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Previous AT&T chief executive officer (CEO) Ed Whitacre is officially General Motor‘s (GM’s) current and hopefully permanent CEO. Whitacre served as GM’s pro tem CEO — after GM’s board of directors fired Fritz Henderson about 2 months ago on December 1, 2009.

Mr. Whitacre comes from a heavy manufacturing experience. He is known by his former colleagues to lead with a “heavy hand.”

I hope this announcement will equate to the production of less faulty and defective lemon General Motor vehicles. Whitacre will be GM’s fourth hired CEO in less than twelve months.

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Several months ago, I posted a blog article about General Motors’ (GM) newly announced sixty (60) day satisfaction guarantee program. According to GM’s frequently asked questions (FAQ) web-page, it looks like the program, which started on September 14, 2009, will now be set to expire in about 9 days from today, on January 4, 2010.

If you are interested in taking advantage of GM’s satisfaction guarantee program, here are some things to keep in mind:

1) make sure all documents signed at the time of purchase is signed on or BEFORE January 4, 2010. When you are negotiating pass closing hours the night of January 4, 2010, make sure that the dealership does not mis-date or intentionally leave the date space blank. Failure to do so may give GM the opportunity to argue that your purchase of the Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, or Cadillac may not be eligible for a refund under the program guidelines. Remember, the car dealership and GM (the manufacturer) are likely two different companies, when something goes wrong, the potential for finger pointing is high here.

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Please remember to celebrate this holiday season safely.

If you will be in the market of purchasing a vehicle, then remember that the Texas Lemon Law generally does not apply to pre-own or used car.

For used vehicles, remember to cross check the vehicle’s history by using both Carfax and Autocheck, as information in one report is not cumulative or comprehensive. The best suggestion to avoid owning a lemon is to use common sense and ask lots of questions. I know that the pre-own car salesperson may be pushy — just push back. For more suggestions, then go here.

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Three days ago, the Lufkin Daily News printed an article about the Texas Lemon Law. Under the paper’s “Ask the Lawyer” section, a consumer wrote to Attorney Jeffrey Bates about a new vehicle that is constantly giving him repair problems.

Mr. Bates responded by providing an outline and overview of the Texas Lemon Law. Of importance is the section regarding “substantial impair.”

Remember, if you think that you may be in possession of lemon car, then remember to contact a lawyer, open a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, or file a case with the Texas Department of Transportation as soon as possible. The deadline to do something will expire before you know it!

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A consumer from California named Eric successfully got BMW to buyback his defective Mini Cooper. The vehicle drop-off occurred on November 19, 2009, seven days before Thanksgiving. Eric wrote a blog about his experiences and the steps he took to get BMW to repurchase his vehicle.

As rare as it is from my experience, it looks like BMW did the right thing in this case. I will say that the probability for car manufacturers to do the right thing in California is much higher than in Texas. The lemon laws, although named similarly, are both very different from state to state. California Lemon Law, specifically the Song-Beverly Act, is much more consumer friendly than the Texas Lemon Law.

Among other things, for one, California lemon law has an automatic attorney fee shifting provision that forces the car manufacturer to pay the plaintiff/consumer’s attorney fees. In Texas, the attorney fee shifting is not automatic,…at the lemon law administrative hearing, the only way that the car manufacturer is required to pay the consumer’s lemon law is if the car manufacturer obtained its own attorney and provide the consumer with proper notice. Quite often, the car manufacturer will not hire an attorney and instead, would hire car experts who are trained by attorneys and have attended these hearings on a regular basis.

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I must admit, I love to purchase small items on Ebay. However, when it comes to buying large tickets items, such as a house or automobile, I will most likely stick to the traditional realtor or car dealer. My reasoning stems from the concern that if something goes wrong (such as obtaining a lemon house or car), then it will be easier to hold a person or brick/mortar company responsible.

For years now, Ebay has been utilizing the pervasiveness of the Internet to auction vehicles through its website. Used or pre-owned car dealers will list their inventory on Ebay for a fee. The problem stems from the bad press that Ebay has been receiving regarding the vast amount of lemons that are being sold on Ebay’s car auction site.

Just 2 years ago, I sat in on a lawsuit case about a buyer suing one of the car dealers who listed a lemon and wrecked car on Ebay. The car dealer’s defense was that he knew nothing about the car’s history, even though the facts were very clear that there was a history of tamper and accidents linked to the car. The dealer ended up losing and the car buyer was awarded several thousands in damages.

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Lemon laws protect car buyers who have repeatedly tried to fix cars, to no avail. While laws vary by state, one of the strongest is the Texas lemon law, on which other state laws are modeled. There are also federal laws that further protect consumers. Consumers can use these lemon laws to get a refund or replacement for cars that require excessive repairs to fix warranty-covered problems.

Texas Lemon Law: The law applies to new automobiles, trucks, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, RVs, and towable recreational vehicles. These vehicles must have problems covered by a written factory warranty; claims must be filed within 6 months of the expiration of the warranty, 24 months, or 24,000 miles, whichever comes first. The law requires 2 repair attempts in the first 12 months or 12,000 miles and another 2 attempts in the second 12 months or 12,000 miles. If the problem is a serious safety hazard, it only requires 1 repair attempt in the first 12 months or 12,000 miles and at least one more in the second 12 months or 12,000 miles. The law also covers vehicles that are out of service for 30 days.

California Lemon Law: This law applies only to vehicles used for home or personal use. It requires 4 repair attempts or 30 days out of service within 18 months or 18,000 miles. If the problem could cause death or serious injury, it only requires 2 repair attempts.

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Hyundai recently lost a California Lemon Law case over attorney fees in the Court of Appeals of California — Fourth Appellate District. The case revolves around Adina Vasquez’s purchase of a defective 2005 Hyundai Sonata. Vasquez hired a lemon law attorney and sued under the California Song-Beverly Act and the Magnuson–Moss Act.

Vasquez was able to get a repurchase on the vehicle, but the issue of attorney fees remain pending. Thereafter, Vasquez’s attorney sued for attorney fees in the amount of $51,012. Hyundai fought and the trial court agreed with Hyundai — it refused to award any attorney fees to Vasquez’s attorney. Vasquez’s attorney took the case to the Fourth Appellate District Court of California.

In its unpublished decision dated on October 13, 2009, the appellate court sided with Vasquez in stating that Vasquez’s attorney is entitled to “reasonable attorney fees.” The case is remanded back to the trial court to determine the reasonableness of $51,012.

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Often times, potential clients will call me with a set of facts that meets the minimum requirements of the Texas Lemon Law. However, once I ask the potential client to fax me the repair invoices, I learn that the receipts were either inaccurate or unavailable.

Many dealerships, in preparation for a lemon law claim, would find ways to set up the situation against the consumer’s favor. For example, the repair invoice always includes the legal jargon that the “customer states….” so-and-so. It never states that “we the dealership found or discovered a serious defect: — because that would be considered an admission to liability.

Other times, the dealerships will merge two separate repair visits onto one invoice. In the eyes of most Texas Lemon Law administrative judges, one repair invoice equals only one visit. The rule of thumb is that once you’ve driven the car off the lot for a repair invoice and the same problem re-manifests itself, then you should turn around, have the dealership attempt to repair the defect and request a separate repair receipt.

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Toyota recently issued a safety recall to address its vehicles’ abnormal acceleration while in operation. This will be considered one of Toyota’s largest recall and perhaps most costly recall in the United States relating to the safety of the vehicle.

The reason why this recall is considered so massive is because it applies to numerous Toyota models, including the ever popular Camry, Avalon, Prius, Tundra, Tacoma, and Lexus.

The actual recall itself is still pretty vague. Toyota’s current recommendation is to remove the floor mat underneath the accelerator to prevent it from sticking between the gas pedal. Toyota still has not issues any official notice for a permanent fix.

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