Warranty Question

[High Magnitude]

Is it really that important? My car is 1 year old and has 10k miles on it. I want to mod it but my friend is telling me that I have to be careful about what mods I put on it that would send a code to the ECU and void my warranty. I'm just wondering why I should care about my warranty on my almost new car that has had no problems with it so far.

[baum]

search around on here its been talked about lots. basically the magnusson-moss act protects you so that you can put aftermarket parts on. IF the aftermarket part is found at fault of the warranty claim then the dealer can turn it down. if they can not prove that it caused the problem then they have to cover it.

[pickwithaustin]

Originally Posted by baum

search around on here its been talked about lots. basically the magnusson-moss act protects you so that you can put aftermarket parts on. IF the aftermarket part is found at fault of the warranty claim then the dealer can turn it down. if they can not prove that it caused the problem then they have to cover it.

Tis true, but be very careful of that. PERFORMANCE modifications that take a vehicle to a higher level of performance from otherwise stock engine parts can easily be blamed on the performance mod. Can they prove it? Maybe not, but what does it cost to take them to court to find out?

[Demon War Horse]

Plus if you have to go to court over it (if it goes that far) it is a colossal waste of time and money.

I am keeping mine intact just in case, and because the L99 lifters suck... so when I am out of warranty, bam, cam swap and better lifters.

[anth331]

I was told at my dealer any mod that you have to change a program on your ECM voids your warranty

[Apex Motorsports]

Check out the thread below.

Will This Modification Void My Warranty?

[SoChrisB]

I have a window sticker; it says "warranty voided".

[jd10013]

Originally Posted by baum

search around on here its been talked about lots. basically the magnusson-moss act protects you so that you can put aftermarket parts on. IF the aftermarket part is found at fault of the warranty claim then the dealer can turn it down. if they can not prove that it caused the problem then they have to cover it.

that's not really what magnusson-moss is about. the primary purpose is to prevent manufactures from , for example, saying you have to have all repair and maintenance work done by them. anytime you start modifying your car, changing it from the manufacture's specs, your going to void your warranty. they aren't' going to have to prove anything.

[rberns]

if you're concerned about your warranty then don't mod. Im sure you have heard the adage...you got to pay to play.

[Backspin9]

I believe that whether or not a warranty is voided by mods will vary from dealer to dealer. I've only had a catch can, CAI and axle-back exhaust put on, and those were installed by my Chevy dealer who said they will not void the warranty. If I were to take the car somewhere else, however, it might be a different story.

[MrChrisLS3]

Originally Posted by jd10013

that's not really what magnusson-moss is about. the primary purpose is to prevent manufactures from , for example, saying you have to have all repair and maintenance work done by them. anytime you start modifying your car, changing it from the manufacture's specs, your going to void your warranty. they aren't' going to have to prove anything.

They can't void the entire warranty. They can deny warranty claims on parts that failed due to a modification. So, if you put a cam in it, and all that goes with that, you can pretty much kiss the powertrain warranty goodbye. The rest of the warranty is still in tact. The grey areas are when for example you put a cam in the car, then the factory oil pump goes south causing a factory rod bearing to fail. At that point, was it the cam that caused it to fail? What if the oil pump was defective to begin with? Who has to prove what?

This is precisley why it is a good idea to hold off on modifications. Put a year or two of driving on the car to see if any factory gremlins raise their heads first. This will also give you time to get a good feel for the car, so when it does come to modify, you will know exactly what it is that you want the car to do better. Develop a plan according to how you use the car. Cam swap is a great example. Some cams are designed for more top end, great on the 1/4 mile, but not for autocross or road course where you want something with more low to mid range.

Of course there are those with deeper pockets that figure "if breaks, I was just going to replace it with an aftermarket part anyway." If that's the case, then go ahead as warranty repair is a moot point.

[Apex Motorsports]

Originally Posted by Backspin9

I believe that whether or not a warranty is voided by mods will vary from dealer to dealer. I've only had a catch can, CAI and axle-back exhaust put on, and those were installed by my Chevy dealer who said they will not void the warranty. If I were to take the car somewhere else, however, it might be a different story.

The dealer is not who warranties your car, GM does. They can not void it because they do not like the parts you have on your car. That is illegal.

[pickwithaustin]

Originally Posted by anth331

I was told at my dealer any mod that you have to change a program on your ECM voids your warranty

It will void the power train, yes.
If you have bumper to bumber and a dash cracks though, the ECM programming won't affect that.

[rberns]

Originally Posted by pickwithaustin

It will void the power train, yes.
If you have bumper to bumber and a dash cracks though, the ECM programming won't affect that.

Not entirely true.

Last fall I had a cam swap done on the car. During the winter and into the early spring while it sat in storage i notice a small coolant leak. Last spring I brought it into the dealership and showed them where it was leaking from thinking I might need a new line installed since the car sits so much. Come to find out my oil cooler line fitting was cross threaded to the engine block from the factory. GM stated that although I had modified my engine and tuned the car they understood that none of my mods had nothing to do with why it was leaking coolant. Which there is a TSB on this issue. GM paid for the cost of a new engine block and the labor to remove old engine and install new engine.