What structural mods are known to void warranty?

Changing springs to lower the car?

A Catback exhaust?

I'd imagine any internal engine work voids the warranty, but what about bolt-on stuff?

Thanks in advance for sharing your knowledge.

dean.

 

Dealership tends to have different opinions as to what will void a warranty. You may want to call and get specific information if you want to keep your free repairs...

 

I don't think there are any formal lists like you may be looking for.

Any mod you make that causes a problem voids the warranty on the problem. Any mod you make that does not cause a problem has no effect.

All you need to do is come to agreement with your dealer, MINI and the lawyers as to what caused the problem. That may or may not be easy and will vary from dealer to dealer. A little knowledge and persistence will probably help fight any unreasonable warranty denials, though honestly you don't hear about them that often.

 

Thankfully in the U.S. we have the Magnusson-Moss act to protect the consumer from being ripped off by dealerships, however that law is tough to enact, and unfortunately many times owners get suckered into paying up and not complaining about it. The M-M act goes something to the effect of, if you modify your car, and the car has an unrelated failure, the consumer is protected from the dealer denying warranty from an unrelated component that did not impact the nature of the failure. An example would be you installed lowering springs, and then your BCM's wiring harness shorted out. A tougher example would be if you installed lowering springs and then your suspension arm broke. A dealership is going to see lowering springs and claim there's a correlation, however in reality there probably isn't. Lowering springs do not change the bandwidth of suspension movement, just adjust it's center point. The effect is similar to having a heavy load in the car at all times [heavy load will lower the car], but without actually having the weight to slow you down. Some [dare I say many?] dealership don't have the technical ability to capacitate such subtleties, so it comes down to the owner to make a logical technical case. In the end, it's better to have a positive relationship with your service department than to have a bitter and mean relationship [which can be tough to avoid with some BMW [read: snobby] dealers].

That's my input!
Cheers,
Ryan

 

I have had many warranty repairs done on my car with clear modifications and have had no problems. The dealer is going to get paid by MINI for doing warranty work so has little reason to upset a customer by unreasonably denying coverage.

 

Thanks for the replies.

I guess I had better bring it up with my dealer before I do anything.

dean.

 

I actually went down the Magnussen-Moss road with my MCS. The manufacturer (not the dealer) voided my entire warranty due to my mods.

The work that needed to be done was electrical in nature, was covered by an existing TSB and still they refused to perform the work.

To make a long story short, before you think you have any stick with the M-M act, do your research. The Act is barely worth the paper it's on and most people do not have the time nor money to deal with a lawsuit.

Regardless of your dealer, MiniUSA/BMWNA has an extremely aggressive stance regarding modifying their cars. If your car gets tagged, there is a good chance they may invalidate some or all of your warranty. You can scream about your rights and quote the MM legalese but in the end the Manufacturer will fight you and most likely win. Most people have no idea what the Act actually entitles you to (or how long, expensive and time consuming the process actually takes) - I found out the hard way.

My advice - if you're worried about losing your warranty, stick to dealer mods (JCW) only.

 

Wrong - the manufacturer may not reimbirse the dealership if they find out you have mods.

How do I know? It happened to me. The dealership actually attempted to fix my car - the PUMA rep was called in on a techinical question, noted my mods and invalidated my warranty. He told the dealership that they should have noted my mods and refused to do the work.

In the end, the dealership was out two+ days of parts and labor on their own dime.

 

Were the mods related to the problem being fixed?

 

Not in the least. Plus there was a TSB for the item that needed fixing.

People need to come to grips with the fact that the manufacturer will void some or all of your warranty if they find out that you have mods or track the car. Period. I am well aware of BMWs stance on this. Again, I actually retained lawyers and went well down the path.

They don't care about the M-M Act. They know how toothless it really is.

What gets me upset is all of the bad information being put out there about "your rights" and how the process works. The fact is that you need to assume the worst. BMW has and will refuse to reimburse dealerships for repairing cars that have been noted for having mods. You are not going to shame a dealer into fixing your car if he knows that the manufacturer will not reimburse him.

Again, you are not going to scare BMW by quoting the M-M Act or waving a copy of it in their faces. Encouraging someone to do so is just plain bad advice.

I cannot say this enough times - if you are worried about losing your warranty - don't mod your car.

 

This is a page on the SEMA site that is probably a good starting point if you ever need to get a denied warranty claim settled in your favor. They have the MM act as the last resort.

http://www.sema.org/main/semaorghome.aspx?ID=50096

 

This is something I will never understand, as part of a focus group for the new MINI we were asked how important after market mods would be in our minds, in my group it was very important. Don at Mini Mania got one of the first MINI's in the country from MINIUSA so he could R&D mods. Now some dealers are mod friendly others (like mine) find mods to be the kiss of death to a warranty, it's been MHO that the whole MINI lifestyle is about being different & not looking all alike, we personalize our MINI's to expressly show the world who we think we are, some of us are footloose & carefree, others are boy racers (I'm one) So I guess what I'm asking is why would MINIUSA ask about after market mods, aid to R&D mods by making cars available to the after market, market place & then shut the door on anything that wasn't OEM after market. Some of us want more then OEM (JCW) has to offer.

 

Please note that during the course of my litigation, I was counseled by a retired judge who presided for many years over various consumer lawsuit actions.

The MM Act was explained to me this way (abridged version):

Contrary to what SEMA would have many people believe, the MM Act was not passed with the auto industry in mind. It's purpose was to prevent manufacturers from specify their own branded replacement components for their products. The key word being replacement.

In other words, if GE makes a phone, they cannot invalidate your warranty because you use an thrid party replacement handset cord. They can if you use the wrong size cord and it breaks the socket.

Similarly, if you buy a 60 watt Sylvania light fixture and use third party bulbs, Sylnavia cannot invalidate your warranty. They can however if you use a 90 watt bulb.

The intent and the meaning of the MM Act has been twisted so that aftermarket auto part manufacturers get us to believe that you can put any part on your car and maintain the warranty as long as the part does not cause the failure in contention. This is misleading. The law does not allow you to add components which alter the manufacturer's performance specifications for the product in question.

In other words, if you buy and 07 MCS with 175 hp, add a TBE, CAI and tune and get it at 210 hp, you have changed the intended performance parameters for the vehicle. This is where you will end up if BMW decides to fight. I was there and I was advised by a consumer law consultant attorney, a retired judge and my lawyer to drop it.

Lastly, do any of you have any idea what happens if the manufacturer decides to call your bluff and take it to court? Well - I do.

The first thing is that they file a request that your vehicle becomes evidence in the case - which means (1) your car has not been fixed (2) you must leave it it's current condition. Either way - you are not driving your car. The entire process can take up to a year and you can rest assured that the manufacturer will do everything in his power to draw out the process.

Again - if you are worried, do not mod the car.

 

I have no idea - the same thing has been discussed on this forum. Maybe the next dude who actually tries to take them to court can have his legal team ask this question.

Keep in mind that every dealership I went to did not have problems with the mods.

I also stress that the dealership attempted to fix the problem under warranty. They were attempting to fix it per the applicable TSB and ran into an anomaly witht he diagnostic procedure. When they called the District Rep, they were told my car was flagged for two reasons (1) prior mods had been noted by the PUMA rep last time it was in for service and (2) my VIN number had been noted at a track event.

I also learned through talking to some SAs and techs that dealerships that had worked on modded cars were threatened, some techs got reprimanded, etc.

So, it's not a case of the dealerships being friendly, it's a case of the manufacturer being a stupid arrogant group of ******. Those of us who have been buying BMW products for many years are aware of their ham fisted tactics. I have no doubt that if it was up to the dealer, my car would have been fixed under warranty and I would still be a Mini owner.

To BMW, personalizing/modding your Mini is apparently confined to what color bonnet stripes you pick, what color roof you go with and things like checkerboard door sills and roof flags.

 

Skip ... A few months ago I was researching this issue ... about not fighting BMW ... and found this ...
http://www.lemonlawclaims.com/damage...20warranty.htm

Bottom line ...

Plaintiff put in a car starter. Car maker denied warranty. She took it to court and won.

The jury found in favor of plaintiff on the breach of written warranty and breach of implied warranty of merchantability counts, and awarded plaintiff $5,000 as breach of warranty damages, $3,000 for aggravation and inconvenience and $500 for loss of use. ...

The court granted plaintiff's petition for fees and costs, awarding her $12,277 in addition to the $8,500 damage award.

Its an interesting read.

Dunno if its worth the hassle as you so well know

 

Howdy Art!:



Plaintiff files suit in January 2002 - receives judgment in June 2004. 2.5 years - the law is broken

Also, per the account:

When plaintiff bought the car, the salesman showed her a binder of options and features that could be installed in the car. Plaintiff elected to have a Professional Sound Installers, Inc. (ProSound), alarm/remote starter system installed in the car. The price of the system was included in the purchase price of the car.

Also:

Plaintiff took her new car home on August 4, 2001, but returned it to Gartner on August 30, 2001, to have the remote starter system installed. The odometer on the car read 1,944 miles. Gartner subcontracted the installation to ProSound and plaintiff got the car back the same day. Plaintiff did not know until she saw the work order for the installation that the system was made and installed by ProSound rather than Hyundai

In other words, it was a dealer installed option - albeit through subcontractor. She got caught in a love triangle between a dealership and the dealer's aftermarket audio installer or choice.

I'm still looking for one where someone wins with hp increasing mods.

 

If the mod is unrelated to the problem then I don't see why it makes any difference if it increases hp. Consider:
a) add an aftermarket cat-back exhaust and get the steering rack repaired under warranty.
b) add aftermarket radio and get the steering rack repaired under warranty.
What is the difference as far as warranty coverage is concerned?

Incidentially, I had (a) with supercharger pulley, intake and sway bar in addition to the exhaust. No problem getting the steering rack replaced!

 

It is dependent on whether or not your car has caught the eye of the PUMA rep. Period. Like I have said repeatedl, most dealerships are fine with mods until they get busted by the District Rep.

This has been covered before and frankly I'm not going to bother looking up the threads, but Mini has had horrible issues with the BC1 and engine wiring harnesses. I was told by a service advisor that they were instructed to note any aftermarket stereos/alarms that came in for service. These notes were later used to deny BC1 harness repairs (covered under a TSB) on grounds the that system had been tampered with.

Secondly, crap like the steering rack, air conditioning, glove box, etc. they will fix.

I however was advised from my SA to remove my homemade repair from my faulty glovebox latch before bringing it in on the grounds it may cause problems.

The story may be different if you have a problem with your crank pulley (noted issue) or your tensioner (noted issue).

People have been denied warranty work on well known warranty issues like the engine harness because they had an aftermarket intake, pulley, etc. on the car. I heard these stories from not only other owners but from Mini Techs.

BMW is infamous for this crap. You can choose to believe that BMW encourages mods or you can do the research and find out that they are one of the most draconian warranty deniers on the market.

Simply put - you mod - you run a risk. Please do not give people on the fence the wrong impression about this.

 

OK ... good question and will check. There are many cases out there, its just a matter of finding them and reading through all the legal stuff.

 

So, specifically, do you think changing the exhaust (catback only) affect warranty in the eyes of some dealers?

dean.

 

Adding a catback is nothing. However, its all up to the dealer. Pay pay your money and take your chances

 

The local Mitsu rep told me the cat back is the only mod they don't freak out about. A friend of ours who is a District Rep for Audi has also told me that they are fine with catbacks. Go to a TBE with either make, however, and you're screwed. I have no idea what BMW will allow.

Maybe someone can ask their local dealership to ask the Regional Rep what ia allowable.............

 

I wasnt going to bring other car makes into this but hell, my car dealer installed my catback. No issues whatsoever unless you chip the car. Chip the car and bye bye warranty.