Key Points of the California Lemon Law

California's Lemon Law is actually a subsection of the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act. With respects to motorists, the Act states that if an auto manufacturer or its representative (e.g. the dealership) cannot, after a reasonable number of repair attempts, fix a car's ongoing problem so that it meets the terms of its original warranty, then the consumer has the right to receive a full refund for the car or a new replacement. You, the consumer, get to choose either a refund or a replacement. As far as the refund goes, it includes the purchase price but also any manufacturer-installed components, registration and official fees, sales tax, repairs, finance charges, towing, and any other costs resulting from the car's defectiveness. The Song-Beverly Act covers consumers for the entire duration of the warranty of the car that they purchased.

Now, California Lemon Law refers specifically to the clause in the Song-Beverly Act that tries to define what exactly constitutes -a reasonable number of repair attempts-. This section states, more or less, the following: a reasonable number of repair attempts has been made if any one of these scenarios is the case: an urgent car problem has been the subject of repairs two or more times, a problem has been subject to repairs four or more times and the car owner has directly contacted the manufacturer at least ones, or the vehicle is out-of-service for repairs 30 days after it was delivered to the shop.


This Lemon Law clause is used in court battles more like a general guideline than an actual law. The specifics of the somekeyword and whether they ethically apply to a particular scenario is always the main debate between Lemon Law lawyers.

Now, the California Lemon Law does not usually apply to used vehicles, but some certified pre-owned cars will sometimes be covered. Consumer coverage does not apply if the defect was caused by car mistreatment in part of the driver. And lastly, make sure you pursue legal action as soon as you find out that you've been sold a Lemon.