Aftermarket and Warranty - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

PA Firefighter · 07-08-2006, 07:50 PM

Hey all-

New to the site, pretty tight forum. I just bought an '03 Matrix base with 19K miles. (I still have the temporary registration sticker in the back window

...) My powertrain and engine are still covered in the manufacture warranty, but my question is this: if i drop in an intake and exhaust, does that do anything to void the warranty? I was told by a friend thats it's better to but toyota parts. I know to first add an intake, as it's better to suck in more air then you're pushing out. Any thoughts? Also, what brands should I look into? Same friend recommended AEM. I know an intake only adds something like 8-12 HP, is there anything else I can do, that is moderately priced, to add something close to 40-60 HP? I think I'm running something close to 126. Any feedback would be great. Thanks.

Frank@toronto · 07-08-2006, 08:18 PM

With respect to warranty, just phone a few Toyota dealers (ask for the service department).

They should tell you what the score is.

***toyomoho*** · 07-08-2006, 08:38 PM

The problem you may run into with a warranty claim is, the dealer might state your modifications contributed to the failure of an engine or drive train component. After all, the engine and drive train are designed for a certain HP. Your increasing this HP will add more strain to the mechanical systems. Doing modifications to a car under warranty can provide a dealer a reason to deny warranty work It might come down to you proving the mods did not contribute the failure.

357wheelgunner · 07-09-2006, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toyomoho

The problem you may run into with a warranty claim is, the dealer might state your modifications contributed to the failure of an engine or drive train component. After all, the engine and drive train are designed for a certain HP. Your increasing this HP will add more strain to the mechanical systems. Doing modifications to a car under warranty can provide a dealer a reason to deny warranty work It might come down to you proving the mods did not contribute the failure.

Wrong wrong wrong wrong wrong!

If you live in the U.S., and not Canada, it is the dealer's responsibility to take you to court and prove to a judge that your parts were the cause, not your responsibility to prove otherwise. The burden falls on the dealer. The thing is that dealers know this but they LIE and tell you that your warranty will be voided.

Cat back exaust, air intakes won't affect warranty, unless they directly cause a problem (like if you drive through a HUGE puddle and suck water into your engine through your CAI). Don't remove your catalytic converter and don't mess with yoru exaust manifold (headers) and you will be fine.

If you are that concerned get a short ram intake and a cat back exaust, short shifter, stuff like that.

The only parts I'd ever buy through TRD or any other factory aftermarket type company, are springs. I say this because they pay close attention to what will tear up your car or not. I have TRD springs on my corolla and love them...I had tien and they beat me up, like riding a go-kart, while the TRD feel more like BMW suspension. Don't buy a TRD CAI or exaust, they just jack the price up on normal Borla or AEM parts....

357wheelgunner · 07-09-2006, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frank@toronto

With respect to warranty, just phone a few Toyota dealers (ask for the service department).

They should tell you what the score is.

Yes call them so they can lie and tell you that if you do ANYTHING to your car it WILL explode and you will have to pay for it

PA Firefighter · 07-14-2006, 04:14 PM

I was told basically the same thing, about the warranty being voided if the installed parts are the cause of an engine malfunction, and that the dealer could take you to court. What I didn't know is that they were responsible for proving the parts were the cause of the problem. With regard to air intakes, I live in the northern part of the US, so a cold air intake would do me no good for 4-5 months of the year when snow is on the ground and/or the temp is hovering around freezing. Is forced air intake the way to go? My understanding is that puddles aren't an issue then. I'm still pretty new to tuner cars, so I have limited idea of good vs evil. Besides adding an intake, how can I maximize performance for the engine, getting the most HP at top RPMs?

***toyomoho*** · 07-15-2006, 02:20 AM

Are you referring to the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act?

Dealers refuse to do warranty work for all kinds of reasons, few of them end up in court. The customer may have legal rights. Many times the customer is also required to move up the food chain to gain satisfaction including taking legal action to enforce these rights.

The dealer is the one who performs the warranty work. If the dealer thinks the claim is not valid, the customer can seek legal recourse or other action.

Does this mean the dealer ultimately does not honor the warranty claim, no. It does mean the customer will need to do some work to get their claim approved. If it is possible to get it approved.