Quote:
Originally Posted by pruettfan
For those who think non-RFT's void a warranty.
Can an automotive dealership void your warranty?
Understanding the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act of 1975.
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Oh God - not this again.
The majority of people, including this poster, misinterprep the MM act to be something it isn't.
It doesn't allow you to add aftermarket parts and flaunt them in the face of your dealership. Nor does it give you any automatic protections.
Before I get on my MM soapbox, let me make an unequivocable statement.
No dealer or manufacturer can or will "void a warranty" except in extremely isolated cases. What they can, will and should do is deny warranty service for a failure that they believe was caused by an aftermarket part.
Now, let's look at the MM provisions.
The MM act came about, IIRC, because a vacuum cleaner manufacturer denied warranty service because a non OE bag was used. The MM act now provides protection for consumers who use a non OE part that is "substantially equivalent" to specifications set forth by the manufacturer. If the part meets those criteria then the dealer/manufacturer cannot deny warranty service for that failure unless they can show that the aftermarket part caused the failure.
By definition, this
excludes any "performance" parts because they are not substantially equivalent" to the OE part - again by definition.
The purpose of this act was to allow the consumer to have a wider choice of replacement parts. They can replace their Osram H7 bulb with a Bosch H7 bulb without fearing that the manufacturer can automatically deny service. This is because a Bosch H7 bulb is "substantially equivalent" to the Osram bulb. If you ever buy off brand vacuum cleaner bags you'll note that most say "Equivalent to Eureka XYZ bag"
Now let's look at tires. BMW has spec'd out runflat tires for our cars. Perhaps our suspensions are optimized (by spring rate) for the stiffer sidewalls (or not) but the MM act allows you to replace your Conti runflats with Michelin, Bridgestone, Dunlop or a host of other runflats as you can find a runflat in the appropriate size from many manufacturers that are "substantially equivalent."
By definition, non runflats are not "substantially equivalent" and the MM act doesn't apply.
The good part is that most dealers are pretty logical and won't deny warranty service for a situation like this. I suspect the OP will find that something was damaged during the install of his new tires.
Before I get off my soapbox, let me clarify reality.
Let us assume for a moment that a dealer denies you warranty service and you feel that you are protected under the MM act. What are your remedies?
The dealer won't roll over and say "OMG, stop waving the MM act at us - you're right, we'll pay for the repair." There is no fed waiting in the wings to protect you.
Here is what you can do:
You can pay for the repairs
You can let your car sit at the dealership unrepaired while you
1. try to fight it out with BMWNA (at this point they'll probably side with the dealer)
2. sue the dealership.
If it gets to the point where the dealership has dug in their heels and has let it escalate to BMWNA, then there really is a good chance that BMW will side with the dealership. Equally, if the dealer feels strongly enough to let it go to court then you can bet that they'll have a swarm of lawyers and subject matter experts that will dazzle the court with scientific reasons why your use of non-OE tire valve stem caps caused your engine to implode.
So what can you do?
Build a good relationship with your dealer.
Research any mods and determine what other systems they could impact.
Be prepared to pay for what your mod has broken.
I'm amazed at how many come to forums like these and complain "my dealer denied me service because I had a boost gauge. That's stupid." Did they never stop to think that their install might have caused the problem? After all, in order to "gauge" the boost they had to tap into the system somewhere.
In the OPs case, the problem is either totally unrelated to his tire install or something was damaged during the install. If the tires are the correct size on the same wheels then the problerm is most likely that an ABS sensor was damaged or disconnected during the install - but - because the OP is using non-equivalent tires the dealership was within their rights (albeit because they were too lazy to find the problem) to deny warranty service. The MM act does not apply here.