This is a repost, but, considering all the questions the new ones are coming up with regarding modifications and their effects on our warranty, I thought it'd be useful to re-post.

Our warranty is a binding contract. Binding on both parties, AoA and you, the customer. Legally, a service writer or other rep cannot simply void your warranty because they identify an aftermarket part. The aftermarket part must cause or contribute to the malfunction and even then, the whole warranty cannot be voided, by law. These service writers and the FOMs throw around that threat without knowing what the actual text of our warranty states nor what the federal laws are regarding denial of warranty claims. They have more power than we do simply because we are ignorant to our rights by law.

If your warranty claim has been denied because of a chip... let's say you had a chip in your car and in the course of time you blew your engine. You take it in, they pull the ECU and they say, 'We're not covering this because you have a chip.' They must, by law, prove that the chip caused or contributed to the engine failure. Without that proof, it's a breach of contract. At the least, they must arrange a settlement with you with regard to this repair, but that does not void your warranty... by law. If they do say that they're not going to cover the repair or void your warranty, you do have a legal recourse. Yes, you'll be without the use of your car unless you pay for it yourself, but you should fight that. You're talking about $25,000 here! If you contact an attorney who's familiar with this type of litigation he'll tell you that you do have a solid case. The law is on your side. See the linky...

To suggest that your warranty will be voided because you put on a Hyperflow or even a full exhaust is simply absurd. These two items do nothing except reduce restriction. That's it. If your car no longer passes emissions, they can and should tell you that they will not cover the repairs necessary because the exhaust is causing it. If your throttle body is all clogged up with gunk then they can and should tell you that your CAI is the cause and they're not touching that problem. But your whole warranty IS NOT in jeopardy. If the repair is non related, a reasonable and intelligent service department should have zero problems with your exhaust and CAI.

Attorneys please chime in...<ul><li><a href="http://www.sema.org/main/semaorghome.aspx?ID=50096">Clicky: The Law</a></li></ul>

 

Most important line in your post.

The biggest problem we face as the customer, aka, the little guy, is that it is far easier for Audi to prove an aftermarket part caused or contributed to the malfunction/breakage of a part than it is for us to prove otherwise. Depending on the extent of the damage, it may simply come down to who fights the hardest and spends the most on that fight.

I'm not arguing with your post, but people need to understand that Audi really just needs an engineer to state the modification caused a situation beyond the scope of the original design of the broken part and you are fairly SOL.

In the end, people primarily need to accept the "you gotta' pay to play" mentality, and stop trying to get manufacturers to cover parts under warranty when you knowingly did something to the car.

Warranty issues are the major driving force behind anti-tamper ECUs, and based on what I've heard about the B7 ECU and beyond, it will only get more difficult to chip-tune our vehicles.

 

In the Court of Audi (or any manufacturer), <b>you are guilty until proven innocent</b>, not the other way around. What I mean is the ball is in the dealership's court; it can either repair your car or not. You have no control over this decision, other than by threatening legal action. If a dealership decides NOT to repair your car, YOU have to take Audi to court. That may not be the way the law was intended to be applied, but in the real world that is what happens.

Sure, if you do take a manufacturer to court, the manufacturer then has the burden of proof and there is a decent chance you could win your case. But as we've established a few times on this forum, <b>court sucks</b>. Plus, there is a good chance you could lose anyway, leaving you responsible for the damage to your car AND significant legal fees.

 

But I don't think that we as enthusiasts should simply bow to every whim of the service writer. Next, we're going to hear a service writer telling us that they're not fixing our brakes because the presence of the CAI means that we're driving our car harder and faster.

I want to enjoy my car and add reasonable modifications that enhance that enjoyment. Legally I'm allowed to do so. These parts that we're talking about, an air filter and a less restictive exhaust do nothing to a car's reliabilty nor do they contribute to failures.

As you stated, it is easier for Audi to prove thata an aftermarket part contributed to a failure, but prove they must. That proof is not easy. A person may have over-revved his engine that caused it to go boom. How would that have been any different if the engine or ECU was stock? How would they prove that the part contributed to that?

I'm just saying that we are not helpless. And the more knowledge we have the equipped we are to defend our reasonable tuning.

 

you are guilty until proven innocent, not the other way around."

So true...

 

thanks esforme i mean esfo.