[BlacKoup75]

I just have a few questions on what will void my warranty. And yes, these could be completely dumb questions.

1. De-badging and then Re-badging. (front, rear, steering)
2. Putting the Audi Style LED lights on. (messin' with wires)
3. Spoiler (the one i'm realistically concerned about voiding some warranty because usually you need to drill holes).

 

[blackwatch]

There has been many questions about warranties. The warranty act says that the modification has to be proven to cause the problem, so... if you add some Audi style lights, and you have an electrical problem, they could determine that the modification caused it. Adding a spoiler and drilling holes could void you paint warranty, do you see what Im getting at? The best this would be to talk to your dealer, because every case is different and the dealer makes the call when doing warranty work.

BW

 

[blkkoup]

There has been many questions about warranties. The warranty act says that the modification has to be proven to cause the problem, so... if you add some Audi style lights, and you have an electrical problem, they could determine that the modification caused it. Adding a spoiler and drilling holes could void you paint warranty, do you see what Im getting at? The best this would be to talk to your dealer, because every case is different and the dealer makes the call when doing warranty work.

BW

Excellent response Blackwatch, well said.

 

[fas93]

Yeah exactly Blackwatch. My serivce guy is the one that determines what is under warranty and what not, and he is like the coolest guy in the world. He saw my car with my spoiler on and loved it! (he's thinking about ordering some for others to buy) LOL And mine has a brake light so I had to tap into the 3rd brakelight. And I have underlights, he didn't mind those at all. I debaged everything except the kia emblem in the back and he liked how it looked! Lol.

All I am saying is that each dealership is different. Mine is quite small but it gets the job done, and I couldn't be happier.

 

[BucksCoFisher]

I am currently having a bad experience with adding on aftermarket items. I have Audi style LED strips installed. I added these last Sunday. For a few weeks now I have had a problem with my electrical system. My battery holds a charge of 10.62 V and with my car running I get a reading of 12.2V. This causes all of my lights (interior and exterior) to pulsate. I know that I should have taken care of this problem before adding on the LED's, but I didn't. The response from the dealer is, the tech thinks the problem is caused by the LED's. I have already been back to the dealership with the warranty act printed out and I circled the section that the should read. Lets see where that gets me.

 

[andgibbs61]

The warranty is the only reason i haven't done any other mods than tint to my car. I would like to have a different exhaust but don't won't the warranty to be void. Guess i will have to wait 10 years for the warranty to expire

 

[corytate]

The warranty is the only reason i haven't done any other mods than tint to my car. I would like to have a different exhaust but don't won't the warranty to be void. Guess i will have to wait 10 years for the warranty to expire

or you can do what I'd do if I was concerned with the warranty: go on ebay and buy an sr20det swapped 240 and fix the hell out of it. They're going for sooo cheap now, its ridiculous.

 

[[email protected]]

If you bring your car to the dealer and he just suspects that your aftermarket gadget is the cause of the problem - you have given him enough ammunition to say 'NO' to warranty coverage. It is sometimes hard enough to get legit coverage!! Too many people jack around with their car - something goes wrong and then they cry to the dealer 'I want this fixed under warranty'. Just because you install an aftermarket part successfully does NOT mean it will always be working. Case in point: a woman I know put in some aftermarket seat heaters in her Miata [which is still under warranty] they worked great for the first few weeks- but then...the damn seat started to toast up and actually burn while she was driving!! Luckily she was able to pull over and splash some water on it and yank out the fuse. Her beautiful tan leather seat was ruined. She actually had the nerve to go back to Mazda to have the seat replaced under warranty!! The dealer promptly told her 'NO'. You want the seat..you buy it. Moral of the story - expect a possible 'NO' when you tamper with aftermarket stuff.

 

[blackwatch]

In Theory, what issues can a Catback exhaust cause??? Or an intake? Not much I dont think. KiaTech are you around to answer this?

Turbo, yes it will void your warranty. but small bolt on mods that can actually help your engine breathe, after all thats what intakes and exhausts do. I dont think they can really do that much damage....

 

[Diggs59]

In Theory, what issues can a Catback exhaust cause??? Or an intake? Not much I dont think. KiaTech are you around to answer this?

Turbo, yes it will void your warranty. but small bolt on mods that can actually help your engine breathe, after all thats what intakes and exhausts do. I dont think they can really do that much damage....

I agree. I feel that aftermarket intakes and exhausts should not void your warranty if they're installed properly, especially the exhausts.

Now I could see a dealer voiding a warranty on an engine related problem due to an aftermarket intake if they wanted to. They could get out of covering the cost of parts (and not making any money on labor) because they could say something like: "When you put a performance intake on a vehicle it has a bigger filter on it. In turn, you're going to have a higher rate of airflow, and with the higher rate of airflow you're going to have more dirt entering your engine, and the extra dirt entering the engine over time is what caused your engine problems. So we can't cover the engine under warranty."

Is that very likely to happen with an intake? Doubt it but it's not out of the realm of possibilities for a dickheaded dealership to pull that even if the intake is installed properly.

 

[nouse4aname]

Where does this idea of voiding warranty even come from?

Even if you did throw an aftermarket turbo in, they're not going to "void your warranty" and refuse to fix a leaky moonroof. They can only refuse to repair a component under warranty that is directly affected by an aftermarket piece you put in.

 

[Diggs59]

Where does this idea of voiding warranty even come from?

Even if you did throw an aftermarket turbo in, they're not going to "void your warranty" and refuse to fix a leaky moonroof. They can only refuse to repair a component under warranty that is directly affected by an aftermarket piece you put in.

Yeah, everyone in this thread has said that. Did you read it?

 

[[email protected]]

In Theory, what issues can a Catback exhaust cause??? Or an intake? Not much I dont think. KiaTech are you around to answer this?

Turbo, yes it will void your warranty. but small bolt on mods that can actually help your engine breathe, after all thats what intakes and exhausts do. I dont think they can really do that much damage....

The engine is already 'properly' breathing...there is a engineered build as to how the engine should 'breath'....just like in humans. Tampering with the 'correct' way an engine should breath [thinking more is better] does not mean its good for the engine. That's like saying that a cooler engine runs better - this is simply not true. An engine runs best when its at its proper warmed up temperature.

 

[ForteGT2]

ANYTHING that alters the way a vehicle is sold to you is a modification that can have an affect on your car's warranty.

Intakes and exhausts change the way a vehicle is sold to you -- obviously if you have an electrical problem the dealer will fix it under warranty since the intake or exhaust most likely won't be the cause of the problem. However, if you burn up a clutch or break an axle the dealer/manufacturer can claim that the increase in power had something to do with the problem...and no lawsuit will win on that one if they refuse to repair under warranty.

Same goes for installing a spoiler -- If you drill holes and have a leak caused by the spoiler install they aren't responsible -- the dealer/manufacturer will still warranty your front bumper if the paint starts peeling. It's obvious the spoiler didn't cause it.

In the US we can use aftermarket replacement items...sparkplugs, filters, tires, oil, etc. -- and the dealer/manufacturer can't refuse warranty repair if you use aftermarket replacement items. IT DOES NOT mean you can just put anything on your car and expect the dealer/manufacturer to warranty it if the installed items cause problems. Obviously, if you install aftermarket sparkplugs and one of them goes bad you aren't going to expect Kia to replace it -- on the other hand if you use an aftermarket sparkplug and it breaks and causes cylinder damage...well, let's just say you're in for some "fun" times...

 

[andgibbs61]

nicely put ForteSX2.4

 

[ForteGT2]

^^ Thanks...

 

[hazmat]

my dealer said go for the exhaust and air intake and it only voids the parts directly affected by it... like the o2 sensors or mass air flow sensor will be void from warranty... but they did say a turbo or supercharger will void my powertrain

 

[andgibbs61]

Sweet. I'll have to ask my dealer about that and may be get it in writing when i go in for my oil change

 

[ForteGT2]

my dealer said go for the exhaust and air intake and it only voids the parts directly affected by it... like the o2 sensors or mass air flow sensor will be void from warranty... but they did say a turbo or supercharger will void my powertrain

Dost Thou knowest that the ECM is cooled by the intake air?
If thou changeth the intaketh and thou's "ECMeth" frieth thou will be out some casheth. LoL!!

 

[hazmat]

i got the tk kit so im not too worried about it