Honda wins appeal of small-claims hybrid ruling

Reed Saxon / AP

Sorry, Heather. A Los Angeles court overturned a ruling in favor of Heather Peters, who says her 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid, rear, never achieved the 50 mpg Honda claimed in its advertising.

By The Associated Press

A Los Angeles County judge overturned a nearly $10,000 small-claims judgment against American Honda Motor Co. that was won by a car owner who said the automaker misrepresented the gas mileage of her hybrid Civic, according to a ruling released Wednesday.

Superior Court Judge Dudley W. Gray II ruled Tuesday on Honda's appeal of a small-claims court commissioner's award of $9,867 to Civic owner Heather Peters.

Peters opted out of a class-action settlement giving some 200,000 owners between $100 and $200 each, plus a rebate if they buy a new Honda, electing instead to sue the automaker on her own.

Gray's ruling found, among other things, that while Peters had standing to bring the case in state court, federal regulations govern fuel economy ratings posted on vehicles and advertising claims related to them. The ruling also said that most owners of that type of car achieve fuel economy close to federal Environmental Protection Agency estimates.

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