Houston, TX: A class action lawsuit has been filed against Yamaha, alleging Yamaha First Generation Four Stroke Outboard motors are defective. According to the lawsuit, Seattle resident George Williams paid more than $3,000 to repair the damage allegedly caused by a buildup of corrosion on the internal components of his Yamaha First Generation Four Stroke Outboard motor. As Yamaha allegedly has refused to recall, repair or replace free of charge the defective product, Williams, represented by the Houston-based law firm of Reich & Binstock, filed a class action lawsuit July 15 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (Case No. 2:2013cv05066).
If the court certifies the class, it would include U.S. residents "who purchased one or more Yamaha 2000 to 2004 model year First Generation Four Stroke Outboard motors,"according to the complaint.
The lawsuit claims that "Plaintiff and the Class members are entitled to equitable and injunctive relief against Defendants, including recall and replacement, restitution and/or other relief as appropriate."
Two key problems are cited in the complaint with which Williams and the rest of the class were beset, both of which would be redressed by Yamaha' recall, free replacement, rescission or restitution.
First, the damage is allegedly concealed until it is too late. As the petition reads, "the hidden buildup of corrosion would not be discovered, even by trained mechanics performing annual service checks, until the engines actually begin to evidence symptoms such as leaking oil, giving the mechanic a reason to open up the engine and expose the corrosion."Hence, signs of damage tend to crop up after the expiration of Yamaha' three-year warranty, which "covers the costs of parts and labor for major components."
Second, the cost can be stratospheric. The complaint avers these allegations: "[O]nce the corrosion problems were detected, some consumers have incurred the premature expense of purchasing a new outboard engine, rather than paying the prohibitive cost of repairs. (In some cases, owners reported being faced with repair estimates totaling 50 percent of the cost of simply abandoning the defective outboard and purchasing a new engine from the dealer.) One owner reported in an online post that, faced with severe corrosion to both his twin First Generation Four Stroke Outboards, he spent $34,000 to replace the engines with new ones, discarding the old engines after only 500 hours of use."
Williams purchased a boat equipped with the allegedly defective outboard in 2003. His warranty expired in 2006. In 2011, after Williams had used the boat for about 688 hours, "without incident and with regularly scheduled service,"he noticed that the boat was leaking oil. He learned about the corrosion during follow-on service and inspection. This timeline is contained in the complaint.
There may be others who have faced replacement or repair costs related to post-warranty corrosion damage on a Yamaha 2000 to 2004 model year First Generation Four Stroke Outboard motor.
Plaintiffs are represented by attorneys for Reich & Binstock, Debra Brewer Hayes and Charles C. Hunter.
