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My Lemon Law Experience and Lessons Learned Regarding New and Used EV Purchases

Krinsky1965

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I have now owned 4 EV's, 2 Taycans and 2 Mercedes, both are great driving cars made by great car manufacturers but buying outright can be a huge financial hit if you are not careful. There are many opportunities for purchasing recently deprecated EVs, cars that have low miles and appear as new with great warranties.

My story: I bought a new 2022 Taycan 4 CT, loaded with more than 30K in options, drove the car for 30 months and put 40,000 miles on it before deciding to lemon law the car. It spent a lot of time in the shop due to small electronic failures (door lock/unlock, key recognition failure, etc..), the car always drove great, was fun to drive, but these little mis-firings were driving me nuts. I just didn't want to be stuck with a car that was out of warranty and kept malfunctioning. I turned the car in last October with 48,080 miles on the “clock”, I drove it through the end of the warranty! I was awarded my money from the original sale minus 2k for use before the first repair (it is a lemon law stipulation and formula). The cost of car + sales tax + DMV fees were reimbursed + 15K in civil damages. I paid my attorney 7k and bought a 2023 MB EQS 450+ which came off of a 1-year lease for less than 1/2 of retail (48K).

The Taycan had lost more than 1/2 of its value and got me thinking about this severe depreciation for EVs, I feel like I came out of a doomed situation on top. If you are looking for an EV, do yourself a favor and buy one that has depreciated and PLEASE buy from a well-established manufacturer such as MB or Porsche. Many of these new EV manufacturers are not going to be around very long, and you don’t want to be stuck with a car that cannot be serviced (FISKAR).

Why MB? Mercedes EQS has great range, 350+ miles per charge, the interior is very plush and well equiped. The Taycan was more fun and you can always steer in that direction but I did also pick-up a 2021 992.1 Carrera 4S and that car is a blast.
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Mr.Smith

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I'm amazed any car manufacturer dares do business in California with a lemon law that generous.
I was thinking the same thing. Even worse, You can get up to $200k in civil penalties in California.

Problem is California, especially Southern California is one of the biggest car markets.
 

Mr.Smith

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^ Forget registering my car in Montana to avoid Massachusetts sale tax -- I'll register a J1.2 in California instead, then at 49,999 miles, time for a net gain refund!
That's why tell people you should be very happy if your car has problems. It's a blessing
 


Spyerx

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can you PM/message me your attorney? lemon law specialist?
Thanks
 

slothinker

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Sorry to strike a discordant note and no disrespect intended:

This seems like a misuse of the intent / purpose of the California Lemon Law (note: I'm no lawyer) and it might well be used as an way for car manufacturers to weaken a state law which is designed to protect consumers from getting a vehicle which is exceptionally and irredeemably poorly made. If one can get 48K miles on a car in 2-3 years, one doesn't seem to have a 'lemon', as that term was originally intended or understood (at least by me).

I can appreciate frustration with multiple trips to the dealer's service department (how many?; how long in the shop?) but in my experience Porsche dealers provide loaner vehicles during such service actions. Just a guess: faced with a very unhappy Porsche customer dealer would even pick-up the car needing service and deliver a loaner.

I can also appreciate the frustration with annual depreciation which especially stings when >$120K is involved.
 

Jonathan S.

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Spyerx

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Sorry I'm with the OP here. You have a car that is out of service with issues for dozens (in my case 78 and counting over 3 years, so basically almost a month a year in the shop, thats more than my classic 911s) days its a lemon. Thats just not acceptable in today's auto industry.
 

slothinker

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Sorry I'm with the OP here. You have a car that is out of service with issues for dozens (in my case 78 and counting over 3 years, so basically almost a month a year in the shop, thats more than my classic 911s) days its a lemon. Thats just not acceptable in today's auto industry.
The OP didn't detail the extent of the issues and # of days in shop for repairs ("It spent a lot of time in the shop due to small electronic failures (door lock/unlock, key recognition failure, etc..)". It would be very frustrating to have a car in the shop for repairs 90 days over three years. Maybe that's what happened to his car or worse.
 
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Jonathan S.

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In all seriousness, although forum members here are typically united in getting out their virtual pitchforks in rage over what some of us have endured with our Taycans in the shop for long periods of time, and repeatedly so .. the only substantive items we have on this are:
  • Drove 40k in the first 30 months.
  • Kept the car until 48,080 miles.
  • After using the car that much over that period of time, received back the price paid + sales tax + DMV fees - $2k usage fee + $15k damages - $7k legal fees, which works out to an entirely free ownership of a Taycan for 48,080 miles plus a bonus $6k.
I’m all for tough consumer protection laws, and I’m as annoyed as anyone else by having a car tied up for one frustrating problem after another, but if I could get paid $6k to put up with all that while paying $0 for the ownership of a Taycan for 48k miles, sign me up!
 

whitex

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Anyone know the VIN of the OP’s car? Curious what happened to it, and how such a lemoned Taycan shows up on NHTSA site, carfax, or other places.
 
 








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