Lemon-law claims generally come down to the same things: repair attempts, days out of service, and whether you're still inside the eligibility window. Organize those facts and get a free letter outline; the full demand letter is in the $39 Case Pack.
| Eligibility window | The first 18,000 miles of operation or 2 years following original delivery, whichever comes first |
|---|---|
| Repair-attempt presumption | 4 repair attempts |
| Days-out-of-service presumption | 30 days |
| Citation | N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law Section 198-a (New Car Lemon Law) |
Source: N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law Section 198-a (New Car Lemon Law)
New York's New Car Lemon Law (General Business Law 198-a) covers motor vehicles subject to a manufacturer's express warranty at the time of original delivery, purchased, leased, or transferred in New York, where the defect is reported within the first 18,000 miles of operation or two years, whichever comes first. If the manufacturer or authorized dealer is unable to repair the vehicle after a reasonable number of attempts, the consumer may choose a full refund or a comparable replacement vehicle. The manufacturer must provide dealers with a 'New Car Lemon Law Bill of Rights' notice. A separate Used Car Lemon Law (GBL 198-b) covers dealer-sold used vehicles on a sliding scale based on mileage at sale. As of this research, a bill is actively pending in the Legislature to expand the new and used car Lemon Laws to cover vehicles used for commercial or business purposes - this has been reintroduced across multiple sessions (2019, 2021, 2023, 2025) without apparently having passed, based on the repeated-reintroduction pattern, but final status was not confirmed.
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