Grucella v. General Motors Corp.

10 Pa. D. & C.2d 65, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 331
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia County
DecidedJuly 2, 1956
Docketno. 896
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 10 Pa. D. & C.2d 65 (Grucella v. General Motors Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Grucella v. General Motors Corp., 10 Pa. D. & C.2d 65, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 331 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1956).

Opinion

Oliver, P. J.,

. . . The chancellor makes the following findings of fact:

1. Plaintiff purchased a 1955 model Chevrolet automobile from defendant Bryner Chevrolet Co. on September 19,1955, for a price of $2,898.70; the purchase was financed on a 30-month payment plan by means of a conditional sales contract, and plaintiff made a down payment of $1,058.70, consisting of $6 cash and $1,052.70 credit on a 1953 Plymouth trade-in.
2. The conditional sales contract was subsequently assigned to defendant GMAC.
3. The Chevrolet automobile was manufactured by defendant General Motors Co.
4. The first monthly payment of $69.65 under the conditional sales contract was due and payable on October 19, 1955.
5. Plaintiff never made any monthly payments under the conditional sales contract.
6. Defendant GMAC repossessed the automobile on November 29, 1955.
' 7. The automobile was fit for the purposes for which it was sold, and was not defective in any material respect; there was a slight vibration and whine in the car immediately after purchase, but this condition was a minor one which did not impair the maneuverability or drivability of the car, and had no effect on the driver’s ability to control it.
[67]*678. Plaintiff notified all three defendants of an alleged mechanical defect in the automobile prior to repossession.
• 9. Defendant Bryner Chevrolet Co. overhauled the automobile at plaintiff’s request and installed new parts at no cost to plaintiff.
10. The automobile is in proper running order and fit for the purposes for which it was sold, and this fact has been conceded by plaintiff.
11. The car was left by plaintiff unlocked and unattended on the street for several hours during the night immediately prior to repossession; there was no camera or camera equipment in the car at the time of repossession, and all items found therein were returned to plaintiff.
12. All defendants acted in good faith, without malice or ill will.
13. Defendant GMC gave a manufacturer’s warranty running to plaintiff to repair or replace any part of the car which was defective by reason of materials or workmanship.
14. Defendant GMC has properly performed said warranty.

Discussion

This case is in equity because of an inadequate remedy at law. There are many interwoven problems, which, if the strict legal remedy were pursued, would make an effective disposition of the matter impossible. Plaintiff claims continuing wrongful conduct on the part of defendants, and a multiplicity of suits would be required in the absence of equity. See Bright v. Pittsburgh Musical Society, 379 Pa. 335 (1954). Involved are title to, and the respective rights of various parties in, a new automobile, which was repossessed before any monthly payments were made by plaintiff, and at a time when the depreciation factor weighs [68]*68most heavily. In addition, certain personal property of plaintiff, which he claims to have left in the car, has apparently disappeared; plaintiff also asks for punitive damages in order to deter defendants from such action in the future, and not one, but three defendants have been joined, General Motors Corporation, the manufacturer of the car, hereinafter referred to as “GMC”; General Motors Acceptance Corporation, the assignee of the financing agreement, hereinafter referred to as “GMAC”, and Bryner Chevrolet Co., the seller and assignor of the contract. Plaintiff also claims that defendant assignor acted as agent of defendant GMC, and that defendant GMAC is a branch of the GMC corporation. Having once assumed jurisdiction, the chancellor will decide all issues raised by the parties: Buswell v. Buswell, 377 Pa. 487 (1954).

There is no dispute that plaintiff, a free-lance photographer who used an automobile in his work, purchased a new 1955 model Chevrolet automobile from defendant Bryner Chevrolet Co. on September 19, 1955, for a price of $2,898.70, and that the purchase was financed on a 30-month payment plan by means of a conditional sales contract. Plaintiff made a down payment of $1,158.70, consisting of $6 in cash and a $1,152.70 credit on a 1953 Plymouth trade-in. The first monthly payment of $69.65 was therefore due and payable one month later, or on October 19, 1955. The conditional sales contract was assigned to defendant GMAC.

Plaintiff testified that the day after he took delivery of the car, he drove it to Washington, D. C., and that, when he traveled at a speed in excess of 30 miles per hour, there was a “vibration” and a “whine” in the rear end, and that he “couldn’t control it”. He returned to the dealer, Bryner Chevrolet Co., and complained, stating that he wanted another car or his [69]*69money back. The dealer refused to do either, but promised to remedy any defects in the.car. Then followed 'conflicting testimony as to what the trouble was, if any, whether it could be remedied, whether the condition was in fact remedied, what plaintiff was told, when he contacted the other defendants and whom he talked to at the various offices. In any event, defendant Bryner Chevrolet Co. admits notice of the alleged defect, defendant GMAC admits receipt of notice of an alleged mechanical defect prior to repossession and defendant GMC admits notice of an alleged mechanical defect from plaintiff’s attorney dated October 12, 1955, and received on October 24,1955. Plaintiff made no monthly payments, and the automobile was repossessed on November 29, 1955, by defendant GMAC. Ten days later plaintiff filed this suit in equity, and the automobile is now in the hands of defendant Bryner Chevrolet Co.

Plaintiff’s position is that under Section 2-314 of the Uniform Commercial Code of April 6, 1953, P. L. 3, the automobile was not “fit for the ordinary purposes for which such goods are used”. The code provides that such a warranty is made unless excluded in the contract, and no exclusion appeared-here. Obviously, argues plaintiff, an automobile which cannot properly be controlled because it vibrates and whines at a speed in excess of 30 miles per hour is not merchantable, and plaintiff was therefore justified, under section 2-608 of the Uniform Commercial Code, in revoking his acceptance, since the alleged defect substantially impaired the value of the car to plaintiff.

Plaintiff further contends that he had a security interest in the car for his down payment, under section 2-711(3) of the Uniform Commercial Code, and that defendant GMAC’s repossession was wrongful. Since all defendants knew of the alleged defect, and [70]*70since an assignee takes subject to defenses valid against an assignor and cannot escape same even by express agreement of the buyer (Uniform Commercial Code, sec. 9-206(1)), plaintiff claims all defendants acted with a willful and wanton disregard for the rights of others, and asks the return of his down'payment, the value of the goods that disappeared and punitive damages in the sum of $3,000.

We cannot agree with the above.

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Bluebook (online)
10 Pa. D. & C.2d 65, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 331, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/grucella-v-general-motors-corp-pactcomplphilad-1956.