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California Lemon Law?

5K views 17 replies 7 participants last post by  sciencegeek 
#1 ·
I'm just doing my homework in case I'm stuck in the worst outcome.
I'm in SoCal, I've brought the car in for the same problem 3 times in the first year. Traction Battery Fault error.
First 'service' time I just had to restart the car, and it went away. Took it to the dealer, with no fix.
It popped up a few times more with no loss of functionality so I did not take it in. Thought it was a software bug.
Second 'service' time it nearly stranded me. I brought it in, but no fix.
Third 'service' time happened only 5 days later, and it totally disabled the car for 45 minutes, it would not move. So it's back at the dealer.

Just in case they tell me again they can't find the problem, what is my next step?

I've never considered doing this, and have no experience with it.
What is published on the web doesn't always reflect the actual procedure.
If any California owners have went through this, could you give me some info?

I pray they find the problem, as I love my car. But if they can't fix a Traction Battery Fault situation that disables the car, I can't use it for its intended duties.
Best car I've owned so far, and I know it CAN be fixed, but if I'm told a 3rd time it's all in my head when I have pictures of the error and witnesses, I need a new steed.
 
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#2 ·
Google is your friend my friend.

I'm not an expert either, have also never been through this, but a quick google search revealed that my car now qualifies as a lemon. Your situation is different but it may be close to lemon status as well. Good luck!
 
#3 ·
Lemoned out 4 cars and have a good attorney in LA

It's how long its in service and if it goes in for the same problem 4x as a general rule.

I wouldn't worry bc you're in CA so you're very protected
 
#6 ·
So it must fail 4 times without being repaired, then fail again?

Or the 4th failure after 3 non-fixes?
 
#4 ·
Any info you guys discover and can contribute would be fantastic.

I'd like nothing more than to have JLR buyback this car and get my Macan back. I'll add any info I discover as I start calling JLR daily. Hoping to convince them to just do the buyback and not go through the lemon process.
 
#7 ·
This is what is confusing. Going right to the California gov site, it says:

18,000 miles or 18 months whichever comes first.
but it also says -
The life of the mfr warranty.

2 unrepaired safety same issue that could cause death or serious injury.
or
4 unrepaired same issue.
or
30 days in the service bay cumulative for all warranty problems (I believe I already qualify for this).

Not sure where the powertrain comes into play as it affects safety. It would certainly not be desirable to slow 20 mph in the HOV or Toll Roads.
 
#10 ·
In my personal experience, along with comments shared by others who have went through the buy back process, JLR has been easy to work with in reaching an acceptable solution. They may not be Jonny on the spot fast, but I was advised to be patient and polite and they came through. It only took me a few phone calls over a 3 week period for them to make the offer to do the buyback. While I’m not saying ignore the potential to use the Lemon Law, but it is in JLRs best interest to ‘settle of of court’, but if pushed into a corner they won’t hesitate to fight to avoid the stigma of a ‘lemon’
 
#16 ·
Not yet. How do I do that? All my warranty paperwork is in the car.
 
#12 ·
I'm just doing my homework in case I'm stuck in the worst outcome.
I'm in SoCal, I've brought the car in for the same problem 3 times in the first year. Traction Battery Fault error.
First 'service' time I just had to restart the car, and it went away. Took it to the dealer, with no fix.
It popped up a few times more with no loss of functionality so I did not take it in. Thought it was a software bug.
Second 'service' time it nearly stranded me. I brought it in, but no fix.
Third 'service' time happened only 5 days later, and it totally disabled the car for 45 minutes, it would not move. So it's back at the dealer.

Just in case they tell me again they can't find the problem, what is my next step?
I went through the buyback process and had some help researching lemon law and other laws that protect us. It is not just the lemon law you can file for. I ended up not having to go the legal route, but gotta say it was a long and painful experience with JLR. First you open a case with corp JLR in NJ. You will get a case number and case manager. They are horrible at follow-up so you'll have to babysit the process. The case manager will get in touch with the service manager at the dealer to request all service records and their statement on what has been done with the car and what they feel should happen next. That was an issue in itself because the service center did not document everything properly.

Then the case manager presents your case to their dept that deals with buybacks forget the name at the moment. That process takes awhile. They initially came back to me with a response that I didn't give a fair and reasonable timeframe for them to try to fix the laundry list of items wrong with the car. So then I went through weeks of service trying to fix things and opening multiple tech tickets with the technical team in NJ. Still with no success on repairs I then I had to go around again with my JLR case manager and their buybacks team. The second time they said they would not buyback the car, but would instead facilitate a dealer initiated trade. With this the dealer was going to buyback my car, but at a prorated rate since I used the car. I had to go round and round to fight this. I received legal advice and found the best option was to contact my local news. I also have some friends who work at NBC and ABC. I ended up using Mike Finney 7 on your side. His team was awesome and so much help. They got my full story then contacted JLR and the dealership GM along with the regional who oversaw all the dealerships. They basically represented me like a lawyer would but free of charge. I ended up get the full amount that I paid for my I-Pace back and applied to new I-Pace. The deal was that I had to get another JLR vehicle otherwise pay for the amt I used. Their formula to calculate this is pretty ridiculous. I started this process at the end of Nov last year and received the new I-Pace in May this year.

With the new I-Pace I haven't had any of the issues I experienced with the first. Only within the past few days have I seen the battery fault error and it happened right after DC fast charging. I've also noticed that DC fast charging didn't work at first try on three difference occasions with three different providers; Chargepoint, EvGo, and EA. I noticed sometimes it is difficult to plug in the charging cable, only DC fast charge cable, and wonder if there is something wrong with my charge port. Each time I called the charger provider and they reset their machine then the charging started with exception of EA, I had to move to another charger for it to work; this at Livermore outlets this past weekend.

If anyone wants help with the process, I'm happy to provide more details and contacts I used. Just PM me. Unfortunately I have also gone through this with Tesla.
 
#13 ·
Wow, awesome info. Thanks fedorachef, your experience will help those of us with similar issues. Glad to hear Dantrium seems to have had an easier time with this, perhaps they're learning at JLR (though I don't know who of you was first)
 
#14 ·
I did mine at the end of July. I opened a case with JLR NA ~23 July and they told me they would do the buyback ~6 August. I think I made a total of 4 phone calls and 1 email during that time as the case manager would tell me he would call back in x days and when he didn’t (he never did) I would call him the following day. There are at least 3 others that I have been in contact with before and after I did mine that also had a relatively painless buyback process.
The terms of my buyback were, I was given full purchase price minus 10cents/mile on the car towards the purchase of any new 2019/2020 JLR vehicle. In hindsight I believe I could have gotten out of their requirement to buy another JLR product, but I just wanted to be done and had zero desire to hire an attorney and start a court case. I thought they were more than fair and helpful.
 
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