Hawaii Lemon Law Buyback Calculator

In Hawaii, a lemon law buyback (repurchase) refunds what you paid for the vehicle minus a "mileage offset" for the use you got before the defect appeared. Using the common statutory formula, the offset equals the miles driven before your first repair attempt divided by 120,000, multiplied by the purchase price. On a $35,000 vehicle with 6,000 miles at the first repair attempt, the offset is about $1,750 — so the buyback would be roughly $33,250, plus incidental costs like taxes, registration, and towing. Our calculator applies this same formula to your numbers.

Hawaii recognizes a "lemon presumption" that shifts the burden to the manufacturer once your repair history crosses set thresholds. If the dealer cannot fix the same substantial, warranty-covered defect after 3 repair attempts, or if the vehicle is out of service for a cumulative 30 business days, the vehicle is presumed to be a lemon. This presumption generally applies within the first 24 months or 24,000 miles of ownership.

Hawaii's state lemon law generally covers new vehicles purchased with a manufacturer's warranty. If your vehicle is used or falls outside the state statute, you may still have a claim under the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, which applies to written warranties nationwide.

Hawaii Revised Statutes section 481I-3(j) requires an action under the lemon law to be initiated within 1 year following the expiration of the lemon law rights period. Section 481I-2 defines that period as the term of the manufacturer's express warranty, 2 years after the vehicle's original delivery, or the first 24,000 miles of operation, whichever occurs first, so the deadline falls no later than 3 years after original delivery and sooner if the warranty term or 24,000 miles comes first. A licensed attorney can confirm which deadline applies to your vehicle. When a vehicle qualifies, Hawaii requires the manufacturer to repurchase or replace it rather than keep attempting repairs. Hawaii's lemon law provides for attorney's fees only in its state-certified arbitration program: the prevailing party may be allowed reasonable attorney's fees (Hawaii Revised Statutes 481I-4(c)), and a party who demands a new trial after nonbinding arbitration and does not improve its position by at least 25 percent must pay the costs and attorney's fees of that trial (481I-4(d)).