When you bought a 2021+ car that was brand new, you thought you were done with car trouble. Then it happens. Now the engine won’t start, stalls unexpectedly, or throws warning lights you cannot ignore. Suddenly, driving your dream car feels more like rolling the dice.

In California, repeated engine failures make your vehicle unreliable or unsafe. The Lemon Law can protect you from cars that will not perform the way they are intended. Here is a look at when manufacturers must buy it back, so you know what to do when you have an engine failure in a 2021+ vehicle.

Engine Problems Are Serious Defects

Your engine is the whole reason you can drive anywhere safely. If it fails, you can be stranded, stressed, and put at risk on the road. California’s Lemon Law treats engine failures seriously.

Repeated failures are a big deal. The law protects against persistent problems that make the car unreliable or unsafe.

How Does California’s Lemon Law Work?

When a new vehicle has a serious defect that the manufacturer cannot repair after a reasonable number of tries, the law can help.

This is what you want to know if you have engine issues:

• The problem must occur within the first 18 months or 18,000 miles, or during the warranty period.
• The manufacturer also must have made a reasonable number of repair attempts. This is four or more repair attempts for the same defect, or the vehicle being out of service for 30 days or more due to repairs.

Engine problems often meet this standard. Why? They can directly affect the car’s safety, reliability, and value.

What Is Considered as a Repair Attempt?

Every visit to the dealer to address the engine issue counts. Even if the engine works fine after a repair, and then has repeated failures, that is an issue. Those intermittent fixes do not solve the underlying problem, and they leave your car still impaired.

So, if your car keeps coming back to the shop, you want to keep those repair orders. They are your proof that the defect persists and that the manufacturer has had multiple chances to fix it.

Do You Get a Buyback or Replacement?

If your car qualifies under California Lemon Law, you could be entitled to:

• A buyback is when the manufacturer refunds the purchase price minus a reasonable allowance for use.
• A replacement is a comparable new vehicle at no extra cost.

California’s Lemon Law is designed to make you whole. You shouldn’t be stuck with a car that doesn’t work, especially when it’s brand new.

Keep in mind that the law doesn’t just randomly assign a solution. They look at:

• Type of defect: Some defects are so serious that a replacement makes more sense. For example, a defective engine or transmission that keeps failing could justify a replacement.
• Duration of ownership: If you’ve had the car for a short time, a full refund is more likely.
• Use of the vehicle: An arbitrator will subtract a “reasonable allowance for use.” This is how long you’ve had the car before the buyback.

So, if the car is unsafe or cannot be reliably driven, a replacement may be offered. But, if you’ve already had it for some time or the defect is fixable but persistent, a repurchase might make more sense.

Engine Issues Can Be the Cause of Replacement or Buyback

If your 2021+ vehicle is having engine trouble that can’t be fixed after multiple repair attempts, California Lemon Law protects you. Your car should work reliably and safely. If it doesn’t, you don’t have to wait it out. 

At BLVD Law, we can help you get a resolution from the manufacturers. No one should have to deal with a defective vehicle, and we are here to make sure the Lemon Law works in your favor. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.