Mikula v. Ford Motor Co.

680 A.2d 907, 451 Pa. Super. 560, 1996 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2506
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedJuly 30, 1996
StatusPublished

This text of 680 A.2d 907 (Mikula v. Ford Motor Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mikula v. Ford Motor Co., 680 A.2d 907, 451 Pa. Super. 560, 1996 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2506 (Pa. Ct. App. 1996).

Opinion

HUDOCK, Judge:

The issue presented in this case of first impression is whether a new motor vehicle which was purchased out-of-state by a Pennsylvania resident who registers the car and pays insurance under Pennsylvania Law is subject to the provisions of Pennsylvania’s Automobile Lemon Law (Lemon Law), 73 P.S. section 1951, et seq. Because we find that the vehicle at issue is not covered under the Lemon Law, we affirm the grant of summary judgment in favor of Ford Motor Company (Ford).

The pertinent facts and procedural history may be summarized as follows: On or about April 2,1994, Susan Mikula (Mikula), a Pennsylvania resident, purchased a 1994 Ford Escort from a Ford dealership located in Bethesda, Maryland. Although the car was purchased in Maryland, Mikula registered and insured the ear in Pennsylvania. Mikula alleges that, within approximately six months after its purchase, she began to experience difficulties with the operation of the car. Thereafter, the car was serviced numerous times at a Pittsburgh Ford dealer. Because the problems allegedly were not corrected, and she continued to experience them, Miku-la filed a lawsuit pursuant to the Lemon Law. After filing an answer, Ford moved for summary judgment, claiming that the Lemon Law does not apply to vehicles purchased outside Pennsylvania.1 The trial court agreed and granted Ford’s motion. On appeal to this Court, Mikula contends that the court below erred as a matter of law in granting summary judgment because the pertinent language of the Lemon Law is ambiguous and susceptible to more than one meaning. We disagree.

When determining whether a trial court properly granted summary judgment, this Court’s scope of review is plenary. Schriver v. Mazziotti, 432 Pa.Super. 276, 278-80, 638 A.2d 224, 225 (1994), alloc. den., 539 Pa. 638, 650 A.2d 52. Summary judgment is properly granted when the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, admissions on file, and affidavits demonstrate that there exists no genuine issue of material fact. Pa.R.C.P. 1035(b), 42 Pa.C.S.A. We must examine the entire record in the light most favorable to the non-moving party and resolve all doubts against the moving party when determining if there is a genuine issue of material fact. Schriver, 638 A.2d at 225. We will only reverse the trial court’s decision when it commits an error of law or abuses its discretion. Accu-Weather, Inc. v. Prospect Communications, Inc. and CRB, 435 Pa.Super. 93, 98-99, 644 A.2d 1251, 1254 (1994). An abuse of discretion occurs “when the course pursued represents not merely an error of judgment, but where the judgment is manifestly unreasonable or where the law is not applied or where the record shows that the action taken is a result of partiality, prejudice, bias or ill will.” Coker v. S.M. Flickinger Co., Inc., 533 Pa. 441, 447, 625 A.2d 1181, 1185 (1993) (quoting P.L.E. New Trial § 2). Put differently, summary judgment may only be granted in cases where it is clear and free from doubt that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Accur-Weather, Inc., 644 A.2d at 1254.

The Lemon Law creates a civil cause of action for “any purchaser of a new motor vehicle who suffers any loss due to a nonconformity of such vehicle as a result of the manufacturer’s failure to comply” with its provisions. 73 P.S. § 1958. The Lemon Law defines purchaser as follows:

[909]*909“Purchaser.” A person, or his successor or assigns, who has obtained ownership of a new motor vehicle by transfer or purchase or who has entered into an agreement or contract for the purchase of a new motor vehicle which is used or bought for use primarily for personal, family or household purposes.

73 P.S. § 1952. The Lemon Law defines “new motor vehicle” as follows:

“New motor vehicle.” Any new and unused self-propelled, motorized conveyance driven upon public roads, streets or highways which is designed to transport not more than 15 persons, which was purchased and is registered in the Commonwealth and is used or bought for use primarily for personal, family or household purposes, including a vehicle used by a manufacturer or dealer as a demonstrator or dealer car prior to its sale. The term does not include motorcycles, motor homes or off-road vehicles.

Id. (Emphasis added).

Because the Lemon Law protects only purchasers of new motor vehicles, any person seeking recourse under it must establish that the vehicle purchased falls within the definition of “new motor vehicle.” As in the proceedings below, Ford contends that Mikula does not fall within the above definition because she purchased the car outside Pennsylvania. According to Ford, to meet the Lemon Law’s definition, three requirements must be met: 1) the vehicle was purchased in Pennsylvania; 2) the vehicle is registered in the Commonwealth; and 3) the vehicle is used or bought for use primarily for personal, family or household purposes. Mikula, on the other hand, contends that the three requirements should be construed as follows: 1) the vehicle is purchased; 2) the vehicle is registered in the Commonwealth; and 3) the vehicle is used or bought for use primarily for personal, family or household purposes. Even though section 1952 defines a new motor vehicle as one “purchased and registered in Pennsylvania,” Mikula contends that the Lemon Law should be construed broadly by focusing on its remedial and consumer protection purposes.

Because the Lemon Law was enacted to protect Pennsylvania consumers who purchase new cars which fail to operate properly after numerous attempts at repair, and because the consumer can sue only the manufacturer and not the local dealer, Mikula contends that there is no reason the Legislature would penalize a Pennsylvania consumer who crossed state lines to obtain a more competitively-priced vehicle. Thus, according to Mikula, it should make no difference where the Pennsylvania resident purchased the vehicle. Ford responds to this argument by noting that the language at issue is unambiguous and the several Pennsylvania appellate decisions which have considered the Lemon Law or construed terms therein have done so in a narrow fashion. See e.g., Reeves v. Morelli-Hoskins Ford, Inc., 415 Pa.Super. 431, 434-36, 609 A.2d 828, 830 (1992) (person whose car is repossessed after filing a Lemon Law action loses status of “purchaser”); Ford Motor Credit Co. v. Dunsmore, 374 Pa.Super. 303, 305-07, 542 A.2d 1033, 1035 (1988) (“Lemon Law does not permit the purchaser of a defective automobile to discontinue making payments under a financing contract while pursuing available Lemon Law remedies”); Industrial Valley Bank & Trust Co. v. Howard, 368 Pa.Super. 263, 271-73, 533 A.2d 1055, 1059 (1987), alloc, den., 520 Pa. 576, 549 A.2d 136 (1988) (neither lessee or lessor in a lease situation qualifies as a “purchaser” within the clear meaning of section 1952 of the Lemon Law).

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Related

Ford Motor Credit Co. v. Dunsmore
542 A.2d 1033 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1988)
Coker v. SM Flickinger Co., Inc.
625 A.2d 1181 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1993)
Schriver v. Mazziotti
638 A.2d 224 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1994)
Industrial Valley Bank & Trust Co. v. Howard
533 A.2d 1055 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1987)
Marshall v. Port Authority
568 A.2d 931 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1990)
Accu-Weather, Inc. v. Prospect Communications, Inc.
644 A.2d 1251 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1994)
Reeves v. Morelli-Hoskins Ford, Inc.
609 A.2d 828 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1992)
Eck v. Williamsport School District
180 A.2d 79 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1962)

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Bluebook (online)
680 A.2d 907, 451 Pa. Super. 560, 1996 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2506, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mikula-v-ford-motor-co-pasuperct-1996.