Quick: What do Lemon Grove, Max Factor, Volkswagens, gangsters, and the "lemon law" all have in common? It would be the Factor factor. The John Factor Volkswagen dealership in Lemon Grove, to be exact.

You say you've never heard of it? Depends on how old you are and how long you have lived in the Grove. It has been gone for many years. You may have visited if you had a haircut at the Fantastic Sams that occupies the 6955 Broadway location today. Back in the 1970s that address was Factor VW. The 94 Country Plaza shopping center used to be the dealership site, and the Jack in the Box next door was built on the asphalt that once held 20 or so sparkling used cars, ready for sale.

The new cars were parked in front, and the showroom floor had four more shiny ones with tires to kick. Also on the floor was a Bugatti replica car. It was one of those converted VWs that you construct from a kit. The owner loved that car, so there it sat in the showroom taking up valuable real estate. It was not for sale, and the only time it was gone was when Factor would drive it in local parades.

Factor's uncle was the famous Hollywood make-up artist Max Factor. Max's younger half-brother was also named John Factor. He was a notable Chicago gangster known as "Jake the Barber," and once owned the Stardust Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. This was a colorful family.

The VW John Factor was an interesting and slightly eccentric fellow who became the accidental car dealer. In 1971, John borrowed money from the Factor trust fund to open his dealership in Lemon Grove. He had no experience in the car business, but he liked Volkswagens. He thought that, with enough enthusiasm, he could make it a success.

The dealership did reasonably well in the 1970s. A lot of pipe-smoking professors from SDSU bought their "beetles" from Factor VW. It was a pretty laid-back place; no high-pressure sales stuff here. Just a happy little operation that eventually ran its course and now is just a memory.

In 1979 a customer, Rosemary Dunlap, brought her VW in for some work at John Factor Volkswagen. There was a problem with the repairs, and she kept having to bring her car back. Try as they might, the car could not be fixed. Eventually they told her it was just a bad car, a lemon. Dunlap was having none this. The spunky 29-year-old picketed the dealership with a homemade sign ... for five months!

Factor decided enough was enough and paid her $10,400 for her car, mostly to make her go away.

The newly rich Dunlap used the money to found a consumers' group, and became an advocate for auto owners. She started as a disgruntled car owner, but then met so many other unhappy car owners that she formed Motor Voters, a group organized to educate the public on car quality and safety. It became her mission. The consumer coalition she headed was credited with spurring passage of California's "lemon law" in 1982. A little more than 10 years later a similar law was passed nationwide.

Now you know. A "lemon" sold in Lemon Grove was the starting point for major consumer legislation. I like to think Factor would appreciate how she used his money. He was a good guy.