Congress has just passed a bill that would give consumers cash vouchers between $3,500 and $4,500 in exchange for trading in their existing gas guzzlers for newer, more fuel-efficient vehicles. The bill does not specifically mention your rights under the California lemon law or federal lemon laws, but your protection as a consumer is something you should always consider when buying a new car. You never know if it will turn out to be a fuel efficient lemon car.

The idea behind the gas guzzlers law, which President Obama is expected to sign, is a simple one. Cars with poor gas mileage will be gotten off the road while at the same time stimulating flagging car sales. There is a lot of skepticism as to whether the idea will work and critics in Congress scaled back the duration of the program from a year to four months.

The government has put up a web site where you can learn if you qualify. The Car Allowance Rebate System can be found at www.cars.gov. Should you decide to take advantage of the program you should fully check out the warranty protection of your new car to see if it will meet your needs and to determine what protection you will have if the car is defective.

Remember: just because a car is a fuel-sipper doesn’t mean it can’t be a lemon car. The California lemon law and federal lemon laws don’t take fuel economy into consideration.