When you invest in a luxury vehicle, you expect performance, precision, and reliability — not recurring defects that send your car back to the shop month after month. Fortunately, California’s Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act protects owners when repeated repairs fail to fix serious issues.
In one recent case, the owner of a high-end sports coupe brought his vehicle in for service five times over 18 months. The problems were serious and repeated: instrument cluster warnings, lift system errors, an actuator leak, electrical issues, seatbelt malfunctions, and an ongoing check-engine light. Each repair visit was logged in authorized dealer invoices, yet the issues kept returning, often within 30 or 90 days of the last visit.
This kind of repair history isn’t just frustrating — it’s evidence of a defective vehicle the manufacturer couldn’t or wouldn’t fix. Under CA lemon law, you may qualify for a full repurchase or replacement if your car has substantial defects that:
- Impair its safety/use/value
- The manufacturer or authorized dealer cannot repair after a reasonable repair attempts
- Spends 30+ cumulative days out of service within the first 18 months or 18,000 miles (whichever comes first)
If your car keeps cycling through repairs without results, California law gives you the power to take action.
Does your case qualify under Song-Beverly?
The strength of a lemon law case depends on proof and documentation. Courts look for evidence that the manufacturer or dealer was given a reasonable number of attempts to fix the problem. This means more than one visit for the same safety-related defects, especially repeat failures within 30/90 days under warranty coverage.
If your vehicle meets these conditions, California law presumes your vehicle is a lemon. This shifts the burden of proof — the manufacturer, not you, must now prove your car is not defective.
To build your case, collect every communication and repair order, noting the dates & mileage of each visit. Even small notations like “dealer cannot duplicate concern” can work in your favor. Cannot duplicate notes appear on repair orders when a technician is unable to reproduce the issue during testing.
This can happen for several reasons:
- The issue is intermittent or only occurs under certain conditions.
- The technician didn’t have the time, tools, or motivation to properly investigate.
- The dealership may be minimizing your complaint to avoid a lemon law claim.
Even with the right documentation, however, holding manufacturers accountable can be difficult. Automakers have large legal teams that use stall tactics, making it impossible to fight alone. With a qualified CA lemon law attorney on your side, you have leverage to force a buy back or replacement of your vehicle.
What a buyback includes
If your car qualifies as a lemon, the manufacturer must follow a precise repurchase formula under California’s lemon law. This includes purchase price restitution — the full price of the vehicle, plus tax, title, and registration — minus a mileage offset calculation for use before the first repair attempt.
You may also be entitled to incidental/consequential damages such as towing fees, rental car costs, and loan interest, as well as out-of-pocket costs like attorneys’ fees. In some cases, courts impose civil penalties for willful noncompliance, doubling or tripling what the manufacturer owes.
Once the manufacturer agrees to a buyback, the timing of tender and vehicle return must happen promptly. If they delay payment or pickup, your attorney can enforce the buyback through legal action. A continued delay may even strengthen your claim for civil penalties under California’s lemon law.
Don’t let the manufacturer stall or minimize your claim. If you want to finally stop the repair cycle, contact Brennan Law today to protect your rights and recover every dollar you’re owed.