Delano Lemon Law

Cases are filed in the Kern County Superior Court at the Bakersfield Main Civil Division. Under California venue rules (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. 395), a Song-Beverly Act case may be brought where the contract was signed, where the defendant transacts business, or where the breach occurred. For Delano residents, Kern County is the proper venue because that's where you reside and where most repair attempts likely occurred at Bakersfield-area dealerships.

Yes, if it has been subject to a reasonable number of unsuccessful repair attempts for the same defect under its express written warranty. Heavy-duty diesel pickups under 10,000 pounds GVWR purchased primarily for personal, family, or household purposes are covered, and trucks used commercially by entities with five or fewer vehicles registered in California also qualify. Diesel DEF, EGR, DPF, and emissions-fault claims are among the most-litigated issues in the Central Valley because of the duty cycle agricultural and construction trucks experience.

California's Tanner Act presumption (Cal. Civ. Code 1793.22) presumes a reasonable number of attempts if, within 18 months or 18,000 miles, the same defect has been repaired four or more times, two or more times for a safety defect, or the vehicle has been out of service for repair more than 30 cumulative days. Outside those numbers, you can still prove 'reasonable attempts' as a question of fact. Most successful Kern County cases involve three to five documented visits to a franchised dealer.

It can. NOAA data shows the southern San Joaquin Valley routinely exceeds 100 degrees for weeks at a time in summer, and CARB and EPA studies document high PM10 dust loading throughout the Bakersfield-Delano area. Sustained heat and dust accelerate cooling-system, HVAC, and emissions-system defects. If your repair invoices show repeat complaints in those systems, the defects are factually consistent with normal Delano operating conditions and the manufacturer cannot legitimately dismiss them as 'driver abuse.'

No. The Song-Beverly Act follows the vehicle and the manufacturer's warranty, not the city of sale. Whether you bought at a dealership on Auto Mall Drive in Bakersfield, in Visalia, or anywhere else in California, the manufacturer's repair-or-replace duty runs to you. Venue is proper in Kern County because you reside there and most repair attempts occurred at Bakersfield-area dealerships.

California's statute is generally four years from the date of breach (Cal. Com. Code 2725 and Mexia v. Rinker Boat Co.), typically running from when the manufacturer fails to repair within a reasonable number of attempts. AB 1755 (effective 2025) added outer-limit deadlines: actions must be filed within one year after express-warranty expiration and no later than six years from original delivery. If your warranty is close to expiring, talk to a lemon-law attorney quickly.

Under Cal. Civ. Code 1793.2(d), the manufacturer must replace the vehicle or refund the purchase price (including taxes, license, registration, and finance charges), less a use offset of (price x miles before first repair) / 120,000. If the failure to repurchase was willful, Cal. Civ. Code 1794(c) authorizes a civil penalty up to two times actual damages. The prevailing consumer also recovers reasonable attorneys' fees and costs under Cal. Civ. Code 1794(d), which is why most California lemon-law firms accept cases on full contingency.