States
Mississippi lemon law: when a new car is a lemon
What Miss. Code §§ 63-17-151 to 63-17-165 asks before a manufacturer must repurchase or replace a car, the steps on the way and the last day to act.
Does your car meet the Mississippi lemon law tests?
Mississippi, November 5, 2026 read in the statute
The presumption appears to be met
| Protection period | 1 year or the warranty term, whichever ends first: until January 5, 2027. You are inside it. |
| Repair attempts, same defect | Met: needs 3, you have 3 |
| Days out of service | Not met: needs 15 working days, you have 12 |
| Notice | Written notice to the manufacturer and a chance to cure; once the car is at the facility the manufacturer names, it has 10 working days to repair. |
| Dispute step | A qualifying manufacturer informal dispute program must be used first (§ 63-17-163). |
| File a lawsuit by July 5, 2027 (242 days left) | Lawsuit within 1 year after the warranty ends or 18 months after delivery, whichever is earlier, or 90 days after the panel’s decision. |
Tests as written in the law; a court or arbitrator decides. Miss. Code §§ 63-17-151 to 63-17-165
The Mississippi lemon law in detailThe Mississippi Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act, sections 63-17-151 to 63-17-165 of the Mississippi Code, published by the Motor Vehicle Commission, protects a new motor vehicle during the warranty term or the first year after delivery. The act presumes a reasonable number of attempts after three repairs of the same defect, or after 15 working days out of service. The owner writes to the manufacturer, which then has ten working days to repair once the car is at the facility it names. If the manufacturer has an informal dispute program that qualifies under the act, the owner must use it first. A lawsuit must be filed within one year after the warranty ends or 18 months after delivery, whichever is earlier, or 90 days after the panel’s decision. We read the act in the commission’s copy of the 2019 code on November 1, 2026.
When is the last day to act?
File a lawsuit, Mississippi
March 5, 2027
| Days from today | 120 left |
| Rule: Lawsuit within 1 year after the warranty ends or 18 months after delivery, whichever is earlier, or 90 days after the panel’s decision. | |
State laws read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
A short and sharp Mississippi test
Fifteen working days is about three weeks at the dealer, one of the lowest days tests in the country, and three attempts is the fewest any state’s ordinary count asks. The trade-off is time: the protection period ends after the first year, and the lawsuit window closes early.
The Motor Vehicle Commission, which licenses dealers, publishes the act on its site. It does not run an arbitration program in the text we read; the first step is the manufacturer’s own, if it has one that qualifies.
A flat deduction
Mississippi charges 20 cents a mile for use. On a car with 15,000 miles, that is $3,000, whatever the price. Motorcycles, off-road vehicles, mopeds and the parts added to a motor home are outside the act; demonstrators and lease-purchases are inside it, as is a buyer who receives the car during the warranty.
The Mississippi lemon law at a glance
| Law | Miss. Code §§ 63-17-151 to 63-17-165 |
| Protection period | 1 year or the warranty term, whichever ends first |
| Repair attempts | 3 attempts on the same defect |
| Serious safety defect | no separate test |
| Days out of service | 15 working days |
| Written notice | Written notice to the manufacturer and a chance to cure; once the car is at the facility the manufacturer names, it has 10 working days to repair. |
| Dispute step | Manufacturer program first. A qualifying manufacturer informal dispute program must be used first (§ 63-17-163). |
| Deadline | Lawsuit within 1 year after the warranty ends or 18 months after delivery, whichever is earlier, or 90 days after the panel’s decision. |
| Use offset in a buyback | 20 cents a mile for all miles driven. |
| Vehicles covered | New motor vehicles, including demonstrators and lease-purchases. Not motorcycles, off-road vehicles, mopeds or the parts added to a motor home. |
| Used cars | Only a buyer to whom the car is transferred during the warranty. |
| State page | no agency page |
| Level of reading | read in the statute |
| What we read | The act as published by the Motor Vehicle Commission (Mississippi Code, 2019), read on November 1, 2026. |
From written notice to a decision
Certified mail, return receipt requested.
Earliest decisionbetween Oct 30, 2026 and Dec 9, 2026
1. Done · milestone
Written notice reaches the manufacturer
Oct 16, 2026
Written notice to the manufacturer and a chance to cure; once the car is at the facility the manufacturer names, it has 10 working days to repair.
Miss. Code §§ 63-17-151 to 63-17-1652. Done · 2 weeks
Final repair window
Oct 30, 2026
10 working days to repair once the car is at the facility the manufacturer names (Mississippi Warranty Enforcement Act).
Miss. Code §§ 63-17-151 to 63-17-1653. In progress · 0 day – 6 weeks
Dispute program decides
Oct 30, 2026 – Dec 9, 2026
A program that follows 16 CFR Part 703 must decide within 40 days of receiving your dispute. A qualifying manufacturer informal dispute program must be used first (§ 63-17-163).
16 CFR 703.5(d)4. Upcoming · milestone
Accept, refuse or go further
Oct 30, 2026 – Dec 9, 2026
Lawsuit within 1 year after the warranty ends or 18 months after delivery, whichever is earlier, or 90 days after the panel’s decision.