MADISON, Wis. — A judge has ordered Mercedes-Benz USA LLC to pay  $482,000 in damages and legal fees to a Wisconsin customer who was sold a  defective car and not given a refund on time.

Vince Megna, a Milwaukee lawyer who represents the customer, said he  believes the judgment is the largest involving a single car under a  state “lemon law,” which protect consumers who are sold junk cars.

Mercedes-Benz  spokeswoman Donna Boland said the company, a unit of the German car  maker Daimler AG, is disappointed the judge overturned an earlier  verdict in favor of the company. The spat over the 2005 Mercedes-Benz E  320 has already dragged on more than four years, and the company’s  lawyer on Friday asked the court to put the judgment on hold pending an  appeal.

While states have a variety of lemon laws, Wisconsin’s is  one of the strongest. It allows customers who buy cars that don’t run or  can’t be repaired to demand a replacement or refund. Manufacturers have  30 days to respond and can be ordered to pay double the purchase price  plus legal fees for violating the law.

Bob Silverman, a prominent  lemon law attorney in Ambler, Pa. who was not involved in the case,  agreed it was one of the largest judgments for a car he’s seen and was  an important victory for consumers.

“This one result is very  important to the entire auto industry,” Silverman said. “It teaches them  a lesson they ought to comply with the law promptly or they are going  to have to pay in the end.”

Despite the pending judgment, customer  Marco Marquez, a 37-year-old businessman from Waukesha, called the case  “a complete nightmare” and said he was still waiting for his money  back. Once a big fan of Mercedes-Benz who has owned several of its cars,  he now says he’ll never buy another.

It all started when Marquez,  who owns Mexican restaurants in Waukesha and Janesville, purchased the E  320 for $56,000 from a Milwaukee dealership in 2005.

Almost  immediately, the car often would not start. The battery was replaced  multiple times, but the problem continued. After several repair  attempts, the dealership said the problem could not be fixed.

Marquez  hired Megna, who sent the company a refund demand in October 2005.  After a few weeks, an employee tried to talk Marquez into taking a  replacement instead. He declined and again asked for a refund. At one  point, the employee said he should fire his lawyer and deal with them on  his own.

The company finally agreed to the refund, but failed to  provide one within 30 days. On the 31st day, Megna filed the lawsuit on  behalf of Marquez seeking double damages and attorneys’ fees.

Mercedes-Benz  has acknowledged the car was defective, but for years has accused  Marquez of acting in bad faith.

The company says an employee asked  Marquez for information about his auto loan on the 30th day so the  refund could be granted, but Marquez failed to follow through. Megna  said Mercedes-Benz had the information it needed for the refund but was  stalling.

A judge ruled in Marquez’s favor in 2007, awarding  $202,000 in damages and legal fees. But an appeals court in 2008  overturned that decision and ordered additional proceedings, saying a  jury should decide whether Marquez intentionally prevented the company  from giving the refund on time.

A jury sided with the company last  year, agreeing Marquez acted in bad faith. But in a rare move, Waukesha  County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren overturned the verdict, saying it  was not backed up by evidence. He ruled in Marquez’s favor, citing a  clear “lack of urgency” by Mercedes-Benz to refund his money.

A  series of rulings by Bohren have calculated the damages for Marquez at  roughly $168,000 (double the purchase price plus interest), plus  $314,000 in costs and legal fees for Megna and other lawyers.

In  the meantime, Marquez has continued to drive the vehicle in question,  which now has 56,000 miles. He said it was back in the shop for repairs  twice last year but has been “working fine” lately. Still, he can barely  contain his anger at the company he once admired.

“Frustrated is  really an understatement,” he said. “You put that much faith in a car  company and you give your hard earned money to that company and then you  are basically let down. You drop $50,000 for a car that doesn’t work.”

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