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Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local **In summary** Californians who purchase a clunker car in 2025 face a confusing year as new lemon law rules take effect and the state Supreme Court limited warranty protections for used vehicles. Lawmakers are revisiting the rules, but consumers could see weaker protections until new laws are passed. *Keeping up with your California representatives felt impossible before. Now you can watch them like a hawk:* [*Sign up for My Legislator*](https://calmatters.org/my-legislator/)*, your weekly, personalized report that tracks what your state representatives say and do.* *Lea esta historia en [Español](https://calmatters.org/calmatters-en-espanol/2024/12/california-ley-limon-autos-viejos-confusion-leyes-newsom-firmas-corte-suprema/)* The year 2025 is shaping up to be a confusing one for Californians unlucky enough to buy a new or used car that turns out to be a clunker. Starting Jan. 1, car buyers who purchase a faulty vehicle will have to navigate a new version of California’s “lemon law” that for five decades has given consumers the right to demand car companies fix or replace defective vehicles they sell. That is, unless lawmakers quickly pass a law that allows some of the car companies to opt out of the new requirements. The confusion stems from a law [Gov. Gavin Newsom reluctantly signed](https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/10/lemon-law-consumer-protections-newsom/) in late September, after the bill was hastily jammed through the Legislature in the waning days of the session following [secret negotiations between lobbyists](https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2024/09/lemon-law-california-consumer-rights/). Newsom said it was important to address the problem of California’s courts getting clogged with lemon law cases, even as critics said the bill significantly watered down consumer protections. But Newsom said he signed it only after lawmakers said they’d introduce legislation next year to make the reforms voluntary for automakers. Lawmakers have already [introduced legislation](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb26) that they say meets Newsom’s demands. It’s now anyone’s guess how long it will take the bill to make it through the Senate and the Assembly and get Newsom’s signature. Meanwhile, portions of the new lemon law take effect Jan. 1; others in April. 1. Just the right amount of news 2. Just the right amount of news 1. Get California’s most essential headlines without feeling overwhelmed. 2. Get California’s most essential headlines without feeling overwhelmed.  Adding to the confusion, a month after Newsom signed the new lemon bill, [Assembly Bill 1755](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202320240ab1755?slug=CA_202320240AB1755), the [California Supreme Court ruled](https://www4.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/S274625.PDF) that the state’s lemon law doesn’t require manufacturers to honor a car’s warranty when it’s re-sold as a used vehicle. Before the Supreme Court’s ruling, courts had interpreted the lemon law to require manufacturers to replace or repair a defective used car or truck if the clunker was sold within the window of its original new-vehicle warranty. The justices said that if Californians have a problem with how they’ve interpreted the statute, state lawmakers are welcome to write a new bill. “Those arguments are best directed to the Legislature, which remains free to amend the definition of ‘new motor vehicle’ to include used vehicles with a balance remaining on the manufacturer’s new car warranty,” the court wrote in its Oct. 31 opinion. At least one lawmaker has suggested to CalMatters he and his colleagues could take the court up on that suggestion. As the Legislature sorts this out, Rosemary Shahan of [Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety](https://www.carconsumers.org/) said car buyers next year are going to have a tough time figuring out what to do if they drive a lemon off the lot. “It’s going to be really confusing for consumers,” she said. ### Lemon law cases clog California courts California’s lemon law defines a “lemon” vehicle as one that has serious warranty defects that the manufacturer can’t fix, even after multiple attempts. The lemon law applies only to disputes involving the manufacturer’s new vehicle warranty. If the manufacturer or dealer is unable to repair a serious warranty defect in a vehicle after what the law says is a “reasonable” number of attempts, the manufacturer must either replace it or refund its purchase price, whichever the customer prefers, [according to the California Department of Consumer Affairs](https://www.dca.ca.gov/acp/pdf_files/lemonlaw_qa.pdf). Disputes can be resolved through arbitration or in court if a consumer sues. The new lemon law was a compromise between U.S. automakers, consumer attorneys and judges who came together to address a growing backlog of lemon law cases in the state’s courts. The number of such cases in California courts climbed from nearly 15,000 in 2022 to more than 22,000 last year. In Los Angeles County, nearly 10% of all civil filings are now lemon law cases. Proponents argue the bill Newsom signed will speed up the process of getting consumers a working vehicle, while setting new procedural rules for the litigation process that will ease the burden on courts. But Shahan and other critics argue the changes will primarily benefit U.S. car companies, since they’re the ones most commonly sued under the state’s lemon law at the expense of consumers. Foreign car companies largely opposed the measure. Shahan says the statistics on lemon law cases show why U.S automakers wanted the rule changed. U.S. car companies have a significantly higher number of lemon law cases in California than their foreign counterparts. It’s also why, if lawmakers pass the bill Newsom wants, the foreign companies are likely to choose to abide by the original version of the lemon law. In the meantime, until lawmakers pass the pending legislation, buyers who purchase any defective new vehicle will have less time to sue, and they’ll get less money from rebates, according to Shahan and other critics. The new rules also shrink the period they can use the lemon law to just six years instead of the entire life of a vehicle’s warranty, which can last longer, Shahan said. And because of the Supreme Court’s ruling that said new vehicle warranties do not cover the car once it’s resold used, plaintiffs such as Mariana Alvarado Rodriguez are now feeling the squeeze. > “It’s going to be really confusing for consumers” > > Rosemary Shahan, Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety ### Court ruling impacts used lemon vehicle disputes In 2021, Alvarado Rodriguez, a seasonal farmworker who lives in Tulare County, purchased a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 with 40,002 miles from a Fresno County car dealer for \$25,000, according to court records. Almost immediately after she drove it off the lot, she said the truck started having mechanical problems that she claims should have been covered under the vehicle’s warranties. But she said the car’s maker, General Motors, refused to honor them. “I kept making payments,” she said in Spanish. “Then … I finally decided to get an attorney and told the dealership, ‘That truck, it just doesn’t work.’ ” A Fresno County judge tossed her lawsuit a year later after the Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled in a separate case that warranties that would apply to new cars don’t carry over if the vehicle is sold again. The Supreme Court affirmed that judgment. Alvarado Rodriguez said she still doesn’t have reliable transportation for when she returns to work this spring in the fruit-packing sheds. “The process has been so long,” she said. “It’s really, really affected me.” Democratic Sen. [Tom Umberg](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/thomas-umberg-165043) of Santa Ana is one of the authors of the new lemon law reforms slated to take effect next year. He also co-wrote the new legislation in December to address Newsom’s concerns. For now, it doesn’t address the Supreme Court’s ruling that impacted used vehicle warranty claims like Alvarado Rodriguez’s. He said lawmakers will likely take that issue up as well when they reconvene after the holidays. “I would expect that there would be further conversation,” he said. “At least it’s my point of view that you don’t want consumers to be hoodwinked.” Learn more about legislators mentioned in this story. [Thomas Umberg Democrat, State Senate, District 34 (Santa Ana)](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/thomas-umberg-165043) *CalMatters reporter Sergio Olmos contributed to this story.* ## Read More [](https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/12/california-new-laws-2025/) ### [Get up to speed fast on these new California laws taking effect in 2025](https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/12/california-new-laws-2025/) December 26, 2024 December 31, 2024 [](https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/12/failed-bills-california/) ### [Disappearing bills: More than 2,300 bills died without a vote in the last two years](https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/12/failed-bills-california/) December 5, 2024 December 9, 2024 Read more from CalMatters [ Text Get breaking news on your phone.](https://joinsubtext.com/calmatters) [ Download Keep up with the latest via our app.](https://urlgeni.us/calmatters-app) [ Sign up Receive free updates in your inbox.](https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/) ## Nonpartisan, independent California news for all We’re CalMatters, your nonprofit and nonpartisan news guide. Our journalists are here to empower you and our mission continues to be essential. - **We are independent and nonpartisan.** Our trustworthy journalism is free from partisan politics, free from corporate influence and actually free for all Californians. - **We are focused on California issues.** From the environment to homelessness, economy and more, we publish the unfettered truth to keep you informed. - **We hold people in power accountable.** We probe and reveal the actions and inactions of powerful people and institutions, and the consequences that follow. But we can’t keep doing this without support from readers like you.  **********Please give what you can today. Every gift helps.********** [GIVE NOW](https://give.calmatters.org/campaign/564470/donate?c_src=website&c_src2=homepage) Tagged: [Gavin Newsom](https://calmatters.org/tag/gavin-newsom/), [legislator card](https://calmatters.org/tag/legislator-card/) [](https://calmatters.org/author/ryan-sabalow/) ## [Ryan SabalowDigital Democracy Reporter](https://calmatters.org/author/ryan-sabalow/) [ryan@calmatters.org](mailto:ryan@calmatters.org) Ryan Sabalow is a Digital Democracy reporter for CalMatters. A graduate of Chico State University, he began his career covering local news for the Auburn Journal in Placer County and The Record Searchlight... [More by Ryan Sabalow](https://calmatters.org/author/ryan-sabalow/) ###### Republish ### California’s lemon law is changing and car buyers have fewer protections in the new year We love that you want to share our stories with your readers. Hundreds of publications republish our work on a regular basis. All of the articles at CalMatters are available to republish for free, under the following conditions: - - **Give prominent credit to our journalists:** Credit our authors at the top of the article and any other byline areas of your publication. In the byline, we prefer “By Author Name, CalMatters.” If you’re republishing guest commentary ([example](https://calmatters.org/commentary/2024/11/reform-california-proportional-representative-democracy/)) from CalMatters, in the byline, use “By Author Name, Special for CalMatters.” - - **Credit CalMatters at the top of the story:** At the top of the story’s text, include this copy: “This story was originally published by [CalMatters](https://calmatters.org/). [Sign up](https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/) for their newsletters.” If you are republishing [commentary](https://calmatters.org/category/commentary/), include this copy instead: “This commentary was originally published by [CalMatters](https://calmatters.org/). 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Contact us at [republish@calmatters.org](mailto:republish@calmatters.org). \<!-- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ --\> \<h1\>California\&\#8217;s lemon law is changing and car buyers have fewer protections in the new year\</h1\> \<p\>By \<a href="https://calmatters.org/author/ryan-sabalow/" title="Posts by Ryan Sabalow" class="author url fn" rel="author"\>Ryan Sabalow\</a\>, CalMatters\</p\> \<figure\> \<img width="1200" height="800" src="https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?fit=1200%2C800\&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="A group of cars driving northbound on a highway with overcast in the sky." decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?w=2000\&amp;ssl=1 2000w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=300%2C200\&amp;ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=1024%2C682\&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=768%2C512\&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=1536%2C1024\&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=18%2C12\&amp;ssl=1 18w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=1200%2C800\&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=1568%2C1045\&amp;ssl=1 1568w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=400%2C267\&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?resize=706%2C471\&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/022523\_Roeding-Highway99-Parkway-LV\_CM\_23.jpg?fit=1200%2C800\&amp;ssl=1\&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /\> \<figcaption\>Traffic traveling down Highway 99 near Parkway Drive in Fresno on Feb. 25, 2023. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local\</figcaption\> \</figure\> \<p\>This story was originally published by \<a href="https://calmatters.org/"\>CalMatters\</a\>. \<a href="https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/"\>Sign up\</a\> for their newsletters.\</p\> \<p\>\<em\>Lea esta historia en \<a href="https://calmatters.org/calmatters-en-espanol/2024/12/california-ley-limon-autos-viejos-confusion-leyes-newsom-firmas-corte-suprema/"\>Español\</a\>\</em\>\</p\> \<p\>The year 2025 is shaping up to be a confusing one for Californians unlucky enough to buy a new or used car that turns out to be a clunker.\</p\> \<p\>Starting Jan. 1, car buyers who purchase a faulty vehicle will have to navigate a new version of California’s “lemon law” that for five decades has given consumers the right to demand car companies fix or replace defective vehicles they sell.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>That is, unless lawmakers quickly pass a law that allows some of the car companies to opt out of the new requirements.\</p\> \<p\>The confusion stems from a law \<a href="https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/10/lemon-law-consumer-protections-newsom/"\>Gov. Gavin Newsom reluctantly signed\</a\> in late September, after the bill was hastily jammed through the Legislature in the waning days of the session following \<a href="https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2024/09/lemon-law-california-consumer-rights/"\>secret negotiations between lobbyists\</a\>.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>Newsom said it was important to address the problem of California’s courts getting clogged with lemon law cases, even as critics said the bill significantly watered down consumer protections.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>But Newsom said he signed it only after lawmakers said they’d introduce legislation next year to make the reforms voluntary for automakers.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>Lawmakers have already \<a href="https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca\_202520260sb26"\>introduced legislation \</a\>that they say meets Newsom’s demands. It’s now anyone’s guess how long it will take the bill to make it through the Senate and the Assembly and get Newsom’s signature. Meanwhile, portions of the new lemon law take effect Jan. 1; others in April.\</p\> \<p\>Adding to the confusion, a month after Newsom signed the new lemon bill, \<a href="https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca\_202320240ab1755?slug=CA\_202320240AB1755"\>Assembly Bill 1755\</a\>, the \<a href="https://www4.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/S274625.PDF"\>California Supreme Court ruled\</a\> that the state’s lemon law doesn’t require manufacturers to honor a car’s warranty when it’s re-sold as a used vehicle. Before the Supreme Court’s ruling, courts had interpreted the lemon law to require manufacturers to replace or repair a defective used car or truck if the clunker was sold within the window of its original new-vehicle warranty.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>The justices said that if Californians have a problem with how they’ve interpreted the statute, state lawmakers are welcome to write a new bill.\<br\>\<br\>“Those arguments are best directed to the Legislature, which remains free to amend the definition of ‘new motor vehicle’ to include used vehicles with a balance remaining on the manufacturer’s new car warranty,” the court wrote in its Oct. 31 opinion. At least one lawmaker has suggested to CalMatters he and his colleagues could take the court up on that suggestion.\</p\> \<p\>As the Legislature sorts this out, Rosemary Shahan of \<a href="https://www.carconsumers.org/"\>Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety\</a\> said car buyers next year are going to have a tough time figuring out what to do if they drive a lemon off the lot.\</p\> \<p\>“It’s going to be really confusing for consumers,” she said.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<h3\>Lemon law cases clog California courts\</h3\> \<p\>California’s lemon law defines a “lemon” vehicle as one that has serious warranty defects that the manufacturer can’t fix, even after multiple attempts. The lemon law applies only to disputes involving the manufacturer’s new vehicle warranty.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>If the manufacturer or dealer is unable to repair a serious warranty defect in a vehicle after what the law says is a “reasonable” number of attempts, the manufacturer must either replace it or refund its purchase price, whichever the customer prefers, \<a href="https://www.dca.ca.gov/acp/pdf\_files/lemonlaw\_qa.pdf"\>according to the California Department of Consumer Affairs\</a\>.\</p\> \<p\>Disputes can be resolved through arbitration or in court if a consumer sues. The new lemon law was a compromise between U.S. automakers, consumer attorneys and judges who came together to address a growing backlog of lemon law cases in the state’s courts.\</p\> \<p\>The number of such cases in California courts climbed from nearly 15,000 in 2022 to more than 22,000 last year. In Los Angeles County, nearly 10% of all civil filings are now lemon law cases.\</p\> \<p\>Proponents argue the bill Newsom signed will speed up the process of getting consumers a working vehicle, while setting new procedural rules for the litigation process that will ease the burden on courts.\</p\> \<p\>But Shahan and other critics argue the changes will primarily benefit U.S. car companies, since they’re the ones most commonly sued under the state’s lemon law at the expense of consumers. Foreign car companies largely opposed the measure.\</p\> \<p\>Shahan says the statistics on lemon law cases show why U.S automakers wanted the rule changed. U.S. car companies have a significantly higher number of lemon law cases in California than their foreign counterparts.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>It’s also why, if lawmakers pass the bill Newsom wants, the foreign companies are likely to choose to abide by the original version of the lemon law.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>In the meantime, until lawmakers pass the pending legislation, buyers who purchase any defective new vehicle will have less time to sue, and they’ll get less money from rebates, according to Shahan and other critics.\<br\>\<br\>The new rules also shrink the period they can use the lemon law to just six years instead of the entire life of a vehicle’s warranty, which can last longer, Shahan said.\</p\> \<p\>And because of the Supreme Court's ruling that said new vehicle warranties do not cover the car once it's resold used, plaintiffs such as Mariana Alvarado Rodriguez are now feeling the squeeze.\</p\> \<figure\>\<blockquote\>\<p\>"It’s going to be really confusing for consumers"\</p\>\<cite\>Rosemary Shahan, Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety\</cite\>\</blockquote\>\</figure\> \<h3\>Court ruling impacts used lemon vehicle disputes\</h3\> \<p\>In 2021, Alvarado Rodriguez, a seasonal farmworker who lives in Tulare County, purchased a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 with 40,002 miles from a Fresno County car dealer for \$25,000, according to court records.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>Almost immediately after she drove it off the lot, she said the truck started having mechanical problems that she claims should have been covered under the vehicle’s warranties. But she said the car’s maker, General Motors, refused to honor them.\<br\>\<br\>“I kept making payments,” she said in Spanish. “Then … I finally decided to get an attorney and told the dealership, ‘That truck, it just doesn't work.’ ”\</p\> \<p\>A Fresno County judge tossed her lawsuit a year later after the Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled in a separate case that warranties that would apply to new cars don’t carry over if the vehicle is sold again. The Supreme Court affirmed that judgment.\&nbsp;\</p\> \<p\>Alvarado Rodriguez said she still doesn’t have reliable transportation for when she returns to work this spring in the fruit-packing sheds.\<br\>\<br\>“The process has been so long,” she said. “It’s really, really affected me.”\</p\> \<p\>Democratic Sen. \<a href="https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/thomas-umberg-165043"\>Tom Umberg\</a\> of Santa Ana is one of the authors of the new lemon law reforms slated to take effect next year. He also co-wrote the new legislation in December to address Newsom’s concerns. For now, it doesn’t address the Supreme Court’s ruling that impacted used vehicle warranty claims like Alvarado Rodriguez’s.\</p\> \<p\>He said lawmakers will likely take that issue up as well when they reconvene after the holidays.\</p\> \<p\>“I would expect that there would be further conversation,” he said. “At least it’s my point of view that you don’t want consumers to be hoodwinked.”\<br\>\</p\> \<p\>\<em\>CalMatters reporter Sergio Olmos contributed to this story.\</em\>\</p\> \<p\>This article was \<a href="https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/12/california-lemon-law-warranty-claims-consumer-rights/"\>originally published on CalMatters\</a\> and was republished under the \<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/"\>Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\</a\> license.\</p\> Copy HTML [](https://calmatters.org/) - [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/profile/calmatters.org) - [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/calmatters/) - [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/calmatters/) - [X](https://x.com/CalMatters) - [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@calmatters) - [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/calmatters/) - [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/calmatters) ## About - [Overview](https://calmatters.org/about/) - [Impact](https://calmatters.org/about/impact/) - [Funding](https://calmatters.org/about/funding/) - [News and Awards](https://calmatters.org/about/news-and-awards/) - [Policies](https://calmatters.org/about/policies-and-standards/) - [Programs](https://calmatters.org/about/programs/) - [Sponsorships](https://calmatters.org/about/advertise/) - [Our Team](https://calmatters.org/about/team/) - [Jobs](https://calmatters.org/about/jobs/) - [Contact Us](https://calmatters.org/about/contact-us/) ## Topics - [Politics](https://calmatters.org/category/politics/) - [Justice](https://calmatters.org/category/justice/) - [Economy](https://calmatters.org/category/economy/) - [Education](https://calmatters.org/category/education/) - [Environment](https://calmatters.org/category/environment/) - [Housing](https://calmatters.org/category/housing/) - [Health](https://calmatters.org/category/health/) - [Commentary](https://calmatters.org/category/commentary/) - [Inequality](https://calmatters.org/category/california-divide/) ## More - [Donate](https://give.calmatters.org/campaign/564470/donate?c_src=website&c_src2=footer) - [Manage donation](https://calmatters.org/about/contact-us/#manage-your-donation) - [Newsletters](https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/) - [CalMatters en Español](https://calmatters.org/category/calmatters-en-espanol/) - [Inside the Newsroom](https://calmatters.org/category/inside-the-newsroom/) - [Digital Democracy](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/) ## General Inquiries [info@calmatters.org](mailto:info@calmatters.org) ## Membership Inquiries [membership@calmatters.org](mailto:membership@calmatters.org) 1. 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**In summary** Californians who purchase a clunker car in 2025 face a confusing year as new lemon law rules take effect and the state Supreme Court limited warranty protections for used vehicles. Lawmakers are revisiting the rules, but consumers could see weaker protections until new laws are passed. *Lea esta historia en [Español](https://calmatters.org/calmatters-en-espanol/2024/12/california-ley-limon-autos-viejos-confusion-leyes-newsom-firmas-corte-suprema/)* The year 2025 is shaping up to be a confusing one for Californians unlucky enough to buy a new or used car that turns out to be a clunker. Starting Jan. 1, car buyers who purchase a faulty vehicle will have to navigate a new version of California’s “lemon law” that for five decades has given consumers the right to demand car companies fix or replace defective vehicles they sell. That is, unless lawmakers quickly pass a law that allows some of the car companies to opt out of the new requirements. The confusion stems from a law [Gov. Gavin Newsom reluctantly signed](https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/10/lemon-law-consumer-protections-newsom/) in late September, after the bill was hastily jammed through the Legislature in the waning days of the session following [secret negotiations between lobbyists](https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2024/09/lemon-law-california-consumer-rights/). Newsom said it was important to address the problem of California’s courts getting clogged with lemon law cases, even as critics said the bill significantly watered down consumer protections. But Newsom said he signed it only after lawmakers said they’d introduce legislation next year to make the reforms voluntary for automakers. Lawmakers have already [introduced legislation](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb26) that they say meets Newsom’s demands. It’s now anyone’s guess how long it will take the bill to make it through the Senate and the Assembly and get Newsom’s signature. Meanwhile, portions of the new lemon law take effect Jan. 1; others in April. Adding to the confusion, a month after Newsom signed the new lemon bill, [Assembly Bill 1755](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202320240ab1755?slug=CA_202320240AB1755), the [California Supreme Court ruled](https://www4.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/S274625.PDF) that the state’s lemon law doesn’t require manufacturers to honor a car’s warranty when it’s re-sold as a used vehicle. Before the Supreme Court’s ruling, courts had interpreted the lemon law to require manufacturers to replace or repair a defective used car or truck if the clunker was sold within the window of its original new-vehicle warranty. The justices said that if Californians have a problem with how they’ve interpreted the statute, state lawmakers are welcome to write a new bill. “Those arguments are best directed to the Legislature, which remains free to amend the definition of ‘new motor vehicle’ to include used vehicles with a balance remaining on the manufacturer’s new car warranty,” the court wrote in its Oct. 31 opinion. At least one lawmaker has suggested to CalMatters he and his colleagues could take the court up on that suggestion. As the Legislature sorts this out, Rosemary Shahan of [Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety](https://www.carconsumers.org/) said car buyers next year are going to have a tough time figuring out what to do if they drive a lemon off the lot. “It’s going to be really confusing for consumers,” she said. ### Lemon law cases clog California courts California’s lemon law defines a “lemon” vehicle as one that has serious warranty defects that the manufacturer can’t fix, even after multiple attempts. The lemon law applies only to disputes involving the manufacturer’s new vehicle warranty. If the manufacturer or dealer is unable to repair a serious warranty defect in a vehicle after what the law says is a “reasonable” number of attempts, the manufacturer must either replace it or refund its purchase price, whichever the customer prefers, [according to the California Department of Consumer Affairs](https://www.dca.ca.gov/acp/pdf_files/lemonlaw_qa.pdf). Disputes can be resolved through arbitration or in court if a consumer sues. The new lemon law was a compromise between U.S. automakers, consumer attorneys and judges who came together to address a growing backlog of lemon law cases in the state’s courts. The number of such cases in California courts climbed from nearly 15,000 in 2022 to more than 22,000 last year. In Los Angeles County, nearly 10% of all civil filings are now lemon law cases. Proponents argue the bill Newsom signed will speed up the process of getting consumers a working vehicle, while setting new procedural rules for the litigation process that will ease the burden on courts. But Shahan and other critics argue the changes will primarily benefit U.S. car companies, since they’re the ones most commonly sued under the state’s lemon law at the expense of consumers. Foreign car companies largely opposed the measure. Shahan says the statistics on lemon law cases show why U.S automakers wanted the rule changed. U.S. car companies have a significantly higher number of lemon law cases in California than their foreign counterparts. It’s also why, if lawmakers pass the bill Newsom wants, the foreign companies are likely to choose to abide by the original version of the lemon law. In the meantime, until lawmakers pass the pending legislation, buyers who purchase any defective new vehicle will have less time to sue, and they’ll get less money from rebates, according to Shahan and other critics. The new rules also shrink the period they can use the lemon law to just six years instead of the entire life of a vehicle’s warranty, which can last longer, Shahan said. And because of the Supreme Court’s ruling that said new vehicle warranties do not cover the car once it’s resold used, plaintiffs such as Mariana Alvarado Rodriguez are now feeling the squeeze. > “It’s going to be really confusing for consumers” > > Rosemary Shahan, Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety ### Court ruling impacts used lemon vehicle disputes In 2021, Alvarado Rodriguez, a seasonal farmworker who lives in Tulare County, purchased a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 with 40,002 miles from a Fresno County car dealer for \$25,000, according to court records. Almost immediately after she drove it off the lot, she said the truck started having mechanical problems that she claims should have been covered under the vehicle’s warranties. But she said the car’s maker, General Motors, refused to honor them. “I kept making payments,” she said in Spanish. “Then … I finally decided to get an attorney and told the dealership, ‘That truck, it just doesn’t work.’ ” A Fresno County judge tossed her lawsuit a year later after the Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled in a separate case that warranties that would apply to new cars don’t carry over if the vehicle is sold again. The Supreme Court affirmed that judgment. Alvarado Rodriguez said she still doesn’t have reliable transportation for when she returns to work this spring in the fruit-packing sheds. “The process has been so long,” she said. “It’s really, really affected me.” Democratic Sen. [Tom Umberg](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/thomas-umberg-165043) of Santa Ana is one of the authors of the new lemon law reforms slated to take effect next year. He also co-wrote the new legislation in December to address Newsom’s concerns. For now, it doesn’t address the Supreme Court’s ruling that impacted used vehicle warranty claims like Alvarado Rodriguez’s. He said lawmakers will likely take that issue up as well when they reconvene after the holidays. “I would expect that there would be further conversation,” he said. “At least it’s my point of view that you don’t want consumers to be hoodwinked.” Learn more about legislators mentioned in this story. *CalMatters reporter Sergio Olmos contributed to this story.* ## Read More