Once upon a time, changing body parts FULLY VOIDS THE WARRANTY.

Probably the most stupid claim from the main local Chevrolet service manager stating that "these body modifications are not approved by GM and since you didn't do it at our main dealer shop it is not certified and therefore your car now has no warranty, sorry." That was the response for a question I raised about how long will it take to reload Corvette original programming software!!!!!!!!!!!! What a contradiction, first he asks me why didn't I perform the modifications at the main dealer's shop and then when he finds out that I already did it somewhere else, he states that the warranty is now void on A 2008 CAR (remember there is no problem with the car as we speak)!!!!!!!!!!!

I swear, I wanted to throw my shoes in his mouth!!! I simply replied saying if a non GM original part is becoming defective and/or resulted in a defect during the warranty period, then this item is not covered as per GM terms and conditions, but if you tell me that you will not fix a GM original defective right-side rear rotor under warranty because I replaced the left-side front fender, then you are either crazy or you think I am a fool!

I almost finished upgrading my 2008 C6 coupe with the following:
- Wide front bumper.
- Wide front fenders.
- Lingenfelter hood.
- Wide rear fenders.
- Side skirts.
- Z06 front/rear rotors, calipers and brake pads.
- Motorsport Z06 style front/rear wheels and GoodYear EMT OEM tires.
- Panoramic glass roof.
- Rear wing.
- Rear bumper spoiler accessories.
- Borla Sport muffler w/ x-pipe.
- Carbon fiber interior accent.
- Custom metallic color.
I didn't even touch the engine, transmission or performed any tune!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please just tell me am I crazy or shall I shoot him? I have now a 2008 C6 Corvette with 1300 miles and no warranty!!! Is what this lizard saying true? Can anyone provide me with documentation on whether this is true or on the contrary provide documentation that proves what he says is not true so I can go back and throw it in his face.

 

Sounds like this "service manager" is an idiot. Of course the owner of the dealership may be the idiot and the attitude trickled down.

 

He is full of sh*t! The Magnuson Moss Act protects consumers from @holes like that.

http://www.impalaclub.com/naisso/magmoss.htm

Unless the dealership can prove that the modification caused your problem and hence your warranty claim to be denied then your mod is protected by an act of congress.

This law was created to protect aftermarket entities and consumers from hostile business practices like this. Lawyers love to take on car dealerships like this!

JET

 

Uhhh....no offense to lawyers here, but no, lawyers love money. If you pay them a steep hourly rate they will take a case like this. But it's a great likelihood you will spend more prosecuting this case than you will for your repair and the dealership knows this.

I've found better results with a nice tip for a job well done by a dealership tech. As a former wrench myself I always like to speak to the tech to tell him just what's wrong - and if they do a good job a Benjamin goes a long way for a guy earning $20/hr. He'll be happy to see you again in the shop when you come back. Dealership folks are like anyone else trying to do a job. And nobody likes to pay money to get their car fixed so they get arguments every day. In my experience when you are kind to them you reap what you sow. Might want to try another dealership or that guy on another day.

And. IMHO you're worrying about something that hasn't happened. Unless he puts your car in the GM system with a flag that it is modified and warranty is void.., and in that case, you can take it up with GM regional and likely have some luck.

Guys on this board have had rear ends replaced that broke on the drag strip behind their H/C motors. Warranty judgement includes judgement calls. You can bet they didn't go to their dealership with their lawyer tagging along when they asked for this repair.... just my opinion and YRMV.

 

What is with all these nonsense posts ...........

If you're worried about your warranty, leave it alone, plain and simple.

It's like you guys have nothing else to complain about. Get married and have kids, then you'll have something to complain about

 

He initially called one of his staff over the phone to verify the car details based on the license number and later asked him to take a note of it when I bring the car next time for service. When you hear him speaking, you feel like a criminal!

FYI, this is the only dealer in the country and therefore he knows there is no alternative, that is why the modification for a new car under warranty ticked him off. Actually, I figured out he is new in this position and the whole concept of modification isn't written in his dictionary! Additionally, he had an attitude problem since the begining and the news just made it worse.

I am checking now with some warranty expert in the region and he initially calmed me down but promised to get me a concerte answer soon.

Only time will tell when the next service visit is due. I'll just try to avoid encounter and stick to the normal service guy at the reception as if nothing happened! We'll find out by then if he indeed flagged my VIN #.

 

Ahh. I didn't realize you were out of the country, that does complicate matters.

There is a guy (actually more than one) on this board who will check your vin for flags if you PM it to them...for the life of me I can't remember his board name right now...

 

The modifications are all done and the car is ready for delivery. It seems that you didn't read the post well.

I am already married with three children and there is nothing to complain about!

I would highly appreciate imagining for a second this happening to you and you will understand then this "nonsense". Thanks for your GREAT ASSISTANCE.

 

Your first post mentions no location, only the problem.

The mods done does not invalidate a warranty. But, your counties laws may say other wise and you should have checked prior to the modds.

I do my research before modding and accept any consequences from my actions w/o crying about.

Anybody that has a wife and kids will have problems from time to time that makes this look miniscule in nature. It was a pun intended to show there are worse problems.

 

It is crazy, if this is true then modifiers all around the world will close down! In states, even engine modifications are sometimes carried out under the same warranty. Imagine big modifiers like TechArt, Hamann, Brabus, ABT, Gamballa, etc. hear this! They make exterior/interior modifications in excess of $100,000 per car. This can't be true and just doesn't make BUSINESS sense. How many C.F. members had wide body modifications, headers, exhaust, filters, etc. no one even questioned this and I don't believe any had a problem during service otherwise they would have posted.

Anyway, thanks for help. I'll try to make few phone calls to be prepared prior to my next service visit.

 

I am located in Qatar and I have contacted the Dubai service center for verification. My car is a full U.S. specification with a VIN # that can be verified in GM USA system (already tried it before).

There are no country laws as of such and I have transitioned from checking to recently modifying a Bently GTC, a Mercedes S65 and a GMC Envoy without any issue!

Crying is for babies and you are simply assuming too many things! This post is meant asking for ideas/help/advice in the same way as most of the posts in C6 Tech. In your terminology then all those members posting in C6 Tech are crying babies! No offense please, let's stick to the subject.

I would highly appreciate posting only genuine help if you have any. Thanks for assuring that those modifications do not invalidate the warranty.

 

Being out of the country, I don't know if the Magnussen Moss Act is going to apply here. You could be SOL.

Looks like you are at their mercy when it comes to your warranty.

 

I seriously doubt all the cosmetic modifications you listed could void your 'mechanical' warranty coverage...there has to be some 'reasonable' connection between the modification and the item needing repair under the warranty. Talk with somone else...that doesn't seem right.

My dealership aggressively denies warranty service to anything even remotely connected to a modification but I couldn't imagine they would deny (for instance) a warranty repair to the engine or the drive-line due to having Z06 body panels on a C6.

When you install your Z06 brakes, I would fully expect to lose any warranty service on your brakes (and anything the dealership can remotely connect to the modified brakes).

With all due respect, people like to bring-up the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act but when it gets down to it...once the dealership/GM says the won't make a repair under warranty because of a modification, it shifts the burden of proof onto you to disprove GM. GM has bo-koo engineering and legal resources and frankly, if a reasonable connection (even a remote one) can be made between a modification and the failure, GM will IMO prevail.

GM spends billions engineering, designing, manufacturing and providing a warranty on their products. Once you alter their product and there is a 'related' failure, why should GM pay to fix it?

I do believe, cosmetic body modifications will not essentially affecting the 'mechanical' aspect of the warranty.

 

Amen to that!

 

They wouldn't have a case in the US unless your mods caused damage to OEM parts. However, in most cases it seems like it is up to you to prove that the non-OEM parts didn't cause the failure.

Being in another country changes everything though. I know a lot of military servicemen think their cars will be covered overseas for their US warranty terms. This is not the case though. In Germany it is one year unlimited.

 

Knowing how word travels, I cannot imagine GM trying to wiggle out of a warranty claim based on a body mod....Bad publicity alone would negate any 'savings'.

I don't think the US M-M warranty act would apply out of the country - the laws where you are, would...

 

This is a fair statement and it is exactly what I stated but simply cancelling the FULL warranty is not a fair act and I will fight it aggressively if a non related problem appears. I still have one card up my sleeve I am planning to use. It is called "connection".

 

Without question...the connection card is the best card to play when it comes to warranty. That really makes the difference usually if the connection is good.

Hope you never need the warranty! But if you do, hope it works out for you. Knock wood these are pretty reliable cars, and, you can usually find the answer to your questions right here.

 

When I was overseas and I had a problem with my TA I called Pontiac Customer Service in the US and within a week a GM dealer in Frankfurt told me to bring my car in. This is after the regional rep said it was "normal".

 

While I agree with you, you didnt have to come into the thread if its upsetting to you.

Personally I fix my own car when things go wrong. If its an expensive driveline part like the transmission, I upgrade when there is an issue. I consider it the cost of driving a faster car. If the cost of a forged lower end is too much, then dont touch it. I blew up motors before and there wasnt any whining from me. I just built it even stronger.

I tore into my engine 3 days after buying the car new. To each his own. I wouldnt want it touched by a dealer mechanic even if it was covered.