Hoovey689

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Couple sues Ford because Escape lemon replacement is wrong color

The self-proclaimed "King of Lemon Laws" strikes again. This time with a couple in Wisconsin whose 2010 Ford Escape was in the shop for more than 30 days due to transmission problems. The couple hired Vince Megna after Ford replaced their Sangria Red Escape (shown above) with a stone-colored interior with a Steel Blue 2012 model with a darker charcoal-colored interior.

Ford claims that it properly followed the procedure of the Wisconsin lemon law, which Ford's lawyer argues requires automakers to replace the lemon with a similar vehicle, not an exact replacement. The judge presiding over the case compared this color issue to a black Cadillac versus a Mary Kay-pink Cadillac. If the Porters win the lawsuit, they will be able to receive as much as double the price of the $25,000 Escape in compensation as well as any attorney's fees.

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/01/07/c...s-wrong-color/

*Batman*

I don't know the laws so I can't say if it is right or wrong legally.

I thought most lemon laws value the car at a percent of MSRP and give you a price for a buy-back. So the replacement is your choice entirely.

mmarshall

I don't think one can compare this case to a Mary-Kay-Pink Cadillac (sometimes Mary Kay also gave out pink Buicks and Pontiacs as well). To qualilfy for a pink Mary Kay vehicle, it wasn't just a case of following lemon laws......a person actually had to do something by being a good salesperson, and that, of course, took work. The salesperson (usually female) had to earn that car. I admit I'm not a lawyer, but I don't now anything in lemon laws that says that a manufacturer has to replace a vehicle 100% exactly like the original. In fact, given the fact that manufacturers sometimes drop certain paint-colors, interior colors, options, and/or trim-packages during mid-year (or end-of-year production), that may not always be possible.

Having said that, though, I would not want a black car, or a black interior.....for a number of reasons. I probably wouldn't accept a black car as a replacement, but I probably wouldn't have a problem with any other color (even though I often complain about funeral-home colors in my auto reviews)

kitlz

I did an MSRP swap in my lemon law case settlement against Ford. I was able to choose any Ford vehicle. I couldn't pocket the difference if it was less though. So I selected the same vehicle, different color. Obviously I would have preferred to get my money back but realized I had options when I settled - under my terms of course. I didn't have to keep the new Ford. I dropped off the lemon, took delivery on the new Ford, and traded it in on my first Lexus all in one day

The Porters could sell the Steel Blue Escape and get one in Sangria Red. It's not worth another lawsuit IMO.

gengar

I only skimmed over Wisconsin's lemon law statute but the relevant part with regard to this news story appears to be 218.015(2)(b)2.a., which obligates the manufacturer to "replace the motor vehicle with a comparable new motor vehicle".

Legally, it depends what is meant by "comparable". We can't get an idea of what that means without looking at past court cases that have had this issue. Obviously, Ford's argument is that a different color car satisfies "comparable".

From a business standpoint, it seems to lack prudence to play legal games when a customer has already suffered through having to deal with a lemon. It just stinks of bad customer service, and now Ford gets the (probably deserved) bad press via the publication in media sources of this lawsuit.

I noticed that Sangria Red was not available on the 2011 Escape (which Ford tried to use as a replacement vehicle). I wonder if Ford made any attempt to offer an Escape in a similar color.


That's besides the point. The judge was establishing the basic merit of the lawsuit by using the example that people will value a black car and a pink car differently.

mmarshall

What this article doesn't mention is that, often, the manufacturer, after taking back a lemon-car from someone, turns around and simply resells it to someone else, though CarFax records are now making that easier to detect.

Perhaps....maybe so. But since the judge did mention a Mary-Kay pink Cadillac, I felt it was necessary to point out what I thought was difference between this case and what a Mary-Kay case would be.

BTW, the Mary-Kay Cadillacs may have been called pink (and the company actually has a patent on that particular shade), but, in reality, it is closer, at least IMO, to a subdued pinkish-beige. It's not a stand-out pink color by any means.

Here's a Mary Kay CTS:

xsh0tya

Color is a big factor in deciding on a car, so I think the lawsuit is merited.

Aron9000

Agreed!

As for "Mary Kay Pink", Mary Kay does own the trademark on that particular shade of pink. As part of the deal for getting the free car, you do have to paint it a different color before you sell it down the road.

mjr24

I think the main issue here was what is considered a "comparable" vehicle.

Ford did not give them the same color....however, they offered a model TWO years newer than the plantiffs' lemon. I think Ford's contention is that a car 2 years newer is more than comparable....even if the color was not the same.

Aron9000

I think Ford should've let them pick whatever damn color they wanted, provided it was a factory color for the model year of the replacement vehicle.

grabber2

Not sure Ford just throw it to them or not.
I must agree that Ford need to let the customer choose the color they prefer. What is so difficult for Ford?? You have a unhappy customer with a lemon of your own, just ask them which color they want. Its not like they want a Ford GT as replacement.

I would have done the same if I'm the owner.

mmarshall

It's not always that simple. Sometimes interior or exterior colors are dropped partway through a model-year production. I ran into that once myself, years ago in 1999, when I ordered my new Saturn. I wanted the Silver-Plum color (a gorgeous Amethyst-like shade). They dropped it not even two weeks before I did the paperwork. ...and I had to settle for my second-choice, Blackberry (a very dark maroon/purplish-black).

grabber2

The story didn't explain enough as we don't know if the customer picked the color or the dealer picked for them. I'm sure there's something more to it. This customer probably run into conflict with the dealer during the repair. It somehow gotten to the point where the dealer/service director wants to play with the gray area of the "Lemon Law". A "comparable" replacement, which they know it doesn't specific color. its a pay back!! Not all dealer/salesman want their customer to be happy.