Highway Sales, Inc. v. Blue Bird Corp.

559 F.3d 782, 68 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 186, 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 5137, 2009 WL 605730
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
DecidedMarch 11, 2009
Docket07-3225
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 559 F.3d 782 (Highway Sales, Inc. v. Blue Bird Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Highway Sales, Inc. v. Blue Bird Corp., 559 F.3d 782, 68 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 186, 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 5137, 2009 WL 605730 (8th Cir. 2009).

Opinions

RILEY, Circuit Judge.

Donald Oren (Oren) and Highway Sales, Inc. (Highway Sales) (collectively, plaintiffs), asserted claims against Blue Bird Corporation (Blue Bird) for (1) breach of express and implied warranties; (2) violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2301-2312; (3) violation of Minnesota’s Lemon Law, Minn.Stat. § 325F.665; and (4) revocation of acceptance under Minn.Stat. § 336.2-608. Plaintiffs also asserted a claim for revocation of acceptance against Thermo Leasing Corporation d/b/a Shorewood RV Center (Shorewood RV). The district court granted Blue Bird’s and Shorewood RV’s (collectively, defendants) motion for summary judgment on all of plaintiffs’ claims. Plaintiffs appeal. We affirm in part and reverse in part.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiffs’ claims arose from their purchase of a defective recreational vehicle (RV) manufactured by Blue Bird. On July 31, 2003, Highway Sales purchased, for Oren’s use,1 a Blue Bird Wanderlodge M380 RV from Shorewood RV, a Blue Bird authorized dealer. The purchase price was $337,244.

In the months following the sale, Oren discovered numerous defects, including failures of the RV’s electrical system, batteries, seals, slides, gauges, compressor, monitor, and lighting. Oren returned the RV to Shorewood RV for repairs on a number of occasions, and Shorewood RV attempted to remedy the RV’s various defects. Despite Shorewood RV’s efforts, Oren continued experiencing problems with the RV.

On July 2, 2004, Oren delivered the RV to Shorewood RV’s lot, giving the keys to Shorewood RV and removing his belongings. Oren informed Anthony Santarsiero (Santarsiero), a Shorewood RV employee, that Oren was returning the RV as of that day. Santarsiero gave Oren the name of Blue Bird’s CEO and told Oren to call or write the CEO a letter to try to resolve the problem. On July 8, 2004, Oren wrote a letter to Blue Bird’s CEO asking him to authorize repurchase of the RV at its original cost. Oren copied Santarsiero on the letter. The letter stated, in part:

... After almost a year of continued problems with this motor home, I have [785]*785come to three conclusions. First, the Model M380 was released before it had been properly designed, tested, and debugged. Second, Shorewood RV is a terrific dealer for you, but even they could not overcome the inherent problems in the M380. Third, I have run out of patience, confidence, and trust that the problems can be fixed in a reasonable time, and I request that you return my purchase price.
... On July 2, 2004, after the engine batteries once again died, I removed all my personal belongings and returned the coach to the dealer. This was the final event — the last straw.... I spoke with Anthony Santarsiero and told him I was returning the coach as of that day....
Suffice it to say that I am out of patience, and that both of our lives will be made easier if you will simply authorize a repurchase of the coach at its original cost. This coach simply needs to be permanently.recalled until major corrections are made.
... I’m not interested in further retrofits, patches, or excuses. I will never take this coach back.

Neither Blue Bird nor Shorewood RV refunded plaintiffs’ purchase price. Instead, on July 31, 2004, a Blue Bird technician performed a major electrical retrofit on the RV. Despite this repair, the batteries failed again on August 12, 2004. Additional repairs were completed on August 19, 2004, while the RV was in Shorewood RV’s possession.

On September 7, 2004, Blue Bird’s Director of Customer Service formally rejected Oren’s request for a refund, asserting, “[y]our electrical issue on your M380 has been repaired.... We do not refund purchases or buy units back. We are committed to working with our Dealers and Customers to resolve any service needs that may occur. I know you have had some battery issues with your unit, but I am confident that these issues have been resolved. You have a reliable unit that should give you the service and performance it is designed for.”

On September 14, 2004, Oren and Shore-wood RV signed a Consignment Agreement, giving Shorewood RV the exclusive right to sell the RV. Before putting the RV on Shorewood RV’s sales lot, additional repairs were completed on September 28, 2004, and October 4, 2004.

Despite the Consignment Agreement, Oren continued his efforts to obtain a refund. On October 27, 2004, Oren again wrote to Blue Bird, demanding a refund. Oren wrote another letter to Blue Bird on November 2, 2004, this time notifying Blue Bird he considered the RV to be a “lemon” under Minnesota’s Lemon Law. On November 5, 2004, Blue Bird replied to Oren’s October 27, 2004 letter. Blue Bird refused to provide a refund, declaring “Blue Bird stands behind this [RV which is] a reliable unit and will give you the service and performance for which it is designed.” Blue Bird then apologized for any inconvenience Oren incurred while the RV was being repaired and offered to “send a Wanderlodge factory representative to Shorewood to provide additional owner training and a systems check” of the RV. On November 17, 2004, Oren traveled to Shorewood RV to check the status of the RV. Oren found the RV would not start because the batteries were once again dead. On November 19, 2004, Blue Bird’s attorney responded to Oren’s November 2, 2004 letter stating, “Blue Bird and its distributor have worked on the motor home and believe that the cause of the battery problem you identified, as well as any other issues, have been remedied. Therefore, Blue Bird has fully complied with the requirements of its warranty and the Minnesota lemon law.” This letter [786]*786went on to reiterate Blue Bird’s willingness to continue working with Oren and Shorewood RV “to assure [Oren] that the motor home conforms to the warranty.”

On November 29, 2004, Oren replied to Blue Bird’s attorney, enclosing a spreadsheet detailing the problems he had experienced with the RV and stating:

My purpose in sending along this information is to document the fact that neither Blue Bird, nor its authorized representative, Shorewood R.V. Center [], has succeeded in meeting its obligations to conform the vehicle to the applicable express warranties. As the record clearly demonstrates, even after a reasonable number of attempts to repair the electrical and other problems that have haunted this unit, it remains unfit for the purpose it was intended; therefore, I reiterate my demand that Blue Bird make a full refund of the purchase price of the unit.

Blue Bird’s attorney responded on December 1, 2004, asserting there was “nothing wrong” with the RV, and “Blue Bird has lived up to its obligations under the warranty.” Oren wrote back to Blue Bird’s attorney on December 6, 2004, indicating he would consider litigation if the matter were not acceptably resolved. On January 4, 2005, plaintiffs’ attorney wrote Blue Bird’s attorney in an attempt to schedule the matter for informal arbitration, as provided by the alternative dispute settlement mechanism set forth in Minnesota’s Lemon Law.

Thereafter, Oren learned from Shore-wood RV that Parliament Coach, an RV dealer in Florida, might be interested in purchasing the RV. In February 2005, Oren agreed to sell the RV to Parliament Coach for $225,000, resulting in a loss to plaintiffs of over $100,000.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Pagliaroni v. Mastic Home Exteriors, Inc.
310 F. Supp. 3d 274 (District of Columbia, 2018)
In re Hardieplank Fiber Cement Siding Litig.
284 F. Supp. 3d 918 (D. Maine, 2018)
Marvin Lumber & Cedar Co. v. Sapa Extrusions, Inc.
964 F. Supp. 2d 993 (D. Minnesota, 2013)
Green v. BMW of North America, LLC
826 N.W.2d 530 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 2013)
ACH Enterprises 1 LLC v. Viking Yacht Co.
817 F. Supp. 2d 465 (D. New Jersey, 2011)
Martinez v. Kia Motors America, Inc.
193 Cal. App. 4th 187 (California Court of Appeal, 2011)
Cannon Technologies, Inc. v. Sensus Metering Systems, Inc.
734 F. Supp. 2d 753 (D. Minnesota, 2010)
Highway Sales, Inc. v. Blue Bird Corp.
559 F.3d 782 (Eighth Circuit, 2009)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
559 F.3d 782, 68 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 186, 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 5137, 2009 WL 605730, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/highway-sales-inc-v-blue-bird-corp-ca8-2009.