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Old 08-04-2006, 02:00 PM   #1
AspenWrx25
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Angry My warranty is now VOID?

Hey all, first off I have a 05 WRX with about 23k on it. So I take my car into the local Subaru dealer yesterday for a new clutch. And let me say that I'm really close to all the people in the service dept. since my previous wrx had a lot of problems. I go in and speak with the manager and he says everything should be fine but he needs a mods list. Says he has to confirm it with some guy higher up from SOA to make sure they can do the work. And as u see I'm stage 4 so I was thinking great, here we go.

I get a call this morning and the manager says he talked to the guy and that not only is this claim denied, but infact my WHOLE warranty is void due to my upgrades! And he said they actually wanna put my car on some "warranty void" list for any future problems! This means no clutch, no brakes, No anything! Can they actually do this? I was informed that any manufacturer cannot void the warranty but only deny a claim. And that they can't deny a claim unless they can prove that my clutch is a direct result of my modifications. Someone please correct me if i'm wrong here!

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Old 08-04-2006, 02:08 PM   #2
Cooter05WRX
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Well they can say that with all the mods your clutch couldnt handle the power. And yes they can put you on a dealer black list which means most dealers will not touch your car. One of the chances you take when you mod.
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Old 08-04-2006, 02:08 PM   #3
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Um, stage 4 puts down how much power? I would assume quite a bit. That would affect your clutch. I say instead of getting SOA to fix your clutch with another stock one, just upgrade to an aftermarket one. You can afford stage 4, you can afford a clutch.
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Old 08-04-2006, 02:24 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ADIDAS
Um, stage 4 puts down how much power? I would assume quite a bit. That would affect your clutch. I say instead of getting SOA to fix your clutch with another stock one, just upgrade to an aftermarket one. You can afford stage 4, you can afford a clutch.
"Stage 4" with a vf34 put down around 265whp.. hardly a ton
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Old 08-04-2006, 02:29 PM   #5
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werd. OEM clutch can handle anything if you drive it perfectly... which I'm sure you don't. that's a lot of power... go aftermarket / beefier.

... or, don't mod your car until you're ready to afford EVERYTHING you need to have it not break on you...
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Old 08-04-2006, 02:36 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wrxwhat
"Stage 4" with a vf34 put down around 265whp.. hardly a ton
Probably enough to destroy the clutch though, especially since I am sure that with stage 4, he doesn't baby it.
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Old 08-04-2006, 02:38 PM   #7
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Stage 4 and you're complaining that your warranty is void? C'mon...
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Old 08-04-2006, 02:44 PM   #8
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try reading the "Your warranty cannot be voided" sticky at the top of this forum.

Then realise that they probably wouldn't have replaced your clutch if you were stock - they would have called it clutch abuse.
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Old 08-04-2006, 02:44 PM   #9
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You are right in the fact that your warranty can not be voided.
If something happens to a part of the car that you haven't touched, like a brake caliper siezes or a window motor breaks, then they will fix it. They could essentially "void" your powertrain warranty though, and they have every right to do that.

You pay to play. Why don't people get this? And a clutch .... at stage 4? You honestly expected to get covered under warranty? I don't expect them to cover brake pads without a fight, let alone clutches.

It is their responsibilty to prove that your modification caused the failure. And ANYTHING in the powertrain is effected by more power. Axles, tranny, clutch, flywheel, engine internals, valvetrain, ... everything.
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Old 08-04-2006, 03:24 PM   #10
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You mod your car, you risk your warranty being void. If you can't afford to fix the car when it breaks, don't modify your car.

-Matt
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Old 08-04-2006, 03:38 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wrxwhat
"Stage 4" with a vf34 put down around 265whp.. hardly a ton
....hardly? When stock is typically 170whp, an additional 95whp (56% increase) is a huge leap.
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Old 08-04-2006, 04:14 PM   #12
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dude ur an idiot for thinking a dealer would replace a clutch period! I have never heard of a dealer replacing a clutch under warrenty, especially with over 20k miles. Get a stage 2 clutch and be happy. It will be cheaper than the dealer would charge for a stock clutch. don't put a new turbo in ur car and expect the dealership to think its cool.
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Old 08-04-2006, 04:25 PM   #13
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YOUR WARRANTY CANNOT BE VOIDED!!!

.. they can just deny every claim you make.
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Old 08-04-2006, 05:05 PM   #14
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Ok I understand that I put a lot of aftermarket parts and I ran the risk of future work being denied. I'm really not an idiot. I do know that a friend of mine with a sti had less miles than me and had few bolt-ons and ecu work and they replaced his no questions asked! I know every case is different but if SOA is gonna say they replace wear items under 36k then they need to do it and not try and find some idiotic reason to get out of it! Just like Lexington said, even if my car was stock, they probably would just claimed clutch abuse since I'm not 50 years old. It's BS, I bought a '02 wrx used and 5 weeks later the 1st gear went out. So what did SOA say, "Go talk to the dealer you bought it from" and it was still under the powertrain warranty. SOA will find ANY excuse they can to get out of upholding their warranties. They need to just get it over with and advertise wrx's and sti's with no warranty from the start!
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Old 08-04-2006, 05:13 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AspenWrx25
I know every case is different but if SOA is gonna say they replace wear items under 36k then they need to do it and not try and find some idiotic reason to get out of it!
....re-read your warranty. They are not giving you an idiotic reason.
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Old 08-04-2006, 05:14 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AspenWrx25
if SOA is gonna say they replace wear items under 36k then they need to do it and not try and find some idiotic reason to get out of it!
Your clutch shouldn't wear out before 36K miles, and if it does, that raises a few flags. If your car was bone stock, it could've been a defect... but this isn't the case.


And SOA has honored my warranty every time I've gone in, even replaced almost all of my transmission internals (several thousands worth), because my car is still how the factory left it!

-Matt
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Old 08-04-2006, 05:21 PM   #17
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I had my syncros replaced twice with no questions asked.. screw bein buddy buddy with em. Play dumb... Don't tell em anything unless they ask, (yea I know they can see certain things) and lets beat this horse dead, why a OEM clutch on a "stage 4"? just to go back in a month later and act even dumberer then the first time
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Old 08-04-2006, 05:32 PM   #18
AspenWrx25
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And I know u guys are sayin y I had an oem clutch still. To be honest I was proud of my stock 1 for holdin up as long as it did. Hell Ive been stage 4 since 8k. It actually held longer than I expected. I was probably gonna get an aftermarket anyways, just wanted to try and get another 1 under warranty if I could since I'm still under 36k. But since I have to spend $ now, I know it won't be a stock 1 from the factory! If any1 knows of any good deals on clutches rite now, let me know!
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Old 08-04-2006, 05:40 PM   #19
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Your powertrain warranty is probably effectively gone (and rightfully so), but the rest of the bumper to bumper (electrical, etc.) should be just fine for the remainder of the 3/36.
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Old 08-04-2006, 06:50 PM   #20
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Your best off to find out what dealership is mod friendly and doesnt care about the mods otherwise stop complaining becuase you changed things and Subaru wont give you free work.
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Old 08-04-2006, 07:20 PM   #21
Crazy Wagon Man
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Being at a Stg 4 I am suprised they even contacted SOA? They told me to remove my Perrin intake or they would give me warranty problems.
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Old 08-04-2006, 09:21 PM   #22
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If it was me I would throw all the appearant stock parts on, take it to another dealership and hope for the best, get a new clutch, sell it on hur and buy yourself something that will hold up..
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Old 08-04-2006, 09:34 PM   #23
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a de-mod is pretty obvious to even the half trained eye... playing it dumb or what not simply shows your trying to hide something. in that case you won't be trusted so why should they help you when you lied to them?

nice to see some wise people here... all the replies about pay to play.
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Old 08-04-2006, 10:07 PM   #24
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OK, lets set a few things straight

First off, they are not "voiding your warranty". They are simply making a list of things done to the car, to prevent you from removing them in the future and going back in stock and claiming engine failure. (like was already mentioned on here) Because many people do what we call the "dealer hop", (go from one dealer to another dealer praying for sympathy), this information is put into the data base for furture use, if needed. Now, say what you want, "they can't do that....that's unfair", BUT, all maufacturers do it. I constantly receive messages from Mazda (I work there too) saying to be on the lookout for a car for blank blank reason.

Next, they had every right to deny the claim, and the OP admitted it himself. He tried, and lost. Will they deny a window issue? Depends on his mods...(if he installed aftermarket speakers, screwed up the wiring, you get the picture).

Putting the car back to OEM raises even more red flags. In other words, you have something to hide. That makes them look deeper into things. (to find the real story). Leave it as is, be honest and take things as they come.


Legitimate claims are not denied, as proven on here many times. And there are alot more of them than are mentioned here. (most people don't complain when they are happy). I have seen SOA do some stuff that I raised an eyebrow on...(and I'm pretty lenient).

Unfortunately, with all the crap people try to pull, not only the dealers, but SOA has to cover their butts.
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Old 08-04-2006, 10:10 PM   #25
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i work for a dealership, if your car came in and you wanted a clutch put in i wouldn't even bring it into the shop if you have ANY MODS to the powertrain. dont cry when you brought it on your self, car makers warrenty their car in stock form.

ive have cars get their warrenty voided many times because of things like that. a clutch is a wear iteam and is not held under the 3 year 36k. probally only 10k at the most maybe 15k. brakes are only 10k anyways. and i think its a joke that you took your car into a dealership being at stage 4 and thought you might get something other then what you got.

sorry if im being a dick, but im just being truthfully blunt.
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