Outside Lemon Law? Try the Mag Moss Act.
On Your Side: Car Issues by Jim Donovan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ―Are you having mechanical problems with your car? While state lemon laws can help, some Federal laws are designed to protect you too. In fact, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act may be your best bet.
Jan Jeffries bought a certified pre-owned Jaguar about a year ago. Almost immediately he had problems. The anti-lock brakes were malfunctioning and needed repeated repairs. While Jan’s mechanical problems weren’t covered by state lemon law, he was entitled to compensation under the Federal Magnuson-Moss act.
“If the vehicle is under warranty and you’ve had problems with it, subject to repair, and it has not been resolved, you have federal, Manguson-Moss warranty rights.” says attorney Craig Kimmel. The Magnuson-Moss Act applies to vehicles under their original or extended manufacturers warranty, and the car must be in the shop for 3 or more times for the same problem. Kimmel says, “We’re talking brakes, transmission, suspension, head lights, water leak, paint defect, any of these problems and more, those issues the consumer should step up and force the manufacturer to comply with the warranty and if they can’t, call a lawyer.”
That’s what Jan Jeffries did. He says, “I got $6,000 from Jaguar as compensation for what would ultimately be reduced value of the vehicle.”
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is a Federal Law that protects the buyer of any product which costs more than $25 and comes with an express written warranty. This law applies to any product that you buy that does not perform as it should.
Your car is a major investment, rationalized by the peace of mind that flows from its expected dependability and safety. Accordingly, you are entitled to expect an automobile properly constructed and regulated to provide reasonably safe, trouble-free, and dependable transportation – regardless of the exact make and model you bought. Unfortunately, sometimes these principles do not hold true and defects arise in automobiles. Although one defect is not actionable, repeated defects are as there exists a generally accepted rule that unsuccessful repair efforts render the warrantor liable. Simply put, there comes a time when “enough is enough” – when after having to take your car into the shop for repairs an inordinate number of times and experiencing all of the attendant inconvenience, you are entitled to say, ‘That’s all,’ and revoke, notwithstanding the seller’s repeated good faith efforts to fix the car. The rationale behind these basic principles is clear: once your faith in the vehicle is shaken, the vehicle loses its real value to you and becomes an instrument whose integrity is impaired and whose operation is fraught with apprehension. The question thus becomes when is “enough”?
As you know, enough is never enough from your warrantor’s point of view and you should simply continue to have your defective vehicle repaired – time and time again. However, you are not required to allow a warrantor to tinker with your vehicle indefinitely in the hope that it may eventually be fixed. Rather, you are entitled to expect your vehicle to be repaired within a reasonable opportunity. To this end, both the federal Moss Warranty Act, and the various state “lemon laws,” require repairs to your vehicle be performed within a reasonable opportunity.
Under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a warrantor should perform adequate repairs in at least two, and possibly three, attempts to correct a particular defect. Further, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act’s reasonableness requirement applies to your vehicle as a whole rather than to each individual defect that arises. Although most of the Lemon Laws vary from state to state, each individual law usually require a warrantor to cure a specific defect within four to five attempts or the automobile as a whole within thirty days. If the warrantor fails to meet this obligation, most of the lemon laws provide for a full refund or new replacement vehicle. Further, this reasonable number of attempts/reasonable opportunity standard, whether it be that of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or that of the Lemon Laws, is akin to strict liability (see TX Lemon Law) – once this threshold has been met, the continued existence of a defect is irrelevant and you are still entitled to relief.
One of the most important parts of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is its fee shifting provision. This provision provides that you may recover the attorney fees incurred in the prosecution of your case if you are successful – independent of how much you actually win. That rational behind this fee shifting provision is to twofold: (1) to ensure you will be able to vindicate your rights without having to expend large sums on attorney’s fees and (2) because automobile manufacturers are able to write off all expenses of defense as a legitimate business expense, whereas you, the average consumer, obviously does not have that kind of economic staying power. Most of the Lemon Laws contain similar fee shifting provisions.
You may also derive additional warranty rights from the Uniform Commercial Code; however, the Code does not allow you in most states to recover your attorney fees and is also not as consumer friendly as the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or the various state lemon laws.
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September 22nd, 2009 at 10:14 pm
My car is just 3yrs and 4months old and the engine light has come on three times already, each time I take it back to the dealership for repairs. I even tried a dealership that was down the road further and they (the same company, Chevy) told me to take it back to the other dealership, that they could not touch the car because, the other Chevy dealership had done the work on it already. I left there with my check engine light still lit. The other dealership had closed for the evening except their sales department. Please call me by phone to tell me what I can do. 443-206-5396. Thank you, kindly.
Sincerely,
Denise
January 13th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
Course…what good does something like the Magnuson Moss Act do…when you can’t find an attorney who will fight on your behalf against a ‘giant’ like Chrysler…..?
I made modifications to a new 2006 Dodge Cummins diesel to make it a ‘dual fuel’ vehicle. A little over a year ago, the motor had a valve BREAK. This incident had NOTHING to do with the modifications made to the fuel system and I’ve got the parts to prove it. Chrysler has refused to honor their own warranty and are in violation of the Magnuson Moss Act.
I’m searching for an attorney who may have an interest in pursuing this case. I had an attorney up until recently, yet he decided to change his legal focus towards the more profitable (and lower hanging fruit) of ‘foreclosures’. Furthermore, even though Florida has quite a few attorneys, it seems as though there’s not that many who focus on Magnuson Moss. Input?
Will Stanton
1410 E. Osceola Parkway
Kissimmee Fl 34744
321.624.3127
wstanton@cfl.rr.com
January 26th, 2010 at 4:28 pm
If you were in one of our states, we would certainly look at the claim. Contact Krohn & Moss at 1-800-US-LEMON.
May 26th, 2010 at 7:18 pm
I purchased a used 2007 year model Harley Davidson from a reputable dealer in march of 2008. the cycle still had 7 months factory warranty @ time of purchase. It was recomended that I purchase a factory EXTENDED warranty. I recently took the bike in for warranty service and was informed that the extended warranty term had expired. The EXTENDED warranty overlapped the factory warranty by 7 months. is this practice legal? the bike requires service now, which should have been covered by the EXTENDED warranty, in the neighborhood of 600.00, and the dealer is unwilling to honor the extended warranty.
August 19th, 2010 at 4:17 pm
I live in Ohio. I just purchased a 2005 Chrysler Pacifica on 7-26-10. 106K miles. I purchased it “as-is” from the dealership, but did receive a 3 mo./4500 limited warranty as part of my purchase from an independent car warranty company.
The first day off the lot, my engine light came on. Took it back to the dealer – evap sensor. They volunteered to replace it. I had to call and schedule – not done yet because 5 days later the battery light came on. Through some troubleshooting, my husband is 95% sure it is the altenator and the vehicle stopped alongside the road. This is covered on the warranty. When we purchased the vehicle, the salesman told us that they will handle the warranty repairs..no problem. When I called to get the vehicle towed and fixed, I was told they Dont do the warranty repairs and would need to find another shop to handle it. I have not been able to find a company/shop that will deal with the after market warranty company.
Additionally, I took the car in for a front end alignment when I purchased 2 tires. Once up on the rack, the technician called me back and asked if I was told the car had been in an accident. I said ‘no’. He told me he could tell there had been body work done and then showed me the underneath of the car where a rod that is part of the wheel attachement has been repaired by a teg (spelling?) weld. His response was this not a situation of “if” it will break, but “when”. He said it is highly probable that when it breaks it will puncture the tire. I dont feel safe in this vehicle. I have kids and dont want to have this break while driving with them.
It was never disclosed that the vehicle was in an accident. The title I signed does not say ‘salvage’.
Am I S.O.L or is there a course of action I can take. btw: the “dealership” has become highly uncooperative at this point.
Thank you for any information.
August 23rd, 2010 at 11:22 am
Jodi: Being that you purchased the car as is with no inspection, you may not have any recourse. However, I would still suggest you contact the OH attorney general to get their thoughts on the topic.
March 13th, 2011 at 2:21 pm
I also live in Ohio and purchased a used vehicle in March of 2010 and on the third day of having the vehicle the wheel feel of the car and caused body damaged that required them to replace parts and get the parts repainted. When they said the car was finished the first time they didnt replace the partsthey said they would and the paint job was orrible it had what is considerd fish eyes where the paint had air bubbles in it, so they sent it to be serviced again and this time they replaced the parts and tried to have the paint fixed but made it worse by leaving over spay on the other side of the car and leaving buff marks on the doors.So once again they said they would take care of it so they sent it to another body shop and this time it was ok but in the meantime thats a 6 weeks of not having the car so when i was able to drive the car they never finished fixing it mechanically so another 3 days of service. It stills doesn’t ride the same but they say theres nothing wrong.
March 15th, 2011 at 2:02 pm
Josh–Something seems wrong here–I would reach out to the OH Attorney General office to find out if there is any used car protection available.
September 27th, 2011 at 1:44 pm
We Are doing a buy here pay here from a ford dealership in muncy PA.
(we did this at the end of june 2011)
on a 2003 f150 it had under 100,000 miles
It came to us inspected and everything.
It had the 3 month warranty (or so many miles) $100 deductable.
When we went in to sign papers they told us that it had been in the gararge and gone through front to back and the only problem it had was a rusted break line (which they fixed).
So we traded in our fully paid for explorer and thought we would be happy.
Well Right when we drove it off the lot we noticed problems.
The ABS was acting funny and when it got to a certain speed the wheels would make a horrible sound.
So we quickly brought this to their attention.
After 3 weeks or so they finally go it in to fix it.
Wellll It was crazy.
They said they needed to order parts and there were some things that needed fixed not covered on our warranty.
They fixed the wheel. The ABS a few other things and said they had to fix the straps on the gas tank because they were so rusted they were about to fall off.
And to top all this off they added about 800-900 more to what we owe on the price of the truck (BECAUSE Of THEIR MISTAKES).
I know that it was not gone through like they said becasue I think you would have noticed those things.
And to top it off we were without transportation for a week and had to rely on others because they had no loaner to provide us with like stated in our warranty.
Not to long after that the truck started having the issue of missing when my husband was driving it. It would get a little better when he stepped on the gas.
So we brought this to their attention also. and to this day they keep blowing us off…Oh we have nothing open for weeks..And sorry no loaners either..
So then my husband and his friend decided to change the oil and filters the other day.
The fuel filter was so rusted it took forever for them to remove it…The same with the oil filter..Those you would thing would be obviouse too.
(all of these issues happened while under warranty) And they keep blowing us off hoping we will forget about it
This whole thing has been so stressful on us.
And this is the 3rd car/truck we have bought from them. We are always on time with payments even early alot of times.
We just do not know what to do about this.
we do not have the money to do all these repairs ourself. Because we have no idea what is fully wrong with it because they wont get it into the shop.
Does anyone know where we go from here?
October 3rd, 2011 at 3:44 pm
Sadly, due to the age, it would not fall under the laws we work with.
October 27th, 2011 at 4:08 pm
my car may not fall under this category but… i bought a new 2009 subaru outback. at 56k miles, the engine just blew. the dealer cant tell me why it blew but since i don’t have all of my maintenance records (oil changes) they say they won’t pay. i have only three at 15k, 26k and 31k. the dealer actually inspected my car 3/11, looked at all the fluids, and didn’t recommend an oil change. from march till now i added 20k miles on the car. the service guy said they can’t say how much oil was in the car as there was oil all over the hood and engine, and they drained 3/4 of a quart of dirty oil. the diagnostics showed no engine light or change oil light ever came on. truthfully, i can’t remember if i had an oil change and can’t find a record of it, but if it had been a problem, shouldn’t the change oil light come on??
if anyone has any ideas. i did call the 800 subaru number and they are looking in to it. any ideas, let me know–tmredmann@yahoo.com
October 28th, 2011 at 6:42 am
@Tere: This is why it is so important to keep those oil change records. Sadly, if you do not keep up with the maintenance schedule, the manufacturer can void the warranty. Keep going strong in your battle with Subaru. There is a good chance that in the end, they may agree to discount the repair or split the costs with you.
August 14th, 2012 at 2:57 pm
Our 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee has been in the shop on average once every 6 months since we bought it new in 2007. Chrysler Cares (Chrysler Corporate) refuses to acknowledge any responsibility for this and now the vehicle is out of the extended warranty. HOWEVER, there were multiple issues repaired more than once at the dealership while under warranty for which we have documentation. Can this warranty act still work for us since we were never notified about it when the car was in the shop on multiple occasions at the dealership while under warranty? Suggestions on how to proceed is appreciated as the vehicle continues to break down regularly, we have spent thousands in repairs and hundreds of hours in time dealing with this vehicle.
August 14th, 2012 at 4:13 pm
Eli: It depends on the state. Unfortunately, the fact that you have waited to long to file will have a negative impact and you will receive a lesser recourse than you would have earlier. In certain states, you have exceeded your statute of limitations so you would have already lost out on remedy for waiting.
August 14th, 2012 at 6:33 pm
LemonLaw-Thanks for the input. I hope this can be a warning to other car buyers. Don’t get the extended or 100k mile or 5 year “platinum” warranty because you end up with a lemon with a lot of miles and what is beginning to look like no recourse-even though we still owe a significant amount of money on the vehicle. In 2009 the dealership took a minimum of 4 visits to fix an air bag light problem. (this is just one of many issues) If I had known about the Federal Magnuson-Moss warranty act in 2009, we wouldn’t be having this problem now. Of course the dealership didn’t say anything. It was over Arizona’s lemon law mileage allowance, at least to my understanding at that time.
August 22nd, 2012 at 10:56 pm
I purchased my 2010 challenger srt8 about 2 months ago and I live in colorado. The car has 11,800 miles on it. It is still under the original factory bumper to bumper warranty. I took the car in because it has ripples in the plastic front faschia. The service manager refused to do warranty work and after filing a claim with Chrysler their area manager said that they would split the cost 50/50 with me. I called to inquire why this is not fully covered by my warranty and I was informed that because this is a common flaw on the car and that replacing the front faschia might not fix the problem they refused to provide full warranty coverage and that this decision was final. Would this fall under the lemon law or possibly the Magnusson Moss Act?
August 30th, 2012 at 12:32 pm
We bought a 2009 used Buick Enclave with 41,000 miles on it about 4 months ago. The car had the remainder of the 50,000 bumper to bumper plus the 100,000 power terrain warranty. It is also certified to 12,000 miles after purchase. Since we bought it we have had a problem with it accelerating and when going at high speeds on a highway the car will sputter/catch and continue to do this off and on. Basically the car is not firing and all the cylinders are not working as they should. Have taken in 4X now. The car has been taken out on long drives yet no one can duplicate the problem so it can’t be fixed. What are our chances of fighting something like this? This car will be a death trap soon if I am trying to merge and accelerate and it suddenly decides not to go.
September 2nd, 2012 at 6:37 pm
I gave a 2010 BMW. It has 36k miles and over the last 9 months has had check engine lights going off. The car has been in and out of the service bay over 2 months during this time period. It was in the shop all of July! It is currently back with the same issue. They keep replacing parts and giving me a loaner. It is a lease and I am ready to pull the plug. I go 200-400 miles before it happens again. Would this act be worth discussing with the dealer in order to get out of my lease? I just don’t want to go through the winter with reliability issues. WE are on the 5 or 6th attempt let alone the times I complained that it was not running right before the lights came on (dating back to its first service call; I suspect the software but instead they changed just about everything else).
September 5th, 2012 at 11:25 am
It’s time to look into your rights. Visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html.
September 5th, 2012 at 11:27 am
Lesley: Please contact an attorney in your state: https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html
September 5th, 2012 at 11:35 am
Sadly, it may not. I would reach out to corporate if you have not already.
March 7th, 2013 at 11:46 am
We purchased a 2011 Kia Sorento (new) in April 2010. We have had it in the shop on at least 17 ocassions for many issues. The most problematic one is for (on-going) transmission problems. This is the third transmission, (replaced twice) in the last 8 months. And, as of mid-January the problem (Hard jolt when shifitng into reverse) still presented!! We have been very ‘professional and courteous’ throughout this dreadful encounter(s) and when I reported this to the service mgr. he recommended I call customer relations at Kia. I did this, three times, to no avail. I then started researching on-line what our options were…found the BBB auto-line. This is where we learned we are outside the lemon law provisions here in Ohio and Kia told the agent helping us that he was not willing to do the repurchase/refund. Are we within time period, legal eligibility, etc. to recover somehow from this situation, with the help of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act? The BBB agent has been helpful and did say it was like pulling teeth to get the kia rep to offer a cash payment of $1600. After reading some of the success stories on this site, and at a gut level, I don’t think $1600 is at all fair and equitable. I feel overwhelmed and frustrated about this whole situation. Any help would be hugely helpful and appreciated. Should I hire a lawyer….are our chances of receiving a larger cash award greater when a lawyer is involved. I already feel ripped off by these entities and now know they are not working with us!! The BBB agent is waiting for me to make a decision about the offer. Would I be able to counter the offer with a larger amount and if they (Kia Mftg.) rejected it, could I still hire legal assistance? H.E.L.P.!!
March 19th, 2013 at 3:12 pm
Purchased a 2009 Nissan Altima Hybrid (less than 50K miles)
at the end of November, 2012. Within 2 days of purchase, the engine light came on. It was diagnosed as the cylinder heads need replacing. It took 3- 4 weeks for this to be repaired. It ran rough when it came back and was going back and forth between generator and engine approx. every 45 secs. In less than a months’s time, the car shook convulsively when driven. We took it back in and they said some wires were backward. They had it a few days.
It still runs rough and does not seem to go into to EV mode when it should or hold an EV charge. It shouldn’t run this rough, specially since its a hybrid. It has a very noticeable switch between generator and engine. It is March 2013 and it has been at the dealers for the third time
for almost two weeks now to finally resolve why this hybrid car does not seem to work right. How do we proceed?
March 28th, 2013 at 2:00 pm
@Bill: Time to talk to a lawyer. Click here https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html to find one in your state.
November 8th, 2013 at 7:22 am
I purchased a 2007 jeep grand Cherokee from a dealer and have been having issues from the first week! One the tail gate says it is always open when its not and the windows roll up and down on their own! The vehical came with a 90 day warranty and I purchased a extended 2yr warranty! Well once these issue arises I notified the dealer with no response! So I decided to pay for my own car fax. After being told it was clean and a one owner car from the dealer I found 21 issues on the car fax. A rear end collision’ electrical issues’ being sold I’m multiple auctions which if I would have known I would have never paid top blue book value for the jeep. Also when I went to get a copy of my warranty that I paid a extra $1300 for they had no copy of it on file but I have proof on my contract and loan papers where I paid for it! They tried to get me to sign another one but I refused because all the conditions where different and the date they put on it would have made it expire the day I signed it! I filed a claim through the BBB and one of the GM’s contacted me apologizing and assured me it would be taken care of! After multiple attempts it is still not fixed and I paid $1300 for a extended warranty I do not have! Also I know there is a law about dealers having the paper in the window about the warranty or as is. It is so specific that they can’t even change the font size! Well mine never had the papers in the window and I have proof. I just wanted my jeep fixed. I didn’t want to pay $16k for a vehicle that has all these issues! I have taken every step to give them a chance to make things right so now I need to know if I can take legal action? Thank You
November 11th, 2013 at 6:56 pm
I bought a ford Taurus its a 2000. Pd 2000.00 for it and brought it in the shop to get repairs done and they showed me that all under the car is all rusted, doesn’t even know what is holding it together,. Is there anything I can do? I want people to know there are bad dealers out there so be careful.
January 8th, 2014 at 1:45 pm
purchased a used hyundai 2003 from dealer in Waynesboro, VA on December 4, 2013, the dealer sold auto as is however the dealer purchased and paid for a ASC warranty in buyers name to cover the auto for 90 days. we drove auto from dealer to home and before we got home te check enguine light came on light came on, we called dealer and he advised us to take auto to a repair shop that he used they worked on the car for over a week, told us to come get it and we had to return the car the next day, we were told that the car was fixed and picked up the car on Dec 23 on Dec 26th the car stopped running while we was driving at about 45 miles per hour and the power steering went out and the car went into a ditch and hit a guard rail, we had the car towed back to the auto repair shop and on Jan 4 they told us that it needed to be taken to the dealer as they could not fix it so we took car to hyundai dealer in Harrisonburg, VA, dealer advised us that the throttle sensor and computer chip needed to be replaced at a cost of 1292 we told him we would pick up car and return it to the repair shop where all the work had been done as the dealer was paying all the bills for the repairs at this shop, we left the dealer lot drove 7 miles and the motor blew. We had car towed back to hyundai and he has estimated repair at 5000 dollars. . What if any legal rights do we have or are we simply out of 5000.00 dollars plus two towing bills for this auto.
June 5th, 2014 at 1:21 pm
I recently purchased a dodge Durango 2004 in January 2014. I received the extended warranty. Three weeks ago my car overheated and I got it towed back to the house. the Mechanic picked it up and stated that it was an engine problem and it was sent to another mechanic that specializes in engine. The whole engine needs to be replaced and the warranty is stating that they are not covering it because the car overheated. I only had the car for four months no other problems. I am stuck with a car note and full coverage insurance and a 4grand bill. I have asked for assistance from the bank and also the dealer that I got it from. what can I do next? it seems as if I am getting the run around.
June 12th, 2014 at 2:15 pm
@Tasha: Sadly, that is the issue with many aftermarket warranties. I would contact your state’s attorney gneeral office to report the dealer as they were the ones who sold you this extended warranty. There may be something that can be done.
July 18th, 2014 at 11:34 am
We purchased a 2010 Mini Cooper S for 15,000$ with 93,000 miles on it.. We had it for two weeks and on the way home from my fiancés birthday dinner (yeah) we lost all power.. We bought this car from a high end Honda dealer ship.. They agreed to take a look at it and fix the car at no cost to us.. Almost two weeks later we get the car back.. And days later it all happened again.. Same issue.. Complete power loss.. It’s back in the shop and it has been there for like a total of two months now.. They just now gave us a rental car a few weeks back after begging for one.. I don’t want the Mini back I’m afraid it’s just going to be a big problem.. We do not know how to address this.. Would we qualify for this Act?
July 23rd, 2014 at 4:22 pm
@Sarah: The car would have to be under a manufacturers warranty to qualify.
August 8th, 2014 at 1:03 pm
I purchased a 2012 Ford Focus in July 2013. I purchased the car with approximately 25,000 miles, and it now has approximately 46,000 miles. The car is still under the manufacturer’s warranty. I also purchased an extended warranty through the manufacturer. Since purchasing the vehicle, I have been to the dealer 2-3 times for transmission-related issues. The car was in the shop for over 30 days during one of the repair trips because the dealer was waiting for a backordered part. I am still having issues with the transmission. Do I have any recourse?
August 20th, 2014 at 6:12 am
I purchased a 2007 GMC Acadia last February from the local Nissan dealership. The same day I pulled it off of the lot the check engine light came on and it would not start after I fueled it. Since then I’ve had a vast multitude of problems. I still have to leave the vehicle running to fuel it or else it won’t start, the power steering went out in November and has been repaired twice since then by the Chevy/GMC dealership and just went out again the other day. The service dept. quoted me $690 to fix it yet again because they said that the pressure hose had been “rigged” to keep it together and that now it split. I have already paid $500 to fix these problems, and the cv joint and sway bar bushings, in the past because the warranty company doesn’t cover rubber hoses. There is a water leak in the vehicle that was under a previous recall that has since expired. The front struts are shot, and have been for at least six months. I’ve only put just under 12000 miles on the vehicle and I’m pretty sure that these problems were in existence when I bought the vehicle. Am I covered at all under this act, or is there any way I can at least get the original Nissan dealership to repair it?
August 21st, 2014 at 1:48 pm
@Jillian: Depending on the state, the answer is yes. Visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html to find a firm in your state.
May 24th, 2015 at 8:00 pm
Any help available under this law for a 2007 Kia Rondo that we purchased certified used 10 months ago- it’s been in the shop 4-5 times now for Major Issues and of course never falls under the warranty we’re supposed to have, help!!!!!!
June 22nd, 2015 at 2:40 pm
I live in Ohio. And purchased my car from a company called Drivrtime. I was shown a Carfax and was reassured that everything is taken care of prior to the car being placed on the lot. Seeing how I was in a pinch and had no car whatsoever I was very amused as to what they are saying and went along with it because it all sounded very promising. Anyway, I purchased an additional 5 year/$100,000 power tran warranty for $5000 when I purchased my car. I have had the radiator hose go out, the eg notion coil go out, and have have needed 5-6 oil changes since I purchased it, plus 2 anti freeze flushes. I understand there are only a certain amount of things covered within the warranty. But now we get to the nitty gritty… While driving my car 30mph or higher it makes this loud roaring sound, my grandfather who has worked on cars all his life thinks it may just be the tires or the tire rod or even the axels. I was just wondering is there anything I can do to possibly disregard this car. And somehow file a law suit with Drivetime and/or the warranty company who I have the car through. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
June 27th, 2015 at 7:30 pm
I bought a car with a 90 day warranty from the dealership, a few days later I had to take the car back because it revs up in park and shuts off alin drive at stop lights, i know the lemon law does not apply to this but what does??
July 3rd, 2015 at 8:58 am
@Nina: Hard to say. If the problem is fixed, there is no claim. The Mag Moss goes against car companies and you have an aftermarket warranty. I would reach out to your state attorney general’s office and look into a potential used car lemon law.
July 3rd, 2015 at 9:17 am
@Brittany: That is the problem with aftermarket warranties. If you would have purchased this at a manufacturers authorized dealer with a manufacturers warranty, you would have much more recourse. I would suggest first getting an estimate at a manufacturers authorized dealer as to what is wrong and how much it will cost to fix it. Then, I would bring that estimate to drivetime. If they want to pay to have ti fixed, great. Otherwise, consider filing a claim in small claims court to try to recover repair costs. Good luck to you.
July 20th, 2015 at 9:17 pm
My son bought a used chevy suburban with 82000 miles on it. Now six months later he’s had 5 different issues with the most recent one being a blown transmission. The other 4 issues involved damage to the motor mount (not due to accident or any fault of his own), a short circuit on the driver side control panel, a/c compressor that gave out and a burnt motor of the windshield wipers which he had fixed at the 2 month mark. Because the car is now at 112,000K miles, i don’t think it falls under the lemon law. We reached out the dealer and the manufacturer GM. After much back and forth that’s lasted about a week he was offered an appointment at the dealership where he purchased the car 30 days out because apparently the transmission expert is out on vacation. Does he have any recourse under the lemon law or under the Magnuson-Moss Act. By the way the car has been out of commission for 3 weeks now due to the transmission issue. Thank you.
July 29th, 2015 at 1:38 am
I bought a 2013 Ford Focus in CT May of 2014 from Carmax. The car had 22,000 miles on it and was under bumper to bumper warranty for 3 years/36,000 miles and power train for 10 years/100,000 miles. I bought the car because I was getting ready for a move to CA and I would be driving the car to my new home.
On the first day of my road trip the car stopped accelerating on the highway and check engine light came on. I pulled over to inspect and when I went to start the car up again, the car had a hard time starting. The acceleration problem persisted with clunking and grinding sounds that I suspected were the transmission. After taking a rest stop, the behavior improved until I got to Kansas City and thats when the car completely stopped accelerating. I called Carmax and they recommended I let Ford look at it since it was still under factory warranty. I took it in to the Ford dealership in Oalthe and they claimed that my gas pump needed to be replaced. After two days in the shop my car was ready. I had a new fuel pump however the car was still not accelerating, still grinding and clunking and still struggling to start. I returned to the dealership immediately. After a week of being stranded in Kansas City my car was again, finally ready. They told me the PCM had been “fried” and needed to be replaced. Happy that my car was now accelerating properly I continued my journey, except the grinding and clunking sound was just as bad.
I finally got to CA 3 days later and I went right to a Ford dealership in Glendale where I explained my problems. The car was in the shop for close to 2 weeks. It turned out on top of the PCM failing, my front suspension needed major work and the transmission needed fixing(according to the service receipt this was still an issue related to the PCM) The mechanic informed me that this transmission issue was common in this particular car.
I drove away and everything seemed as it should. Until about 2 months later when the grinding sound returned. I called the dealer, they ensured me it was normal and that the car is “just getting used to my driving patterns.” I let another 4 months go by keeping an eye on the problem and it just got worse and worse and worse. I went into another Ford dealership in Santa Monica and was turned away because there were simply too many Focus’ in the shop with the same issue.
The car now has 43,000 miles on it and I have had it for a little over a year. I am now taking it in for its 4th service visit. This time to get the transmission fixed…again.
July 31st, 2015 at 3:01 pm
@Matt: There may be a potential for a breach of warranty claim. If you would like us to review your situation, please visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/rid.html.
July 31st, 2015 at 3:08 pm
@Yvette: Sadly, the mileage would be an issue. But I would still call your state attorney general’s office to look into used car lemon law rights.
August 17th, 2015 at 1:36 am
I bought a 2010 Cooper now the left rear brake is locking up took it back to where I bought it they told me to contact the people who will fix it due to my paperwork they are telling me to bring it back to where I bought it I don’t know what to do it’s like the transmission is acting up the left rear brake is acting up I put two new tires on the front it runs a little better do I fall into lemon laws after two months they are telling me to bring it back to where I bought it I don’t know what to do it’s like the transmission is acting up the left rear brake is acting up I put two new tires on the front it runs a little better do I fall into lemon laws after two months
September 17th, 2015 at 3:59 pm
We bought a $40,000 truck that was already bought back from the lemon law and we did not know this till we started having the same check engine lite problem!! We started finding out that it had prior work done with no resolve to the issue it was bought back and we bought it NOT KNOWING THIS and now 6 months later we are stuck with the problem! is there anything we can do to get them to take it back?
September 18th, 2015 at 9:55 am
@Lindy: In most states, it is mandatory that the dealership disclose a lemon title and the reasons why the manufacturer bought back the car. I would contact an attorney in your state to discuss. You can find one by visiting https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html
September 22nd, 2015 at 3:25 pm
We bought a “certified” pre-owned Ford F150 with ~18,000 miles in May, 2015. In September, battery was dead so I replaced it. Battery died again in about three days. Took to local dealership, from which we purchased truck, and they claimed my replacement battery was bad. They sold me a new Motorcraft battery. Three days later battery was drained again. Returned to same dealer, this time they re-progammed the BCM and claimed it was OK. Two days later, battery drained again. Returned to dealer a third time, service advisor not happy claiming they’ve done all they could do (???), but will check it again. If truck comes back with same problem would I have a case under Magnuson-Moss? Thank you!
October 23rd, 2015 at 3:00 pm
Please Respond- now since May it has been back in the shop 4-5 more times for serious issues! We are in PA.
#38 Cheryl G. says:
May 24th, 2015 at 8:00 pm
Any help available under this law for a 2007 Kia Rondo that we purchased certified used 10 months ago- it’s been in the shop 4-5 times now for Major Issues and of course never falls under the warranty we’re supposed to have, help!!!!!!
– See more at: https://www.lemonlaw.com/blog/outside-lemon-law-try-the-mag-moss-act/#sthash.Tfi3Gdgp.dpuf
November 12th, 2015 at 1:01 pm
@Cheryl: Sadly due to the age, it would not fall under the Magnuson Moss.
December 5th, 2015 at 6:40 am
I bought a 2013 Nissan Altmia It wasn’t brand new it was there service car but did come with the same warranties. 3/36,000 and 100,000. At 54,000 miles I had to have the tranmission replace (warranty) Then I have had the same problem of it going out of power. It has been in a Nissan service center at least 3 times with same problem (still not fixed) I talked with Nissan about buying my car back. Well they just denied everything, and top that the dealership well Good Luck with the car. What am I to do??
January 5th, 2016 at 2:29 pm
Purchased a new 2015 subaru wrx in November 2014. It now has 22,000 miles on it and the transmission is acting up. I took it in once they said they found nothing wrong. I took it in the second time and they tore the transmission apart again and again found nothing wrong. The issue is still happening and they say they can’t duplicate the problem so they can’t fix it?
January 5th, 2016 at 2:45 pm
My car came with a 3 year 36,000 mile warranty and I purchased an extended warranty that covers 6 years or 80,000 miles.
January 13th, 2016 at 5:38 pm
@Cody: Do not give up. Make sure you keep all your repair records and continue to bring it to the dealer’s attention. You can also go to another Subaru authorized dealer. If you would like us to review your claim, visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/rid.html.
February 21st, 2016 at 9:00 pm
I have a 2013 kia sportage and for two months now i have been dealing with the same problem. It has left me an my child starnded numerous times and has had to be towed four outta the 5 but the dealership has had it all 5 times and can not find out why it is not starting. They have ran test and replaced a battery and now an ipm. The other times they have told me they will have to wait for the problem to worse before they can figure anything out. I have been late and even missed qork due to this. Wasnt sure since i still have factory warranty if anything could bw done.
February 29th, 2016 at 5:34 pm
@Amanda: This would certainly fall under the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act. Visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html to find an attorney in your state.
March 1st, 2016 at 2:56 pm
wind noise of high70 to low 80 dbs very much a Distraction one on each side of the truck head level 2013F150 sc stx
March 15th, 2016 at 7:41 am
2012 Grand Caravan – purchased 18mos ago. Currently has 80,000 miles on it. Third service repair in 4mos for transmission, main computer and accelerator sensor issues. All three listed were replaced in January 2016 but now 7wks later we are back in shop for them. Rpm’s jump up but van wont’ go over 20 mph. Then will suddenly accelerate forward. It had to be towed in as it was not safe to drive..dealer is saying that they will be reaching out to dodge as van has been in too many times for same issue. At this point unwilling to put four kids back in this van as we don’t trust it at all. Do we have any legal standing since we purchased it as a used vehicle?
March 23rd, 2016 at 4:56 pm
@kw: You may have a claim under Federal law. Please visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html to find a firm in your state.
May 31st, 2016 at 10:46 am
I have a 2012 Ford Focus..Taking it in for the 3rd time for the transmission. I have also had it in at least 3 times for leaks. Still leaks..Now they want to charge me for leaks. Factory Warrenty ran out last year. I have the extended Warrenty. I have had problems with this car from day one.Any advice?
May 31st, 2016 at 2:28 pm
@Terri: I would absolutely speak to a lawyer. Please visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html to find a firm in your state who can help.
June 6th, 2016 at 2:14 pm
I bought a Pre-Certified Ford Fusion, May 4, 2016. I was under the impression there was absolutely nothing wrong with the car, that it had been fully inspected by some 172 check point, and is still covered under warranty.
It had been a rainy couple of weeks, so I didn’t notice until the third week, as I was hand washing my car, that the roof of the cars clear coat is peeling off. I notified the dealer as soon as I seen it, and they said, that they can not do anything about it, that part of the warranty was only for 3 years, and that had passed already, and that I would have to pay for the repairs to have it fixed.
They gave me a estimated that it would cost me $1,100-2,000 to be fixed. I told them I hadn’t even had the car a month, that the clear coat had to be peeling before I purchased the car.
I told them I would trade it in, because I just gave them 15,000.00 in cash, I didn’t have the money to have 1,100- to 2,000 repair done on the car, that is why I went pre-certified. But the value of my car is a lot less now, because the clear coat is starting to peel.
I called the main ford company their self, and they said there was nothing that they could do either. Is there anything legally I can do? I know this isn’t a mechanical problem, but it is a big costly problem, that I feel they should have known about when they sold me a pre-certified car.
June 6th, 2016 at 2:31 pm
I should mention my Ford Fusion is a 2013, and had 52,700 miles on it,mint now has 53,000
June 21st, 2016 at 10:06 pm
I have a 2014 BMW motorcycle, purchased new in Feb 2015. It had a recall for a stalling problem. I have taken the motorcycle in four times as of today (21 June) and it’s still not fixed. I spoke to BMW today and they said bring it in again. I think this qualifies as “Enough is Enough”. What do you think? The motorcycle has less than 4500 miles.
June 22nd, 2016 at 2:31 pm
@Nick: I would agree with you. Visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/lemon-law-firm.html to find a firm that could help.
August 12th, 2016 at 12:27 pm
I bought a used car from a certified dealer. I have only had it for maybe 6 weeks and has broke down twice, and been in the shop 3 times now! Totalling 16 days in the shop so far for a complete transmission rebuild, and it still wasn’t fixed. My car over heated and broke down on one of the hottest days of the year after only having it for 24 hours. I still don’t have a working seat belt, and I still don’t even have the car back that I am paying $360 a month for! I just want to give it back! I don’t care about all the money I have put into it, or the other car that I traded in. I just want out of this car!! They can have it back, and I no longer want to pay for it. Is this possible to do?
August 25th, 2016 at 1:59 pm
@Ashley: The Magnuson Moss Act may provide some monetary relief. Feel free to visit https://www.lemonlaw.com/rid.html and submit your information to see if we can help.
August 25th, 2016 at 3:16 pm
GMC arcaida 2011 bought at dealership Herr in Vermont. Christmas 2015 bought, won’t start every 30 days go into shop. We are goin on 10 months of this vehicle being in shop then us driving. Last break down car breaks came on all by self.very Scarry, it’s all electrical troubles. Even turned on cruise control myself one time. We want the dealership to plz buy back this car an destroy it. As I speak today it’s at the shop 3 weeks 10x now help plz Jeanne…
September 9th, 2016 at 9:45 am
Hello, I purchased my Jeep wrangler less than a year ago and the day after it started giving me problems the dealer where I purchased it at offered to fix the issue and still are trying to fix the issues as it has several including transmission problems and electrical( wiring).In between I have taken it to two other mechanics and I was told that the car would have to be rewired the car had several problems. I had also purchased extended warranty that has not covered anything and blames the dealer for even selling me the jeep with such issues. I come to find out that the jeep still has manufacture warranty but in Canada since it was from Canada then brought and sold from a licensed dealer in Florida.. Now 9 moths later I am still having issues with this Jeep and it has been at the dealer back and to several mechanics more than I’ ve been driving it .. At this point I don’t know what my options are ! I feel like I have been robbed. If there is anything you can suggest please help me out, thanks ..
September 19th, 2016 at 3:22 am
2013 Dodge Dart SXT bought in February 2016 48k miles, had to return it two separate times in February due to engine light coming on and misfiring. Car was returned they replaced a hose to the turbo and some coil packs. The third time it went back in march i believe and they replaced the whole turbo. Now the engine light has come on again and it is misfiring I am supposed to take it back in on the 28th. Now at 60k miles it is still covered under the factory warrenty but I do not want to keep taking my car back for the same issues over and over again.. It has been in the shop for a total of 4 weeks at least altogether so far.
November 15th, 2016 at 9:57 am
Purchased a 2012 Ford Focus in 2014. Since we have owned it the transmission has been worked on at two separate dealerships on three different occasions. There is an open recall and extended warranty as well as a class-action lawsuit against Ford for these transmission problems. Now we go to trade the car in and because of the transmission problems we are looking at only getting $2500 for the trade-in, which seems crazy low to me. We still have grinding noises in the transmission as well as awkward shifting and lurching. The car has 89000 miles on it, was purchased with 68000 miles and we purchased an extended warranty from the dealer to cover it another 60k. Would Magnuson-Moss help us?
December 10th, 2016 at 8:42 am
I’m doing a buy here pay here with limited warranty the dealer pays 50% of labor and 50% of the parts for the covers system that fall during the warranty period. for a 2004 Mazda Tribute with 199238!! I only had the car for a couple of hours when I was driving the car shut down on me and cut off and I got into an accident!! What laws am I covered under!! I also tried to deal with this matter for 3 days with the dealer!! They where very unprofessional and rude!! They are telling me that this car is worth 5,691.60 I made a partial payment of 500$ should I file a claim in small claims court or am I covered under any law!!
February 26th, 2017 at 9:01 pm
Bought a Yukon Denali, 2015, 82000 miles, 2 previous owners. Car still under warranty plus extended from dealership. Have had the car less than 60 days and it has been in their shop 3 times. Each time for different things, however each time the problems are increasingly worse. This last time is for a bad transmission. I have had to pay for part of the expense to repair, but am wary of this car, wondering what will fall apart next. Do I have any recourse to demand they take this car back? I did ask why it had 2 owners in 2 years, but the salesperson just laughed off my question. I need a reliable car, and this one is not.
May 16th, 2017 at 12:50 pm
I bought a 2016 Dodge Journey brand new and it is still under the factory warranty with 33000 miles on it. It has been back to the dealer 3 different times for the engine randomly shutting off. Dodge refuses to fix it since no codes come up on the computer. It is unsafe to drive.
June 8th, 2017 at 8:17 am
I bought a 2008 Suzuki SX4 Crossover from Used Car World PA on July 11, 2016 with a 2 Year/20K Mile Extended Warranty that was inspected on the day we bought it from the dealership. On September 7 2016, less than two months after purchase, I had to have the alternator replaced. Now, less than a year later (June 8 2017) I am having to take the car in again due to the alternator, AGAIN. The car continues to run even when the key is out of the ignition and will randomly stall out. Is there any legal action I can take?
August 29th, 2017 at 9:46 pm
I have a 2015 Jeep Cherokee. It has 28000 miles on it. I was not aware when I bought it that these cars are known to have transmission problems. The transmission went out of my car on July 28th 2017 and was towed to a dealership. They still have the car trying to fix the transmission (8-29-17). Is there any compensation I can receive under the law? Especially since this is a known problem in 2015 Jeep Cherokees.
October 5th, 2017 at 10:39 am
i have a paint defect that began the day it was painted but did not show itself until after the 3 year written warranty was over. can i use Mag-Moss in this situation ? its unusual as i believe i can prove the defect occurred before the 3 year Warranty was over.
October 5th, 2017 at 1:52 pm
@Peter–If you did not bring the matter up during the warranty period, the Mag Moss would not apply.
October 9th, 2018 at 9:23 pm
I have a brand new 2018 Jeep Compass with 420 miles on it and it has been in the shop for a leaking drain plug on the transmission and a bad from the manufacture seal in the power transfer unit. I have only had possession of the vehicle for 7 of the 28 days that I have owned it. I have tried to get them to trade it with another new one, but thats not happening. I have no faith in the vehicle being sound and will never trust it on a trip of any distance. I bought a new vehicle not one with a service record. What can I do?
June 20th, 2019 at 10:04 pm
Do I have any rights under Magnuson-Moss Law? I bought a 2017 Dodge truck with 40k miles in june 2018. The dealership sold me an extended service warranty that i am unable to use because the dealership added some aftermarket parts to the truck. The transmission has gone out and now im finding out that the warranty is voided because the dealership made changes to the truck. If this voids the warranty, how is it legal for a chrysler dealership to sell a warranty to consumers knowing the warranty was voided because of something they did…. I don’t understand how Chrysler and Dodge can get away with this kind of practice. How can a warranty deny a claim even when the part added had nothing to do with the issue.
July 10th, 2019 at 10:35 pm
June 1st, I bought a brand new 2019 Can-Am Ryker. I was supposed to pick it up from the dealership a couple of days later after being assembled. I was told that I couldn’t take the bike as it had problems that could only be fixed with a software update. The update was supposed to be released in the next week or so. This was to fix a problem with the engine shutting down while riding. I was upset but patient. So now it is July 10th and still no update. The bike is still setting at the dealership. I bought a 3 year extended warranty. The dealership keeps giving me the run around. Would this fall under the lemon law? If so, what should my next steps be? Thanks
September 11th, 2019 at 5:38 pm
I purchased a van from a dealer and when I took it for a test drive I complained that the brakes were very low. The salesman said they would definitely take care of it and fix the problem. A week later the same problem occurred I took it back and supposedly it was fixed again. The prob occurred about 4 more times in the first 3 weeks of having the van. I was told it was the master cylinder that went and that it will be fixed at no cost to me. Not even 4 months later the master cylinder went on my van. When I asked the dealer for the paperwork or warranty on the part that was fixed they told me I have to take their word for it because there was no warranty or paperwork to give me. What do I do?
October 4th, 2019 at 11:42 am
In May of this year 2019 I bought a 2013 Ford edge in May of this year I was taking my son to school and the brakes went out a month after I bought it they kept it for about a week and then in August they went out again they kept it for over a month Ha I had it back it’s October now I had it back a couple days and it back again the brakes went out all three times taken My son to school and on top of that this is my first time ever buying a vehicle by myself so my credits not that great but it’s reasonable so they really messed me around on the price that I paid 7000 down and they talked me into buying a service Contract it wasn’t a vehicle I wanted they said it was a year older and I would never get qualified for it it had 90,000 miles on it and this one had 50,000 they said this one would be more apt for me to get approved now I owe $21,900 On a car that only worth $8000 now is there anything I can do because I’m afraid of driving vehicle now with my children in the car I’m afraid that they’re going to go out and I won’t be able to stop at all next time it’s very scary any help
December 28th, 2019 at 7:24 pm
I have a 2018 GMC Sierra Denali with 35900 miles been in the shop for 30 days with transmission issues.The dealer has been waiting for a part but it is back ordered what do u think I should do
January 2nd, 2020 at 4:27 pm
@Jeff: Please call us at 800 536 6652 to discuss your rights and how we can help.
March 21st, 2020 at 1:10 am
Hello I live in Oklahoma and was told to get hold of you about my truck. I have 2017 Chevy Silverado. That I purchased in November of 2017 I bought it brand new. In 2019 around Christmas time. My truck engine light came on. So I took it to the shop. And it was in the shop for 6 weeks. They told me the lifters and camshaft was bad on it and they had to wait on them to come in. Al I got was a run around from them. About when the parts was coming in. When the parts finally showed up i got my truck back. Then a few days later my check engine light came back on. Took it back into the shop they fixed then around few days later my check engine light back on and there was a message on my dash saying steering Assist reduced drive with care. And this was on Feb 27th. So it was back in the shop then it was another part that went out they fixed it. Then a couple more days it went back into the shop cause the check engine came back on. Then they said the lifters was bad in it so they replaced them again. By then it was 4 times it was in the shop and a day later the check engine light came back on. So this is the 5th time it is in the shop. And it has been in out and of the shop since December. They just told me today it is the engine control module. All I want is to know if there is a way to get any information. Or a number to call about getting my truck done and out of the shop
March 3rd, 2021 at 5:11 pm
I want to buy a 2021 Toyota Tacoma TRD OffRoad. The Pro model comes with a lift kit installed from the dealer. I am a mechanic and want to install the same lift kit on the new truck I want to buy. Will the self installed lift kit void the warranty, or does this fall under this law?