FTC: Greenway's Kia dealers charged $3,354 above advertised prices in over 92% of deals

Greenway Auto Group, a Florida chain of more than 35 dealerships, advertised vehicles on CarGurus and Cars.com at prices thousands of dollars below what buyers actually paid at the desk. According to the FTC's complaint, from March 1, 2023 through May 6, 2026, more than 92% of consumers at its Kia dealerships were charged above the advertised price — at least $3,354 more on average — through administrative, dealer, delivery and processing fees, plus rebates only some buyers could claim.

The examples were stark. A 2017 Honda CR-V EX-L advertised at $18,800 came with a price sheet totaling $23,539.85, about $4,740 of it dealer-imposed fees. A 2023 Kia Sportage EX listed at $15,444 was quoted $5,245 higher after a $3,995 'recon' fee, and a 2024 Kia EV6 GT-Line advertised at $45,556 cost roughly $9,000 more.

The complaint carried a second count: prize mailers with scratch-offs and 'Official Winning Codes' telling recipients they had won $2,500 in instant cash or a vehicle, collectable at a Greenway dealership. The FTC alleged the prizes were not real, and that one mailer directing people to Greenway Hyundai Orlando went out as recently as July 2026.

On October 8, 2026, Greenway agreed to a stipulated order in FTC v. Greenway Automotive: 'Total Price' — everything a buyer must pay minus only government charges — must be the most prominent item in every dealership's price ads, and the mailers and misrepresentations must stop. Greenway pays nothing. The warning came first: on March 13, 2026, the FTC told 97 dealership groups, Greenway included, that advertised prices must be total prices, and the complaint alleges Greenway answered by adding false price-transparency assurances to its websites while the misleading ads continued.

A permanent injunction binding 35+ dealerships to advertise one total price, a sworn compliance report and 10-year change-notice obligations; no fine, for now.

Advertised prices were built to win listing clicks, not to be payable: mandatory 'recon', dealer and processing fees were added only at the desk, averaging $3,354 per transaction.

Listings leaned on rebates and discounts only a subset of buyers qualified for, so the advertised number wasn't a price most customers could actually pay.

After the FTC's March 2026 warning letter, the response was cosmetic compliance — transparency slogans added to the websites while the fee stack stayed.

Fake prize mailers with 'Official Winning Codes' added a second deception, manufacturing winners to pull recipients into showrooms.

A regulator's warning letter is the last cheap exit. Answering one with website slogans about transparency while keeping the fee stack is how a pricing complaint becomes a federal court order.

The stipulated order binds Greenway only once a judge signs it — the FTC's case page still lists the matter as pending — but the injunction is permanent: a sworn compliance report one year after entry, change-notice obligations for 10 years, five years of recordkeeping and of distributing the order to personnel. Bureau of Consumer Protection director Christopher Mufarrige said consumers 'can't make informed choices when the actual price is hidden'. The other 96 groups from the March sweep face the same standard, and the FTC said it would keep monitoring the market.