Vehicles: dealers.

Existing law makes it unlawful and provides that it constitutes an infraction for any person to violate, or fail to comply with, any provision of the Vehicle Code, or any local ordinance adopted pursuant to this code. Existing law also makes it a violation of the Vehicle Code for the holder of any specified dealer's license to advertise for sale or sell a used vehicle as "certified" or use any similar descriptive term in the advertisement or the sale of a used vehicle that implies that the vehicle has been certified to meet the terms of a used vehicle certification program if any of several specified conditions apply. Under existing law, those specified conditions include, but are not limited to, when the vehicle has sustained damage in an impact, fire, or flood, that after repair prior to sale substantially impairs the use or safety of the vehicle, when the dealer knows or should have known that the vehicle has sustained frame damage, or when the dealer, prior to sale, fails to provide a completed inspection report, as specified. This bill, 180 days after the enactment of regulations pursuant to portions of the federal Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) , would prohibit the holder of any dealer's license from advertising for sale or selling a used vehicle that the dealer knows or should have known is subject to a manufacturer's safety recall. The bill would prohibit the holder of any dealer's license from selling a used vehicle as part of a used vehicle certification program if the dealer knows or should have known that the vehicle is the subject of a manufacturer's safety recall. The bill would also generally prohibit the holder of any dealer's license from selling any used vehicle at retail without providing a written disclosure, in certain languages, indicating which, if any, of several specified conditions are present. By creating new crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.