You bought the new vehicle because you needed reliable transportation.
Now you’re spending your time figuring out how to get it repaired.
The engine has problems.
The transmission isn’t right.
The warning lights keep coming on.
You’ve been to the dealership several times.
At this point you’re thinking:
“I don’t want this car anymore. How do I get rid of it?”
If the vehicle has serious recurring warranty defects, you might not want to spend more money and trade it in.
You may have legal options.
Don’t Make a Quick Trade-In Decision
Trading in a defective vehicle may seem like the easiest solution.
But consider what happens next.
If you owe $40,000 on a vehicle worth $32,000, trading it in doesn’t make the $8,000 difference disappear.
It may simply be rolled into your next loan.
You could end up paying for a defective vehicle long after you’ve stopped driving it.
Before making a major financial decision, investigate whether the manufacturer may have legal obligations concerning the defective vehicle.
What Is a Lemon?
A lemon is generally a vehicle with serious warranty problems that the manufacturer cannot successfully repair after a reasonable number of opportunities.
Nevada’s Lemon Law addresses qualifying new motor vehicles and provides remedies when certain requirements are met.
What Can Happen If a Vehicle Qualifies?
Nevada’s Lemon Law provides for vehicle replacement or refund when the statutory requirements are satisfied.
A refund can include the purchase price plus specified taxes, license and registration fees and similar governmental charges, subject to a reasonable allowance for the miles driven.
The details matter.
A buyback is not simply:
“Give me all the money I’ve ever spent on this car.”
Calculations involve use, financing, liens and other charges.
What About Negative Equity?
This is one of the biggest reasons to be careful before trading in a defective vehicle.
Suppose you traded in an old car with $5,000 of negative equity.
That debt was rolled into your new vehicle loan.
If you later seek a Lemon Law buyback, the treatment of that negative equity can become an important issue.
The entire amount of a vehicle loan is not necessarily the same thing as the purchase price of the defective vehicle.
What If I Want a Replacement Instead of a Refund?
Nevada’s statute provides for replacement or refund when its requirements are met.
The remedy and resolution depends on the facts and negotiations.
You should understand the numbers before agreeing to a replacement.
A “new car” isn’t necessarily a better outcome if the replacement isn’t what you actually want.
How Do I Know If My Car Has Enough Problems?
Look at the repair history.
Four repair attempts or 30 cumulative days are important benchmarks under Nevada law—but they aren’t necessarily the only circumstances in which you may have a claim.
The defect must also substantially impairs the vehicle’s use and value.
What If I Haven’t Had Four Repairs?
Don’t automatically conclude that you’re stuck.
A reasonable number of repair attempts depends on the circumstances.
A major defect can be very different from a minor problem.
The seriousness of the defect, the nature of the repairs, whether the problem continues, the amount of time the vehicle has been unavailable, and other facts matter.
What If My Vehicle Is Still Under Warranty?
That’s important.
Nevada’s Lemon Law is tied to the manufacturer’s express warranty and specific timing requirements.
Magnuson-Moss is a federal law that may also be relevant to qualifying warranty disputes while the original manufacturer’s warranty remains in force.
Don’t Wait Until You Need to Trade the Car
If you’re already thinking:
“I need to get out of this car,”
that’s a good time to investigate your options.
Nevada provides an 18-month deadline for Lemon Law claims, measured from the time the vehicle was delivered new to the original owner.
You Don’t Pay Us. The Manufacturer Pays Our Legal Fees.
One reason people don’t investigate their rights is cost.
They assume:
“I can’t afford an attorney.”
For qualifying cases:
You don’t pay us. The manufacturer pays our legal fees.
The precise availability of attorney-fee recovery depends on the claims and circumstances.
Before You Trade It In
Take the:
30-SECOND NEVADA NEW CAR PROBLEM QUIZ
It may be worth finding out whether the manufacturer—not your next lender—is the party that should be dealing with the problem.
This site is for informational use only, does not provide legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship through browsing or form submissions.