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I owned a new 1988 Ford Escort Pony that came from the factory white in color but,should have been painted a bright yellow because,it was truly a lemon!Everything started out fine when I first bought the car.However,things were about to change,and not for the good.

Around 20 or,25,000 miles the engine became a nightmare to deal with!I had the oil changed every 3,000 miles or so,just like the owner's manual instructed.The first sign of trouble my family and I were going from her sister's home in another town about 20 miles from where we lived.The engine suddenly sputtered,seized,and all I could see was a large plume of solid white smoke which soon turned to a dark blue.I admit to not being very savvy concerning a car but,I know when one has blown an engine!We had to have the Pony towed to the dealership where I had first purchased it.Luckily for me,the car was under a warranty,and after a couple of weeks of driving a rental car the dealer replaced my engine with a rebuilt one.I did have to haggle with them for some time to get it repaired,however.

We thought everything was going to be fine with no more trouble from the white car,{Wrong}!After another few thousand miles of normal driving the second engine went sour.Again,there I was with blue smoke,on the side of the road,and had to pay another darned tow bill.This angered me,and the dealership even more.More hassles,and haggling,and believe it or not,it was still under warranty.This time it seemed to take even longer to replace the engine,and I thought I was gong to have to sue the dealership to get results.Finally,after meeting with the owner he,{reluctantly},decided to repair my vehicle.After 3 to 4 more weeks of driving a rental I picked up the Pony with it's third engine aboard!

Finally,after another few thousand miles the third engine blew up on the side of the road again.As luck would have it,the warranty had ran out this time just by a few hundred miles or,so.I still contacted the dealership,and they said there was nothing they could do for me this time.I was so ticked off that if I would have owned another car to drive at the time,I would have taken the white Escort Pony,and painted it yellow,and parked it in front of the dealership with a big sign that said,"I Bought This Big Lemon Here"!My Dad replaced the engine this fourth time with a rebuilt 1989 model engine,and it ran until I got rid of the sorry car!Oddly enough,or maybe not,the dealership where I purchased the lemon went out of business a year or so,after my last dealings with them.

Now,in my state there are lemon laws for folks just like me who are sold a "yellow type",vehicle to where they may seek restitution through legal means.There wasn't one in force that I knew of in 1988 but,people could sue the dealership but,it was risky,and costly.I am glad we consumers have been remembered by the powers that be to keep us from being sold a lemon any longer!

Learn more about this author, Randal Purdy.
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