Lemon law in New Mexico

At a glance

Who qualifies

Which vehicles

Cars, pickup trucks, motorcycles and vans normally used for personal, family or household purposes, sold and registered in New Mexico, with a gross vehicle weight under 10,000 pounds.

“"motor vehicle" means a passenger motor vehicle, including an automobile, pickup truck, motorcycle or van normally used for personal, family or household purposes, that is sold and registered in this state and whose gross vehicle weight is less than ten thousand pounds”

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Repair attempts

The car is presumed a lemon if the same defect has been repaired 4 or more times within the protection period and still exists.

“the same uncorrected nonconformity has been subject to repair four or more times by the manufacturer or its agents or authorized dealers”

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Serious safety defects

The law does not say.

Days out of service

The car is presumed a lemon if it is in the shop for repairs a total of 30 or more business days within the protection period, not counting routine maintenance.

“the vehicle is in the possession of the manufacturer, its agent or authorized dealer for repair a cumulative total of thirty or more business days during such term or during such period whichever is the earlier date”

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Used vehicles

Yes, in a limited way under § 57-16A-3.1. A used car dealer cannot disclaim the implied warranty that the car is fit to drive until 15 days or 500 miles after delivery, whichever comes first. The owner pays half the cost of the first two repairs, up to a cap.

“The implied warranty of merchantability expires at midnight of the fifteenth calendar day after delivery of a used motor vehicle or until a used motor vehicle is driven five hundred miles after delivery, whichever is earlier.”

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Leased vehicles

The law does not say.

Deadlines

Protection period

The manufacturer's express warranty term or 1 year after original delivery, whichever ends first.

“during the term of such express warranties or during the period of one year following the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle to a consumer, whichever is the earlier date”

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Time limit to file

A lawsuit must be filed within 18 months after original delivery, or within 90 days after a manufacturer dispute program's final action, whichever is later.

“shall be commenced within eighteen months following the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle to a consumer”

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Steps

1. Keep every repair order. Each visit to the dealer should give you a work order with the date, the mileage, what you reported and what they did. Ask for one every time, even when they find nothing. These papers are your case.
2. Check the dates. The manufacturer's express warranty term or 1 year after original delivery, whichever ends first. A lawsuit must be filed within 18 months after original delivery, or within 90 days after a manufacturer dispute program's final action, whichever is later.
3. Tell the manufacturer in writing. The law asks for written notice. See written notice below.
4. Use the dispute program if one is required. See arbitration below for whether you must go there before court.
5. Ask for a refund or a replacement, or file. Send the letter, then file before the time limit if the manufacturer will not buy the vehicle back or replace it.

Written notice

Yes. The lemon presumption applies only after the manufacturer has received direct written notice from the owner and a chance to fix the defect.

“In no event shall the presumption herein provided apply against a manufacturer unless the manufacturer has received prior direct written notification from or on behalf of the consumer and an opportunity to cure the defect alleged.”

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Arbitration

If the manufacturer has a fair dispute program that meets federal rules, the owner must use it before getting a refund or replacement. New Mexico has no state arbitration program. The Attorney General may review manufacturer programs.

“concerning refunds or replacement shall not apply to any consumer who has not first resorted to that procedure”

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What you get

The manufacturer must replace the car with a comparable one or take it back and refund the full purchase price including taxes, title and registration fees, minus a use deduction for miles before the first defect report.

“the manufacturer shall replace the motor vehicle with a comparable motor vehicle or accept return of the vehicle from the consumer and refund to the consumer the full purchase price including all collateral charges, less a reasonable allowance for the consumer's use of the vehicle”

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Do it yourself

You can bring a lemon law claim without a lawyer. It takes letters, records and patience. The usual route:

1. Put your repair orders in date order and count the attempts and the days out of service.
2. Send the manufacturer the letter below, by a tracked method, to the address in your owner's manual or warranty booklet.
3. If it offers a final repair, let it try within the time the law gives it.
4. If it refuses or does not answer, file with the manufacturer's dispute program or the state program (New Mexico Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection), then court if you need to.
5. Do not sell or trade in the vehicle while the claim is open.

[Your name]
[Your address]
[Date]

[Manufacturer name]
[Address from your owner's manual or warranty booklet]

Re: Lemon law claim, [year make model], VIN [VIN]

I bought (or leased) this vehicle on [date] from [dealer], in New Mexico. It has a defect that the dealer has not been able to fix: [describe it in one or two sentences].

It has been in for repair of this defect [number] times, on [dates], and out of service for a total of [number] days. Copies of the repair orders are enclosed.

Under Motor Vehicle Quality Assurance Act (N.M. Stat. Ann. §§ 57-16A-1 to 57-16A-9), I ask you to repurchase or replace the vehicle. Please reply in writing within 15 days. I can bring the vehicle in for a final repair attempt if the law gives you one.

[Your name]
[Phone and email]

What a buyback pays in New Mexico

The law asks for a reasonable allowance for your use without a fixed formula. Makers and courts often use the one several states write into law: the price times the miles driven before the first repair visit for the defect, divided by 120,000. For a $40,000 car with 6,000 miles at the first repair and 15,000 now, that is about $2,000.

Estimate your buyback

Questions people ask about New Mexico's lemon law

Find a New Mexico lemon law lawyer

Yes. An owner who wins is entitled to reasonable attorney fees and court costs from the manufacturer. An owner who loses a suit brought in bad faith may have to pay the manufacturer's fees.

“A consumer who prevails in an action brought to enforce the provisions of the Motor Vehicle Quality Assurance Act shall be entitled to receive reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs from the manufacturer.”

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Because the manufacturer usually pays the lawyer's fees when you win, most lemon law lawyers charge you nothing up front. A lawyer also knows what the manufacturer offers in cases like yours and what the use deduction should be.

Send the free case check below and we find a lemon law firm that takes New Mexico cases like yours. The firm contacts you, and you decide whether to hire them.

Sources

• N.M. Stat. Ann. §§ 57-16A-1 to 57-16A-9, Motor Vehicle Quality Assurance Act
• New Mexico Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection
• Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2310, the federal warranty law that also lets owners recover attorney fees.

Each quote above is copied from the page it links to, checked 2026-10-26. If a page has moved, the citation still finds the law.