California Lemon Law and “Operating to Manufacturer’s Specifications”
Perhaps you are in this situation right now: you’ve brought your new car back to the dealership three or four times for the same aggravating problem and you are beginning to think that it is a lemon. More frustrating than that, however, is the fact that every time you take that lemon into the shop, the service advisor tells you that your car is “operating to the manufacturer’s specifications.” “What in the world does that mean?” you ask. Does that mean that all of that cars that are of the same year, make and model as your car are defective? Does it mean that the manufacturer’s specifications amount to low standards? Does it mean that your car is, in reality, fine? Regardless of what it means, it does not automatically stop a valid lemon law claim.
Now, if your car is operating within normal and generally acceptable tolerances, you should not bring a lemon law case. But if you suspect that “operating to manufacturer’s specifications” is code for “we don’t know what is going on with your vehicle and we don’t want to admit it,” then don’t lose hope. Even if the dealership does not actually “turn a wrench” on your car and even if the dealer says that the vehicle is “operating to manufacturing specifications,” California’s lemon law may still help you. All you have to do is present your vehicle to the dealership for repair. The rest is up to the dealership and if the technician fails to properly diagnose the defect, that is their problem and not yours. Each presentation for repair, regardless of what happens in the technician’s bay afterwards, counts as a repair attempt under the lemon law. The policy for this is a good one. It stops dealers and manufacturers from leading the consumer around with false or negligent reports of “no problem found” or “operates to manufacturer’s specifications.”
The moral: don’t be discouraged just because the dealership seems not to hear or believe you. Just keep bringing your lemon back until the dealership either admits your car has a problem and fixes that problem or until you have exhausted a reasonable number of repair visits.
