their jobs were ending on the same day the company shut down. Terminations were effective by end of business that day.
There is no public reporting indicating that severance packages or extended transition support were provided to laid-off workers. People essentially went from employed to unemployed within hours of hearing the news.
For a company with locations across the Southeast, this meant hundreds of workers were suddenly out of work with very little notice. The speed of the shutdown left almost no time for employees to prepare.
What Happened to Customer Loans and Accounts
This is the question that mattered most to people who had bought a car through American Car Center and still had an active loan.
After the closure, Westlake Portfolio Management stepped in to take over American Car Center’s servicing responsibilities. That means if you had an existing loan through American Car Center, Westlake became the company handling your account.
Customers needed to redirect loan payments to Westlake, not to American Car Center. Continuing to send payments to a closed company would not have worked.
But the loan transfer was only part of the problem. Because American Car Center handled both the sales side and the financing side of transactions, the closure created issues on two fronts at once. Some customers could not get help completing purchase paperwork. Others weren’t sure who now held their loan. And a separate problem emerged around license plates and titles.
Some borrowers who bought cars before the shutdown reported that they still couldn’t get their permanent license plates or title paperwork completed after the company closed. The dealership that was supposed to handle that process no longer existed, and the path forward wasn’t obvious.
Not every customer issue was automatically resolved when Westlake took over. The loan servicing transferred, but title and plate problems required more work to sort out.
If You Still Have Unresolved Title or Plate Issues
If you’re still dealing with fallout from the American Car Center closure — whether it’s a missing title, a plate that never arrived, or confusion about your loan — here’s what to actually do.
Contact Westlake Portfolio Management
Westlake took over American Car Center’s accounts after the closure. For anything related to your loan, your title, or your account status, they are the correct starting point. Don’t keep trying to reach American Car Center through old phone numbers or addresses. That company is closed and those contacts no longer work.
Go to Your State DMV With Your Purchase Documents
If you cannot get a permanent plate or title resolved through Westlake, contact your state’s Department of Motor Vehicles directly. Bring your original purchase documentation: your sales contract, any temporary tags, and payment receipts. Many states have procedures specifically for situations where a dealership has closed and left title work incomplete.
Keep All Your Original Paperwork
Do not throw away any documents from your purchase. Your sales contract, temporary tags, and any receipts are your proof of ownership and your leverage when dealing with the DMV or any third party. If you’ve already misplaced these, start by requesting copies from Westlake before escalating anywhere else.
Consider a Consumer Protection Attorney or Your State Attorney General
If you’ve hit a wall and can’t get your title or plates resolved through normal channels, a consumer protection attorney can sometimes cut through the problem quickly. Your state attorney general’s office may also have a consumer protection division that handles complaints involving defunct dealers.
This option isn’t necessary for everyone, but if months have passed and the issue is still unresolved, it’s worth looking into. You can usually get a free initial consultation from an attorney to find out if your situation is worth pursuing.
Don’t Assume the Problem Fixed Itself
Some people discovered their title or plate issue only when they tried to sell or trade in their car. By then, months or years had passed, and untangling the paperwork became harder. If you suspect there’s an unresolved issue, check now rather than waiting until it becomes urgent.
Final Thoughts
American Car Center is not coming back. The business closed in February 2023 after a failed bond sale cut off its access to capital. As a company that operated as both a used-car dealer and a subprime lender, it couldn’t survive once the financing dried up.
Employees lost their jobs suddenly, and customers were left navigating loan transfers, title paperwork, and plate issues without the company they bought from still in existence. Westlake Portfolio Management handles the loan side now, but some title and plate problems require additional steps beyond just knowing who to call.
For broader business news and analysis, InBiz Magazine covers the kind of market shifts and company developments that affect real people and businesses.
If you’re still dealing with an unresolved issue from this closure, don’t wait. Contact Westlake, gather your documents, and reach out to your state DMV. The path forward exists — it just takes a few deliberate steps to get there.
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