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Rhode Island Automobile Lemon Law

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bornitz

Member
What is the name of your state? RI

My friend lives in California, but moved back to Rhode Island for a few years and leased a 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee from a dealer there in January 2005. The car has had intermittent brake issues since the beginning of her lease. It's been in dealer service bays numerous times for a total of 19 days.

She bought/leased it on Jan 31, 2005 and moved back to CA on Jan 23, 2006 and by April 2005 the ABS issue was horrid. It actually had to cool down for a period of time before she could use the brakes safely (without the lurching motion) again. She took it to the dealer several times, but they were unable to repair it. They eventually went out of business and she moved back to Los Angeles.

She and her boyfriend are terrified of being killed by this Jeep. Her lease is up in May 2008. When she mentioned it to me, the first thing I thought of was the CA Lemon Law (not realizing that she didn't purchase/lease the car in Los Angeles). However, since she purchased the car in Rhode Island, it would make more sense to follow that state's Lemon Law. However, the CA Lemon Law is far more liberal (if I'm reading it correctly) in terms of time allowed to declare it a lemon and begin the process of getting reimbursed since the dealer cannot seem to fix the problem.

The research I've done so far with regard to RI Lemon Law tells me that she's pretty much out of luck since she's beyond the 1 year, 15,000 mile time/mileage limit. However, there are law firms that claim that they can successfully take action beyond that.

I initially suggested that she draft a demand letter, have proof available and mail it certified to Chrysler Corporation requesting a refund, citing the CA Lemon Law (before I knew where the purchase was made), but I think they will laugh it off since the car was not purchased in CA.

Does anyone on the forum have any more information regarding the RI statute of limitations with regard to this? Are there any provisions for someone who buys a car in one state and then moves to another in terms of the "lemon law" I feel so awful for her. She traded in a fantastic Lexus for this hunk-o-junk.

Thanks so much in advance,
Bonnie (a very happy Honda owner)
 


bornitz

Member
forgot to mention something...

One note in addition to the above post... I had read that when it comes to automobile safety issues, even if the vehicle is outside the terms of the Lemon Law for a given state, the consumer may still be protected under the NHTSA. Since the ABS failure is a safety issue, do you think that will help my friend's case at all?

Thanks again,
Bonnie
 

bornitz

Member
Things just got a lot better...

My friend wrote again.. she did buy it in California. Things should be smoother sailing now. Thanks all for reading.

Regards,
Bonnie
 

DRTDEVL

Member
Tell them to keep up with the times a bit more... That vehicle is being recalled for ABS issues.

Tell her to take it back under the new recall and have them reprogram the ABS controller...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- Chrysler LLC said on Friday it is recalling almost 369,000 vehicles to address potential problems in brake system and front door latches and locks.

The automaker said the first recall due to brake problem involves Jeep Grand Cherokee and Jeep Commander SUVs for the 2006 and 2007 model years and the 2007 Jeep Wrangler and Dodge Nitro.

Chrysler spokesman Max Gates said that an error in the electronic braking system could cause momentary braking delays on hills, adding the company has had about 20 reports of such problems.
 

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