I recently purchased an alta swaybar and short shifter. Will these items affect my warranty? Should I have them installed at the dealership? Thanks.

 

Spoonie, noone has answered yet? I don't know, but I can guess with the best of them. Swaybar shouldn't be a problem. I don't think it changes anything as far as suspension geometry goes that could give a dealer a reason to claim it caused a part to fail.
Short shifter may well give a dealer reason to balk at covering an issue such as gearbox troubles in the future. So, how much warranty do you have left? If you have it done at the dealer, then they know it is there. If not, there is always the option of returning it to stock if absolutely needed before turning it over for work to them.
Like I said, I am no expert. Just thought you deserved some sort of answer.:smile:

 

Thanks, binks. That's kinda what I was thinking... get it done elsewhere so that if the need ever arises to deal with warranty issues, I can revert to stock if necessary. I just need to find someone I trust to work on MINIs. Not that I even trust the dealership... after having my tires rotated in Feb, I found one of my wheels with only one remaining lugnut screwed in- the one that operates the wheel lock which was LOCKED in place. They obviously aren't too concerned with quality service, OR safety.

 

The main problem that you'll face is the risk that you'll have to pay for any damage that your performance parts cause to MINI factory parts. If your parts come with an Alta or installer warranty that covers such damage, you'll be okay. What warranty does Alta give you? Check the Mini Mania warranty for comparison. Also, ask your installer/dealer about their warranty on their labor.

Here's the relevant MINI warranty language: my '05 MCS Service and Warranty manual says on pages 28 -29, "This warranty does not apply to the following:...installation of any performance...components attached to the vehicle...which result in damage to other original components." Also, on page 29, the manual says, "MINI Division is not obligated to pay for...any damage resulting from the use of non-genuine parts."

When my MINI Madness rear sway bar stuck to my driver side spring, and bent my MINI factory link, I had to pay for repairs because the problem was caused by poor installation, and the installer is not trustworthy (I couldn't recover there), my Madness sway bar is not a genuine MINI part, and the Madness warranty did not cover the damage.