Performance that wont void a warranty?

[Proto_Man]

First off, I just joined the site today. I bought my 03 MSP yesterday and drove it home. I have aspirations for the car, but for the time being, the car has a 1 year full warranty. It has about 56k miles on it, and I don't want to make any modifications yet ( I love it stock, and don't see a reason to rush )... but I'm curious as to what modifications I can do that wont void the warranty. So far, the only things I know for sure are things like tires, brakes, air filter, and i assume regular things like spark plugs, belts, etc. Any additional info would be greatly appreciated, and hopefully my threads in the right place. Im just getting used to the site, so if thats the case... my bad.

-Proto_Man

On another note, are there any mazda clubs in the maryland or south PA area?

[greasemonkey524]

First off...Welcome to the forums. I think you could upgrade a few things but anything you do would most likely have to come off and go back to stock if you need any warranty work done. Cold air intake seems to be one of the top first mods on these cars. That would be pretty simple to put back to stock. Plug and play engine management wouldn't be too bad either. The exhaust and intake systems are pretty much a priority to do on these cars but they can be time consuming changing out for warranty. I'm not sure how some dealers feel about aftermarket parts but you might be able to get away with a few things. I'm sure there will be more people with better input. Hope this helps out a little!

[jred321]

who is your warranty through? if it's a local place or the dealer perhaps the best approach is to ask them. some places are pickier than others when it comes to these things so what may be fine at one place won't be good at another.

[Tom03es]

If you install a particular part (CAI or whatever), that part has to have led directly to whatever issue or failure for them not to honor the warranty. If you put a CAI, front mount intercooler, motor mounts, down pipe and flywheel on your car and then your brakes need work, your warranty is still valid. However, if your CAI sucks up water into the engine when you drive through a HUGE puddle, then they can deny a warranty claim- but it would take a HUGE puddle to do it.

[jred321]

If you install a particular part (CAI or whatever), that part has to have led directly to whatever issue or failure for them not to honor the warranty. If you put a CAI, front mount intercooler, motor mounts, down pipe and flywheel on your car and then your brakes need work, your warranty is still valid. However, if your CAI sucks up water into the engine when you drive through a HUGE puddle, then they can deny a warranty claim- but it would take a HUGE puddle to do it.
while true in theory in practice it's not always so and not always worth a court battle to prove it. they could see the engine performance parts and say you're driving the car harder than its meant to be driven and abusing it which caused your brakes to fail. you then either have to convince them they're wrong (unlikely) or take it to court (expensive).

the only guaranteed way to preserve a warranty is to not mod

[Tom03es]

There have been cases were precident was set backing up what I said.

[Lithius]

you can change and i hope you do a soon as possible since the stock motor mounts brake easy. I suggest that you change them with better ones like sls or AWR

[jred321]

There have been cases were precident was set backing up what I said.
i know and i don't disagree with what you said. the problem is that the people who enforce your warranty are not the courts where precedent matters but instead a company out to seek a profit. if they think they can deny a claim they will and then it's up to you to take it to court and prove them wrong. they know it's expensive and inconvenient for you to do this so they can err on the side of something might have happened and most of the time get away with it because it's not worth the hassle for most people. some companies are obviously worse than others in this regard but plenty of people have found this out the hard way. my suggestion to the OP is still to ask the warranty company and see if they have a policy on it as they're the ones who are going to say yay or nay on any warranty work

[TitaniumSpeed24]

I've taken my MSP in a few times to the dealership and they never once complained about my mods, granted I only have a few. I have a cone filter, an axleback exhaust / muffler, a boost guage, and a Forge BOV. It really just depends on what dealership you take it to and what guy you deal with; theres a guy at the Mazda dealership about an hour north of me that I've requested help with a few times. He always listens to the problem I have and doesn't treat me like I dont know what I'm talking about. Every time he's had it fully inspected and had the car detailed for me for free. Its really nice to get good service like this because the dealership closer to my house isn't mazdaspeed certified and they can't touch it.

[ItsSlow]

Just an fyi, A dealership cant legally void your warranty because you have mods.. Like Tom03es said, THEY have to prove the modification is what cause the failure of the part, not you prove to them (most people dont understand this).. If they do however try to deny it.. Just go one step above them and tell Mazda directly.. It will get settled before you hang up the phone..

[fr0st]

first things first... a fricken vac-boost gauge..

[jred321]

Just an fyi, A dealership cant legally void your warranty because you have mods..
key words bolded. a dealership can actually never legally void your warranty because they are not one of the parties involved in the warranty. the warranty is between MNA and the owner of the car and to actually void it a MNA rep is required. the dealership can, however, deny to cover your claim and then you'd have to convince MNA to get it covered. MNA has a longer relationship with the dealer than they have with a customer so they put a lot of stock in what a dealership says. like i said before, it's best to check with whoever you're going to file your warranty claim with should one arise before modding and the only 100% safe bet is to not mod


Like Tom03es said, THEY have to prove the modification is what cause the failure of the part, not you prove to them (most people dont understand this)..
it's really easy to show a relationship if they want to deny a claim, you then have to prove that they are incorrect. for example, your LSD breaks and they deny coverage because of your catback. how? the catback caused an increase in power passing through the diff. the diff was not designed to work with those increased power levels and this violates the terms of your warranty. denied. will all dealerships take this approach? no, certainly not. is it possible? yes and can make your life a giant pain so if you're truly concerned about your warranty don't mod or at the very least check with the person you're going to file your claim with first.


If they do however try to deny it.. Just go one step above them and tell Mazda directly.. It will get settled before you hang up the phone..
who says the OP's warranty is through mazda? given he bought the car used with 56k on it i'm guessing his 1 year warranty is either through the used car dealership he bought it from or through a smaller warranty firm. i have less faith in smaller companies than larger ones when it comes to stuff like this because each payout for a smaller company is a much greater percentage of their income so they want to limit payouts even more than a big corporation

[ItsSlow]

http://www.semasan.com/main/main.aspx?id=60128

[jred321]

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=95090&highlight=warranty+denied
http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=62791&highlight=warranty+denied
http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=86181&highlight=warranty+denied
http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=72792&highlight=warranty+denied
http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=28231&highlight=warranty+denied

[ItsSlow]

They all didnt handle it the correct way and/or didnt know about the info in the link I posted.. I didnt even find out about the link until after my engine was fixed..

[1moreMPH]

just ask your dealer what's cool if they are close by. one of mine told me to get fucked when i just wanted them to check out my egr. At another one across town, i had 4 employees immediately walk up and start asking about my mods when they heard the apex'i and saw the front mount... i got full work done there without a problem.

-Intake is easy -- and if need be, you can swap out in like 20 minutes.
-Exhaust is fairly easy as well, up to you on that one.
-i would personally get a piggyback ems (unichip or afc) because i highly doubt the dealership would even check for it, and all you gotta do is unplug it anyways to get it out. plus that will give you the most power.
-You might be able to get away with a mbc...but i wouldn't.

oh and boost gauge -- do it NOWWWW!!! <-- arnold.

[Proto_Man]

Lol! Thanks for all the feedback.. as I looked through the site and it looked a little bit like a ghost town, so its good to see everyones alive and kicking. Like I said before, I dont plan on making any sudden mods, and I know by experience that saving up and buying quality parts is more expensive but your also better off, because the chances that something will go wrong are considerably higher if your buying from shady unreputable parts manufacturers.

Although all of your responses were great and very much appreciated, I think we can all agree that first things first, I'm calling up the dealership. We'll see how tight-assed they are on modifications and if it looks like the ground is shakey.. then I'm not gonna risk it.

Im a little suprised the car doesnt come with any type of boost gauge, and cosmetic things like that will most likley occupy my time while Im waiting in the warranty line.. plotting. But first things first.. I know me. I'll be in taking some money out of my bank to buy a Valentine One.

I know its unrelated, but does anyone here auto cross in their MSP? Just curious.

[Tom03es]

check out www.radarbusters.com before you make your V1 purchase. Just so you're fully informed of other detectors out there on the market. I have a Passport 8500 x50 and love it.

There's certainly no harm in waiting out the year and researching and saving. There is still a big list of things you can do that won't void your warranty- different wheels/tires, brake pads, gauges, synthetic fluids, good wash n wax, tint windows........

[Proto_Man]

Exactly my thinking. As far as radar detectors go, I'll check out the site, although I'm still pretty convinced that a V1 is for me. I might as well get the top of the line, Its worth it in the end. Depending on the severity and the state your in, a V1 could pay for itself on a single ticket alone.

Tires, brakes, synthetic fluids, and gauges are all on the "soon to buy" list. Keeping it clean isn't anything you've gotta tell me. The dealership detailed it for free and I still cleaned the piss out of it afterwards. The windows are already tinted slightly, just enough to not be able to see inside them well at night, so I don't see a real reason for that. I just love this car!

[B1GHAM]

well first hand experience with a side-by-side comparison of the V1 and the 8500 showed no noticable gain either way. Both performed almost identically. So much so that the V1 would pick up a second quicker one time, and the 8500 would pick up a second earlier than the v1 the next.

I prefer the 8500... as its easier to read at night, more adjustable and just as useful. The arrows in my mind is kinda gimmicky... Though they do serve a purpose, I dont have a need for them. Ive never found them to be useful for the way I drive.

[Proto_Man]

You bring up a good point. I've still never gotten a ticket before, and yet I do a lot of speeding. There are things that are common knowledge that can be more useful than a detector. I generally don't speed down any roads I haven't been on, and If its around where I live, then I generally always know where they set up camp. As for road driving, I don't take my chances around Dodge Chargers, Impalas, Excursion/Expeditions, and of course, Vic's. Sometimes I keep my eye on Mustang GT's and GTO's because Ive seen cops undercover in those as well. I good sign against it is to look at the back of their car. First, if they have out of state tags, your usually good. If there's a decal from the dealership, then your fine also, as undercover cars are bought from the factory. Also, I doubt if the person in the car is a 90 year old that they are part of the force, lol.

Im researching V1's right now, and I'm not as originally impressed as I was before. However, I do know that the same people that make V1's make escorts. I just hate getting false alarms.

And boy oh boy.. the price tag on V1's.... not cool.

[B1GHAM]

However, I do know that the same people that make V1's make escorts. I just hate getting false alarms.

And boy oh boy.. the price tag on V1's.... not cool.

incorrect. The guy who started the V1 company worked for Escort..

Escort and bel are the same company FWIW

[daedalus]

You could put some sweet seat covers in your car or maybe *MAYBE* window tint.

Other than that, Mazda is a bunch of cocksuckers when it comes to denying warranty claims, they have absolutely no want to help their customers, and my experience with them EVERY SINGLE TIME has been nothing but shitty.

If you do ANYTHING mechanical to the car. PERIOD, don't expect them to touch it.

I bought a car with a completely stock engine bay, engine blew 3 days after I bought it, mazda denied the warranty because some of the vac hose clamps for a boost gauge in the car had been changed, thus it wasn't a "stock" car and the warranty claim was denied.

Ohh... but they would cut me a deal on labor if I wanted to pay to have my engine replaced... They gave me a "special" price of 7000.00 for a new engine.

RAT FUCKERS. [/thread]

[Ben Nast]

Is there any way besides hydrolock the dealer could prove that a cai blew an engine?

[ItsSlow]

Just a cai? no..

[jred321]

Is there any way besides hydrolock the dealer could prove that a cai blew an engine?

if it has a shitty filter like many do theres going to be a ton of crap in there. plus the fact that the engine was performing beyond its intended power limit