[SM2]

Anyone else go into a dealership they stated this will void warranty. That's only the case when the part can be directly related to the malfunction corrrect?

[F87source]

Originally Posted by SM2

Anyone else go into a dealership they stated this will void warranty. That's only the case when the part can be directly related to the malfunction corrrect?

Yeah the magnusson moss law says they have to prove the mod causes the malfunction to deny warranty. So if you have this downpipe and your AC stops working then they cannot deny it.

BUT if you have this part and say your engine, transmission, diff, pretty much any power train component blows they can pretty much make a pretty good case it was due to the downpipe. For example a downpipe increases power past what the factory intended meaning the parts are now opperating past their intended design limits leading to failure - thus no warranty.

[PackPride85]

magnusson moss law is a joke. If the dealer feels like denying your warranty claim for whatever reason its on you to take it to court. Which means dumping money into a lawyer over a matter of months while paying for a car that may not even drivable.

[DanG]

Another thing to enter this equation is that a down pipe is illegal in most states. In my state any modification to the smog system is illegal.

[SM2]

Originally Posted by DanG

Another thing to enter this equation is that a down pipe is illegal in most states. In my state any modification to the smog system is illegal.

True, I would be worried if catless downpipe but this is catted so I'm not worried.

[Killed by Death]

Originally Posted by SM2

Anyone else go into a dealership they stated this will void warranty. That's only the case when the part can be directly related to the malfunction corrrect?

Some dealers are more mod friendly than others. Never hurts to check around if you really want it. Also check state emission laws and how harshly they are enforced.

[DanG]

Originally Posted by SM2

True, I would be worried if catless downpipe but this is catted so I'm not worried.

Catted or not, it is still illegal in Washington.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by DanG

Catted or not, it is still illegal in Washington.

Yup because it will still change the emissions out out making it not carb legal.

"Mod friendly" is flimsy at best. If an engine blows up or some high dollar issue occurs the dealer will always choose to protect themselves and leave you hanging. Because if bmw decides to do digging and they find that the dealer is doing warranty fraud they will dump that dealer. So if the issue is a small item "mod friendly" dealers will try to make you happy and fix it. But as soon as that big issue occurs they will be quick to stab you in the back.


So in my opinion don't count on "mod friendly" dealers.

[SM2]

Originally Posted by Killed by Death

Some dealers are more mod friendly than others. Never hurts to check around if you really want it. Also check state emission laws and how harshly they are enforced.

Originally Posted by Killed by Death

Some dealers are more mod friendly than others. Never hurts to check around if you really want it. Also check state emission laws and how harshly they are enforced.

Might just have my Toyota dealership I work at install it.

[Happy Motoring]

I don't think a dealership would install parts that would mess with the emission system. Best to have your workplace mechanics do the work. Probably a lot cheaper too.

[SM2]

Originally Posted by Happy Motoring

I don't think a dealership would install parts that would mess with the emission system. Best to have your workplace mechanics do the work. Probably a lot cheaper too.

This dealer said they would.

[PackPride85]

Unwise even if they are willing. See my post above.

[SM2]

Originally Posted by PackPride85

Unwise even if they are willing. See my post above.

Thankfully, have some family lawyers if it goes that far.

[VisualEcho]

I asked my dealer first and he said point blank a catted DP that produced no CEL without a 3rd party tune was fine because it was downstream. The Turner intake I was looking at was a "no."

[F87source]

Originally Posted by VisualEcho

I asked my dealer first and he said point blank a catted DP that produced no CEL without a 3rd party tune was fine because it was downstream. The Turner intake I was looking at was a "no."

A high flow downpipe can cause over boosting issues without a tune.

Also if it is a high dollar repair and bmw starts looking into it it doesn't matter how downstream it is as it alters a factory design and you will likely loose you warranty regardless of what your dealer said.

[K8_M235i]

I swap my down pipe back to stock when I go into the dealer. It takes me about 45 mins now. Another thing to consider.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by K8_M235i

I swap my down pipe back to stock when I go into the dealer. It takes me about 45 mins now. Another thing to consider.

Dang 45 mins? That's pretty good, it would probably take me longer and I would hate to swap O2 sensors back and forth all the time.


But remember these ecu's are smart as hell and they might have the ability to record ghost codes, so if you run catless it will record that fact and how long the car was being run catless and at what km it was reverted back. So they will know if you are playing games. Same can apply to sport cats.

[KevM2]

My dealer said they'd do it. I understand it might void the warranty but as far as a DP goes, it shouldn't be putting any stress whatsoever on the turbo, if anything it will be prolonging the life of the turbo as the higher flow will make it work more efficiently

[VisualEcho]

Originally Posted by F87source

A high flow downpipe can cause over boosting issues without a tune.

I asked about that because I knew of the slight peak increase and he said that it wasn't possible on the M2, that the boost peaks were controlled by the ECU tune, and could not go past a certain psi. He said that even a catless dp would not be able to put the boost into a range to cause damage, but since it would cause a CEL, it would open a world of possible blame in the event of a failure.

[PackPride85]

Originally Posted by VisualEcho

I asked about that because I knew of the slight peak increase and he said that it wasn't possible on the M2, that the boost peaks were controlled by the ECU tune, and could not go past a certain psi. He said that even a catless dp would not be able to put the boost into a range to cause damage, but since it would cause a CEL, it would open a world of possible blame in the event of a failure.

More to do with the ability of the physical wastegate to manage the increased flow on the stock tune. This can usually be tuned out depending on how flow increase there is (if too much than required external wastegate control with larger port).

[VisualEcho]

Originally Posted by PackPride85

More to do with the ability of the physical wastegate to manage the increased flow on the stock tune. This can usually be tuned out depending on how flow increase there is (if too much than required external wastegate control with larger port).

He certainly could have been talking out of his ass, but I don't care, as long as I have it in writing (and I do) that the Fabspeed sport cat and Dinan resonator delete wasn't going to hurt my warranty, then I'm good.

I encourage everyone to do the same with their dealers, meaning get email verification so it's in writing.

[ZPrime]

Originally Posted by SM2

True, I would be worried if catless downpipe but this is catted so I'm not worried.

It's still illegal in most states, and it's also illegal federally in the US. They don't say "you can use any cat you want on the car as long as it has a cat." The laws say "you cannot tamper with the factory emissions system." Replacing a major component (the cat) with a non-factory part is generally considered "tampering."

I understand catless systems, because then you tune and then you make more power. I understand wanting more power.

I don't understand HFCs, especially without doing a tune. Unless you tune the car, you're not going to make much more power, and even if you do tune it, there isn't a lot of power to make with a cat in place.

The factory cat is sufficient to not restrict flow with the factory tune.
A HFC isn't going to do much for you without a tune... but a tune is definitely going to void your warranty.