SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Edmunds.com revisited a discussion this week that's been on the radar of finance associations, lenders and the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — how members of the U.S. military are particularly vulnerable to deceptive practices by unscrupulous dealer salespeople.

The site believes because service members are trained to respect authoritative figures and say "yes, sir!" or "yes, ma'am" in response to direction, they are at unique risk in a high-pressure sales environment.

Edmunds.com senior consumer advice editor Philip Reed warned that crafty salespeople "may even demonstrate patriotism" just to lower resistance to a sales pitch.

"Consider the case of a 30-year-old Air Force Reserve staff sergeant near Salt Lake City who was told by a car salesman that since the sergeant had served his country, the dealership would ‘take care of him,'" Reed shared in an advisory piece, "Star-Spangled Rip-Off: Why Military Car Buyers Are Vulnerable to Bad Deals."

Reed continued by recapping, "The salesman then said that he needed a credit card number so that he could give the sergeant a price quote on a 2009 Infiniti G37x coupe. Instead, the dealership charged the sergeant $1,000, told him he owned the car and tried to pressure him into signing the contract. After the sergeant filed a formal complaint with the Utah Division of Consumer Protection and threatened legal action, the dealership removed the charges."

Experts say that this is just one of many tactics used to fleece young service members who can be easy marks when they have accumulated paychecks and an urgent need for a new vehicles.

Enough cases have been reported across the country to drive the creation of the Office of Servicemember Affairs, a new agency within the CFPB, to provide information and support to military members about car-buying and other major purchases.

And last fall, AWARE, which stands for Americans Well-informed on Automobile Retailing Economics, rolled out a campaign to advise service members in conjunction with Veteran's Day.

"Dealers and financial services providers work to ensure the car-buying process is smooth and transparent for all consumers, including our active and retired members of the armed forces," explained Eric Hoffman, AWARE spokesman.

"To further support this objective, the vehicle finance industry has compiled some information explaining important terms and concepts in the process," Hoffman added.

AWARE's members include: American Financial Services Association, National Automobile Dealers Association, National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers, American International Automobile Dealers Association, Ally Financial, American Honda Finance Corp., American Suzuki Financial Services, AutoNation, Ford Motor Credit Co., Group 1 Automotive, Lithia Motors, National Auto Finance Co., Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp., Saab Financial Services Corp., Sonic Automotive, Toyota Financial Services, United Auto Group and Wells Fargo Auto Finance.

Additional educational information in English and Spanish can be found at www.autofinancing101.org.

Furthermore, Edmunds.com also reminded military personnel of their advantages in the vehicle-buying process while warning service members of the risks.

Advisers noted most automakers, for example, offer a cash rebate — typically $500 — to shoppers in the military, and some dealers offer programs for service members beyond the standard incentive.

To avoid expensive missteps when buying a vehicle, Edmunds.com declared again this week that members of the military — as well as civilians — should take several steps. The site spelled them out with a military backdrop here: http://www.edmunds.com/car-buying/boot-camp-for-military-car-buyers.html.