I have a pretty long story but for everyones sake I'm gonna sum it up really quickly. I bought a 2002 Subaru Wrx on August 30th of this year. The car had some modifications done to it so when I was purchasing it the warranty was an issue to me. I asked them if the manufacturers warranty is still valid after the mods they stated that it was. Now here I am less than 2 months away and the check engine light is on and they will not replace the exhaust temperature sensor (I had subaru diagnose it). They said that I need to show them something in writing that says they agreed to fix any problems even though the owner himself said directly to me that he would take care of any problems I had. I already sent letters to the Attorney General and BBB. The only warranty I have in writing from them is the 3 month 3000 mile warranty on the powertrain which doesn't do me any good. Is there anything I can do to get around this problem or make them pay for ripping me off.
define "them" as it makes quite a bit of difference to your best course of action. You mention a dealer and an individual previous owner, and it's not clear to me from whom you bought the car and who made the guarantee the warranty was okay with the mods in place.
If you took a car salesman's word on a warranty validity issue, I fear that you've been had in a way that will be difficult to prove to anyone. :-\ Shitty situation for sure. I feel bad for ya. :-(
-- Todd H.
2001 Legacy Outback Wagon, 2.5L H-4 Chicago, Illinois USA
On the warranty thing, in a he-said/she-said thing, you're screwed. But what are the details of the problem? What are the mods?
Just a hunch, but a common mod on WRXs is to replace the uppipe with a catless model, which oftentimes leaves the EGT sensor with no bung to plug into, so people wire a resistor inline to prevent a CEL from being thrown. The actual act of unplugging the EGT sensor causes no harm to the engine - the car only uses it to be sure that EGTs don't get high enough to damage the catalytic converter (which is no longer there). Obviously they won't warranty this no matter what, because it's not subaru's fault. Just get another resistor and wire it in again. You'll never have a problem with it.
The other possibility is that whatever modifications are done have nothing to do with an EGT sensor problem (which, if the modifications do not include a catless uppipe, is almost certain - there's no mod I can think of that would affect the EGT sensor alone without causing other problems). In that case, the law is on your side. The Magnusson-Moss warranty act states that they cannot deny a warranty claim just because of the presence of aftermarket parts - they have to show that the parts led to the failure.
Forget the AG and BBB and go directly to small claims court. You may not win but you do not need a lawyer and cost will be minimal. Make sure you have as many records as possible. If for example, you had made note on verbal agreement, this could help. Frank
Under the Federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act the factory warranty will remain valid EXCEPT for any area in which an aftermarket (non-OEM) part can be shown to cause the failure. In otherwords, an aftermarket stereo doesn't have anything to do with the wheel bearings and thus the wheel bearings would be covered if they failed. In your case, if they put an aftermarket intake and exhaust and it screwed up the sensors in that pathway they have grounds to deny your claim. The rest of the warranty should still be good. The dealership itself has zero control over the warranty but what they do NOT want is to do the work then have the manufacturer deny the claim and then have to come back after you for it. On the other hand, several dealerships will have you pay for an "unwarrantable claim" then turn around and get reimbursed by the warranty as well.
One other reason you will find many dealerships go out of their way to deny it under warranty is the amount they get paid for the work. Typically they are at a fixed rate of usually around 50% their standard labor (if they charge $70 an hour they may get $35-40 an hour from the manufacturer) and they also get ZERO mark-up on the parts themselves. In otherwords, many don't make enough to justify the time if they have more private work that does make money.
Stating a warranty is valid had best be in writing. If not, you don't have anything to stand on. In fact, I'm betting you signed the contract when you bought the car and somewhere on those original sheets where you negotiated and definitely in the contract it stated that ONLY WHAT IS IN WRITING IS AGREED UPON and somewhere in other phrasing is that anything talked about is not relavent unless it is in writing. In otherwords, by the sheets you signed, they can promise you the moon but they are ONLY obligated for what you have agreed to in writing. This is normal and on every contract I have ever seen in the car business.
In that case you have 3 months or 3000 miles if something happens to the powertrain but this will likely exclude any normal wear parts, including the clutch. In short, they are not ripping you off. You just didn't get it in writing. If the shoe was on the other foot everyone is happy to say "Oh, I'd take care of that if I were them" and then they look at the deal and realize that it can often make the difference of making any profit at all. Some are just greedy, most are trying to make a living. I've been on both sides of it as a consumer and as an auto sales professional for a few years and I have seen both sides of the argument. At some point people it would be nice if there was a compromise (maybe you buy the part they supply the labor?) and be happy with that. Sometimes there just won't be a compromise.
If you have nothing in writing tthen the above may be the best (and least expensive) option.
Btw, it's been my experiance (in sales and seeing them come back) that you NEVER want to buy a car with modifications unless you know exactly what they are, who did them, how well they were done, and if they are exactly the same ones you would do yourself. Intake and exhaust? No problem. Just make sure you know it's not one of the few cheap intakes that tend to get water, dirt, etc. into the car (the more open Ice-Man intakes in some of the Honda's that says "do not use in rain" for instance...)
There's a saying, "If you think education's expensive, try ignorance."
I think you just took a very expensive class. IME, with cars, as with real estate, if it's not on paper, it's not there. Think of it as the old boot camp story when things are going bad, and the trainee complains, "but my recruiter told me..." to which the DI replies, "do you see your recruiter here?"
Sorry it happened, but now that it has, learn to avoid the problem next time. In the meantime, you might want to pursue either a written and/or implied warranty from the manufacturer of the "mod" parts. The fact that the emissions system's involved MAY (not sure) give you a tiny bit of grounds for redress due to Federal requirements concerning same.
If that is the only warranty you have in writing that is probably the only warranty you will get. Dealers are notorious for saying anything to make a sale and then mysteriously coming up with a case of amnesia when you need service. My dealership told me as part of my new car purchase I would get oil changes for $20.00 for the lfie of the car. I asked him to put it in writing and his exact words were, "its' something we do for all our new car owners." You can guess how many $20 oil changes I have recieved. I do them all myself. BlueSTi "Scary-Fast"
I posted a response in the original thread. But, basically, the STi is more car than I really need on a daily basis. Yes, it's fun, and yes it's exciting. But now, I'd be willing to trade a few creature comforts for power and handling. I just seems like a waste to use it as a commuter vehicle. BlueSTi "Scary-Fast"
Whoever at Subaru Corporate or a Subaru Dealership told you that the factory warranties would still be in force AFTER the car was modified was BS'ing you.
Period.
NO AUTOMOBILE MANUFACTURER anywhere will honor an OEM warranty on ANY car that has had it's drivetrain or related systems modified.
CASE CLOSED.
I've been servicing cars for 20+ years and this a golden rule in the service business. If it's NOT stock OEM hardware it ain't covered.
Sorry pal, but I am afraid your SOL and Subaru parts as a rule are VERY expensive.
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