voiding the warrenty?

[legion]

i had a talk with a friend who has a couple of buddies who work with DC. is it true that if i do sny of the following it will void my warrenty:

put on on the airraid filter with box (the snap on one)

change the spark plugs and wires (i wanted champion double platnums and magnicore wires)

i really wanted to add a strut tower bar too


but with a three month old car with only 1500 miles i don't want to loose my warrenty

[Gary04GT]

It is my understanding that doing the modifications you suggest will NOT void your car warranty. Since I do not consider myself an expert or an attorney, I'll let others on the forum confirm or reject my statement. [8]

[PTGT_Boy]

If the paticular modification is found at fault for your problem, than your warranty is void for that paticular problem.

If adding an air intake causes (example) your check engine light to go on, because too much air is causing the car to run richer than normal, they can charge you $XXX.XX to turn off the light and performing a service check. If your suspension went bad, they can't go around and say it was caused by the air intake.

Changing spark plugs and wirings is falling in the grey area. Engine stumbles, engine noises, engine problems will give the dealer more ammunition to point that the spark plugs and wirings are causing the problem. You might want to avoid this modification as it might give you more headaches than the benefits it gives.

Strut bars may be a safer mod since the bar affects more of the body of the car than the power train. Of course, you may void certain parts of the chasis of the car, but it's not likely that your car will split in half anytime soon. This is probably a more conservative mod that wouldn't cause much warranty headaches versus the others you mentioned. BUT be aware, that the strut bar can avoid the warranty for any problems it causes (normally the body).

[CREWZIN]

I just passed this information along to another forum when someone asked if his WARRANTY would be void if he installed aftermarket parts. Hopefully this will answer any of your questions. So, here it is with a link to read more if you so desire...

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The Magnuson-Moss WARRANTY Act of 1975 addresses the concerns of installing aftermarket equipment and maintaining factory WARRANTY coverage. Here is a short excerpt of an explanation of the act and what is and isn't covered. Keep in mind that the explanation below is not the actual act; merely an interpretation .

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FANNING FEARS
You want to upgrade your vehicle with aftermarket equipment, but you’re worried about putting the vehicle’s WARRANTY at risk. It’s no wonder. How many times have you heard somene of a dealership say that installing aftermarket equipment automatically voids the WARRANTY? This common misconception has been repeated often enough to be widely believed – though it is completely false.

Fact: Dealers don’t like WARRANTY work, because it pays less than normal repair work. By promoting the myth that aftermarket equipment automatically voids warranties, some dealers avoid such low-paying work. Instead, they attempt to charge customers the prime service rate for work which is rightfully done under WARRANTY.

THE TRUTH
Most vehicle owners are not aware they are protected by federal law: the Magnuson-Moss WARRANTY – Federal Trade Commission Improvement Act of 1975. Under the Magnuson-Moss Act, aftermarket equipment which improves performance does not void a vehicle manufacturer’s original WARRANTY, unless the WARRANTY clearly and conspicuously states that aftermarket equipment voids the WARRANTY. Most states have WARRANTY statutes, as well. Which provide further protections for vehicle owners.
In other words, that means a dealer can’t wiggle out of his legal WARRANTY obligation merely because you install aftermarket equipment. To find out if any aftermarket equipment automatically voids your vehicle’s WARRANTY, check the owner’s manual. It is likely the language you are looking for appears under a heading such as “What Is Not Covered” Although the language seems negative, remember your vehicle manufacturer is simply saying he does not cover the aftermarket products themselves. He is not saying that the products would void the vehicle WARRANTY.

FEDERAL LAW
‘In order to improve the adequacy of information available to consumers, prevent deception, and improve competition in the marketing of consumer products, any warrantor warranting a consumer product to a consumer by means of a written WARRANTY shall. . .fully and conspicuously disclose in simple and readily understood language the terms and conditions of such WARRANTY. Such rules . . . require inclusion in the written WARRANTY of any . . . exceptions and exclusions from the terms of the WARRANTY.’ – Magnuson-Moss WARRANTY & Federal Trade Commission improvement Act. Section 2302(a)
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More of the Magnuson-Moss WARRANTY Act explained can be found here:

http://www.autotrucktoys.com/warranty.asp