PORTSMOUTH, N.H. – An Eliot, Maine, man rebuffed in his attempt to buy a $42,000 sport utility vehicle with $200 coupons apparently won’t get help from New Hampshire’s consumer protection department.

Self-described “coupon nut” Chris Shields clipped 207 newspaper coupons and demanded the Sequoia from Toyota of Portsmouth.

The dealership declined and Shields contacted the attorney general’s Consumer Protection Bureau.

Assistant Attorney General Dave Rienzo also declined. “Given the facts as we know them today, were not going to take any action on the matter at this point,” said Rienzo of the Consumer Protection and Anti-Trust Bureau on Monday.

Shields, a 40-year-old stay-at-home father, says he now will go to court.

The coupon carried a Feb. 28 expiration date but no disclaimer limiting customers to one coupon.

So Shields bought more than 200 copies of the Portsmouth Herald and clipped out $41,400 worth of coupons to buy a silver 2002 Sequoia Ltd.

Dealership owner Jim Boyle said he would honor a $200 rebate and no more, saying no reasonable person could misinterpret its meaning.

To that end, Rienzo said businesses offering discounts should make sure to include disclaimers.

“In general, its always wise to have the rules of the game clearly spelled out.

The terms and conditions should be on the face of the document so there’s no misunderstanding,” he said.

Peter Wright, a consumer law professor at Franklin Pierce Law Center in Concord, said the ad should have been clearer, “but I don’t think the court would strain the law to that extent to achieve what would be an absurd result.”

Meanwhile, Shields said he is stunned by the media attention.

“What a circus! I feel like I’m in a Seinfeld episode. I seem to have opened up Pandora’s box of coupons,” he said as he enumerated calls from all over the nation for interviews.

“I’ve developed a newfound respect for the awesome power of the media. This started out as a small local story that wound up getting national attention, and that just amazes me,” he said.