Saw this today....

http://mokanmotorsports.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=2623

 

 

ouch

-Mo

 

ouch that does suck.

so for all the auto-x folks, do dealers consider autocross abnormal wear and tear inwhich would affect warrantable items?

I could see both arguments really.

 

Yikes and to Craig Wilcox no less.

 

That's pretty damn lousy....I hope it works out for him.

 

that is ridiculous.

 

I don't see where autocrossing is that much harder on a car then daily driving. The only things that get more wear and tear are thing things that aren't covered by a warranty anyway: brakes & tires.

 

wow....not only did they stab him in the back, but that vincent k guy walked up and twisted the knife too....

that sucks....

 

nothing new. They have been doing this to Mitsu evo's for awhile now. A close friend of mine got rejected for warranty work because his name was on a few local autocross events.

 

If that ever happened to me, I would sell the car and take an add in the newpaper to inform everyone what happened to me

 

This guy actually made them money though. He was featured in MiniUSA as proof positive that Mini's were sporty cars. They just straight up shanked him in the yard. Plus they go and add insult to injury by lying to him about it.

 

They can consider autocrossing "abusive behavior" but while it's significantly harder on tires and brakes (and sometimes clutches, if you're talking about ProSolo), in general autocross competitors take better care of their cars than the general public (3000 mile oil changes with top-quality -- or even synthetic -- oil, brakes checked regularly, other fluids checked and changed regularly, better quality gasoline).

I've generally been very up-front about what I do with my cars, and while individual service advisors have been successful at "yanking my chain" at times, they've also gone "above and beyond" -- often getting some of the first replacement equipment available. For example, my 2002 SpecV developed a final drive problem (which was a discovered problem with the final drives on the 2002s, and which were being replaced on an as-needed basis with the 2003 transmission/final drive). They managed to get me one of the first re-engineered 2002 transmission/final drive assemblies available (since at the time a 2003 transmission was not a legal stock-class replacement).

 

I second Glenn's experience. I'm on my second Z and have always discussed my autocrossing at the dealer. Never a worry about warranty. They put my Konis Sports on the 07 last year.

 

Wow, simply wow, I'll be sure to spread this article around to some of my friends who drive them, they probably will lose customers over this stupid thing, lol

 

Sounds like something Nissan's service department would enjoy using as leverage. Just like
THEM: your aftermarket 19" wheels are what is causing your rear end creek
ME: but it's a TSB
THEM: Doesn't matter. We don't know what caused this particular creek, so we can't fix it.
ME: Ok, I'll be right back
(fast-forward 60 minutes, now with stock wheels)
ME: Hi, I have a creek in the back
THEM: Ok, we'll perform the TSB

WTF?

 

My dealer has not given me any problems about my autocrossing. The only warranty work I needed was a replacement throttle body. (It threw a code while I was at my first Z-DayZ)

I explained that I had ran the Z up and down the side of that mountain, deep in the tach, mostly in second gear. I was completely honest with them because I was concerned that the Z wasn't really engineered for spirited driving. If it was just supposed to "look" fast and fun, but not actually "be" fast and fun, I wanted to know sooner rather than later.

The service adviser was almost apologetic that the throttle body sensor had problems while I was trying to enjoy the sports car, and assured me that the Z is the real deal. Almost three years later, including more than two years of autocrossing, I can say he was correct. Of course, wear items will wear faster under hard driving than gentle driving, but the Z is right at home while driving hard. (Within the limits of wear items like tires and brakes)

BTW: Aside from the yellow light on the dash, the car still drove fine all the way back to Florida and my dealership.

 

Shortly after purchasing my Z, I talked with the service manager one day and asked him about autocrossing and track days. Personally, he didn't have a problem with either. Like he said "hell, they sell a track model".

 

I've made it a point to make friends at the dealership. When I had my truck, the master tech did all of the work on it. When I had my SUV, I befriended a tech. Now with my Z, my neighbor is the master tech. I can't understand dealership's that go out of the way to deny rightfully just warranty work.

When I just had my Z in there, my axels were clicking, my TPS was out, and I had a small tear in the vert.
Their response: Oh, 03-05 have a TSB for the axel click, sounds just like it. We'll fix it. TPS, battery was dead, the other three are fine. Replaced. Vert, yeah it's tearing, it's only going to get worse. It's been ordered but it'll take a few days to get here and then you'll need to bring the car back in.

As far as Evos go, most of the guys we autocross with give their cars nicknames (Ie instead of Evo- Stanley Steamer) to avoid any posting of their name and their car at events.

 

The problem is being worked on now by someone who has a lot of pull with Mini USA as well as the factory. Hopefully it can be cleared up quickly.