Plan on modding your S550? Get informed

[Skullbussa]

This thread is hilarious.

If you think the Magnusson-Moss act is going to save you from Ford refusing to honor a powertrain warranty when you've tuned your car - GOOD LUCK!

This is one of the most misunderstood aspects of the tuner world. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard of owners puffing their chests out, proclaiming Mangusson-Moss, only to have hard reality come crashing down on them.

Bottom line - if you value the warranty of your vehicle, do not modify any part that may impact the performance of other covered parts. Do so at your own peril.

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[SVTFreak]

This thread is hilarious.



If you think the Magnusson-Moss act is going to save you from Ford refusing to honor a powertrain warranty when you've tuned your car - GOOD LUCK!



This is one of the most misunderstood aspects of the tuner world. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard of owners puffing their chests out, proclaiming Mangusson-Moss, only to have hard reality come crashing down on them.



Bottom line - if you value the warranty of your vehicle, do not modify any part that may impact the performance of other covered parts. Do so at your own peril.

Preach on. MM act may only give you something to battle them in court so you can spend 10 grand to win a 10 grand fix. Weatjer you're right or wrong, it's still going to cost you.

MM doesn't say they can't deny your warranty. They just have to prove it. And very few of us have the money (and even fewer stupid enough to spend it that way) to fight ford over it.

If you can't either afford to have it repaired or if you can't repair it yourself, it's best to leave questionable things alone or wait for the higher power car you want. All "MM act protects me" crap aside, that's what it boils down to.

 

[r123070]

I can only tell you what happened to me just recently (over the weekend). When I picked up my ride on 1/7. I Purchased an extended warranty (2850.00) and was told by the salesman, that he believed that if I purchase Ford Racing parts and had the Service center install, that the extended warranty as well as the standard would not be voided.

I called the service dept. this weekend to ask about the cost for installation of "Ford Racing Cat-Back Touring Exhaust" and the response was, "You understand by installing that product you will be voiding your warranty?". I explained what I was told, and that I would be installing a Ford product and having their service dept. install it. "Doesn't matter, any part that did not come from the plant and that modified the vehicle WILL void the warranty. I would contact your salesman and get your money back for the extended warranty". Which I did, contacted the salesman and received a reduction in my loan amount.

So, I'm still going to modify, but with 2850.00 in my pocket.

Thanks for the info though.

That was my concern, if there is a problem with the touch screen inside the car, and I've modified the exhaust, does that mean anything on the car is voided??


Thanks

 

[FordService]

...

That was my concern, if there is a problem with the touch screen inside the car, and I've modified the exhaust, does that mean anything on the car is voided??

Thanks

Hey r123070,

Modifications won't necessarily void your warranty. If a Ford part fails or is damaged by a modification you make to the vehicle, even using a Ford aftermarket part, you're responsible for the cost of that repair. We don't automatically void the warranty on your MyFord Touch screen for a mod to the exhaust though.

If you have any questions in the future, please feel free to send me a PM.

Rachel

 

[Koncealed]

I can only tell you what happened to me just recently (over the weekend). When I picked up my ride on 1/7. I Purchased an extended warranty (2850.00) and was told by the salesman, that he believed that if I purchase Ford Racing parts and had the Service center install, that the extended warranty as well as the standard would not be voided.

I called the service dept. this weekend to ask about the cost for installation of "Ford Racing Cat-Back Touring Exhaust" and the response was, "You understand by installing that product you will be voiding your warranty?". I explained what I was told, and that I would be installing a Ford product and having their service dept. install it. "Doesn't matter, any part that did not come from the plant and that modified the vehicle WILL void the warranty. I would contact your salesman and get your money back for the extended warranty". Which I did, contacted the salesman and received a reduction in my loan amount.

So, I'm still going to modify, but with 2850.00 in my pocket.

Thanks for the info though.

That was my concern, if there is a problem with the touch screen inside the car, and I've modified the exhaust, does that mean anything on the car is voided??


Thanks

you're dealership is full of ignorant douche-bags, just like mine..

 

[SlowRed]

Guess I'm lucky here in SE NM talked to the guys at Service to see what exhaust I could add and would void warranty. They told me as long as the cats don't get removed I'm good.

 

[FiveO]

A few years back I had a new GT and went to my local Ford service department. I had a friendly conversation with some of the guys there including the manager and told them I wanted to do a few mods in the future. They were like no worries man! We'll take care of you. Just come see me or him, if you ever have any problems. I ended up doing quite a bit to that mustang and could've been denied warranty work. But they used their discretion and stuck to their word and took care of me with a few issues. It could have been related to my aftermarkets, but they never made an issue. Just sharing an expierince. Maybe thats a rare deal.

 

[blakedanatural]

Great Info! I wanted to install the cold air AIRAID intake. I am afraid now because of the info above. With the cold air intake there isn't a tune needed correct? Almost a plug and play install. Has anyone had any issues with installed cold air intake from the dealer after having car serviced?

 

[Lo Pony]

So, from a LITERAL interpretation of the diagram, it looks like if you buy a handheld tuner, and if they find out about changed PCM calibration (middle box that states "Determine if battery was disconnected...."), the standard procedure is to cancel the powertrain warranty. Am I reading that correctly?

If I interpret this a little more loosely, it seems like it certainly gives them the OPTION to cancel your powertrain warranty, if they think you deserve to have it canceled. In other words, they can do whatever they want. Which is fair, I guess.

 

[Carolina_Magnum]

Thank for the info. I've had my GT for 2 weeks and was considering some mods. However I'll leave well enough alone, much rather pay a $100 deductible than pay $2,000 and hear your warranty is void. I don't want to gambling with my smile maker.

 

[Stangl1fe]

To me modding is expensive, so if you have the money to mod, you shouldn't whine about warranty crap.

If you want to play you gotta pay. Somewhere.

For example, I have owned my 16 just under a month. I already have a catback installed and a oil separator.

Total Cost so Far in Mods: 1,600 dollars and I haven't even began any performance adding mods yet. If I had the cash I could easily drop another 10k, sadly don't.

Something would have to go hella wrong for me to spend have a 1600 dollar repair within the first month, so as far as I'm concerned you either mod knowing your gambling, or play it safe until you are out of powertrain.

Part of the appeal to me of the 3.7 cyclone and 5.0 yote are that ford has been making these engine and trans combos for the last 6 years. I would feel totally safe with these vehicles without a warranty. However the 4 turbo is a different story.

Although I have nothing against the ECOboost or their drivers, I wouldn't trust ford to get a turbo setup right, it's just not in their wheelhouse. For the same reasons I wouldn't buy a Honda V8.

For those of you that are interested another HUGE fail for ford was putting the Dual Dry Clutch Auto in the Focus and Fiesta. My wife bought a focus that grinded at low speeds something nasty (think ascending a wooden roller coaster track, with the ratchet fall back mechanism clanking).

To Sum it UP: If you are modding piss on the warranty

 

[Performance nut]

Question: is it worth having another PCM if you want to have a new program but don't want to worry about the red tape of the warranty? I realize it has a higher cost but not sure if unplugging the PCM and plugging in a new one with a modified program will cause any issues.

 

[18psi]

doesn't work that way. they're not that stupid

 

[Performance nut]

doesn't work that way. they're not that stupid

How so? Not to say they are stupid, just curious how that won't work (I'm certain some engineer created a solution to that).

 

[Ricky Nelson]

That is some great info. I am strongly considering getting a 2016 with PP and I definitely plan on doing some mods. I didn't know they could track that much stuff.....

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