If this is a repost, mods please delete...

This is an interesting article from autoweek that caught my attention. I think this is a valid argument and i can definitely see both sides of the story, but I would be pissed if my dealership denied warranty work if I only autocrossed my car once.

http://www.autoweek.com/search/searc...33800&record=1

These threads are from the evo board and look genuine - kind of creepy actually:

http://forums.evolutionm.net/showthr...7&page=1&pp=15

http://forums.evolutionm.net/showthr...threadid=83525

Your thoughts?

 

Somebody already posted about it in the General forum:

https://my350z.com/forum/showthread....threadid=81188

 

I guess I have a real reason not to even consider an Evo... and that extends to all Mitsu products just based on the sneaky methods they apparently are willing to stoop to. It also speaks loudly to their confidence in their $30k hi-po sedan... if it can't handle 60 seconds of performance driving at a time... what a shame.

BC

 

BC:

Keep in mind that we don't really know what Nissan or your local dealers policy is. They might be just as bad but no one has had it happen yet.

I'm somewhat encouraged by the fact that the warranty booklet states:

"This warranty does not cover damage, failures or corrosion resulting from:

o Accident, theft, fire, driving through water (including engine water ingestion) or misuse (Proper use is outlined in your OWNER's MANUAL)."

While there is a lot of stuff in the owners manual on the proper use of various features, there's nothing that explicitly says what misuse is or prohibits racing, autocrossing, track use, etc.

I'm sure that eventually somebody is going to get into a pissing contest with their dealer and we'll hear about it.

 

I guess my only worry is that this thing spreads to other companies. If mitsu is doing it, than how long will it take Nissan and others to catch up and do the same thing... Like I said, I can definitely see both sides of the story but I don't want dealerships to use this thing as an excuse for all warranty work. Like someone in one of those evo threads said: you don't want to go to the dealership with a broken radio and hear "sorry sir, but we checked your ecu and decided that you depressed the accelerator too quickly during one of the launches and have voided your warranty – don’t you know the advertised 0-60 time is for marketing purposes only and can not be attempted without voiding the warranty?"

On a side note, I heard a similar story about insurance companies where they pay someone to take pictures at the SCCA events and then run the license plates through their system to see if any of their customer's cars show up. This may all be BS but at my local events there is now a growing number of people who cover their license plates.

DavesZ is probably right - eventually it will happen to somebody...

 

A dealer usually will take the ez way out, the 2 IDIOTS in question in that article called the tow truck from the event. I told them to pull it accross the street, then call the truck from the movie cineplex. The above mentioned fools have quite a history of totally traumatizing machinery.
The EVO also seems to have a reaL PROBLEM STAYING TOGETHER. I have seen several and they spend a lot of time in the shop. My Z has been in for several oil changes, a ck engine light, a window fix and realignment, not bad in comparison to the Mits crapball evo's.

 

I emailed the regional director of the SCCA the story from Autoweek. In his reply, he mentioned the insurance story but didn't go into details.

Covering the plate sounds like a good idea.

 

"
Statement On Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Warranty



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June 18, 2004 -- Cypress, Calif. --
Mitsubishi Motors and our dealers strive to be reasonable in evaluating each customer' s vehicle that is brought into a dealership for a possible warrantable condition in order to provide excellent customer service. We give the benefit of the doubt to everyone and appreciate their respect for the terms and conditions of our warranty. Mitsubishi does not have any automated web search system looking for Lancer Evolutions involved in race events. This is absolutely false.

Mitsubishi clearly states in its Owner's Warranty and Maintenance booklet that problems or failures related to racing, alteration and/or vehicle modifications are not covered conditions. This policy is standard throughout the automotive industry, and is even less restrictive than some manufacturer warranties, such as BMW and Subaru, that prohibit operating a vehicle in any type of competitive event.

If a Lancer Evolution is brought to Mitsubishi Motors dealer for a diagnosis as to a possible warrantable condition and the dealer determines that modifications were made that may have caused the problem, or could be instrumental in causing future problems, the repair will not be covered. The dealer and if necessary, MMNA staff, investigate each case, always giving the owner the benefit of the doubt. If the dealer does indeed find that serious vehicle modifications have been made that relate to a vehicle problem and/or damages, then it is possible that a restriction will be placed on that vehicle's warranty coverage as it relates to the specific modification, damaged component(s) and impacted vehicle systems. The entire vehicle warranty is not voided.
"
source: http://media.mitsubishicars.com/deta...60287&mime=ASC

 

Yeah, I saw that they claimed they weren't searching the web. From the post on the EVO board, it's sounds like they're doing something even worse - spying. Supposedly when the dealer confronted the owner about the "abuse" the dealer knew the place, day and time that he raced and claimed to have pictures. I would find it hard to believe they just happen to be there and snapped those pictures.

Sadly, I doubt we'll ever hear the full story for both sides.

 

My dealer has a picture of my car at SCCA Nationals last year, fully decked out in decals/numbers and competing.

Thankfully they are supportive

 

christoc:

I would have to think that it's not Nissan's position to disallow warranty claims just because a car has been off-road (autox, track). Otherwise, your dealer would be in an awkward position if he ever had to refuse you service when all along he's been aware of your "misuse" of the Z.

Then again, look at the poor Suburu owners. They get a SCCA membership from Suburu at the same time that their warranty explicitly prohibits that kind of activity.

 

I'm in the market for an AWD four seater... and I thought an Evo might be a good dual purpose choice. But scratch that, I'm not into bait and switch techniques to snag consumers... bragging about 0-60 times, etc... and then refusing to honor a warrantees when you actually USE the car in the manner it's supposedly designed for... that's just dishonest.

We owned a first gen Eagle TSi and enjoyed many years of trouble-free "spirited" miles, but apparently we are dealing with a new breed of Mistu product and personnel... I'm a sucker for big performance in an unassuming package, but I expect integrity from people I do business with. If I break my Z, I'll pay... if my Z has a manufacturer's fault, I expect them to live up to their end of the deal.

According to earlier posts, it sounds like the Evo owner might be responsible for breaking his car. But the spying activities are totally out of line. If Nissan takes up similar tactics, I want to know about... same situation with my insurance company. I want to have a common agreement of what I expect from both products. If the car can't handle spirts of max performance for 60 seconds, let me know and I'll move on to someone else's product.

Is it unreasonable to expect a car to take 60 seconds of A/X and emerge intact? I can see extended periods of high speed use being hard on equipment... but blasting around cones for less than a minute per shot?

BC

 

this has been a topic on our autocross list the past few days. One person with a honda had warranty work denied due to the dealer reading the autocross results and seeing their name.

Another guy said when he bought his STI, the dealer specifically told him that autocrossing would void the warranty, right before handing him the form for a free year of scca membership! (Apparently, Subaru, or that part. dealer gives you a free year with purchase)

 

Brutal Subaru! Wave it in your face! Here's a free one year membership... and don't you dare go do it! I wonder how much that saves them in waranty claims per year? Probably more than covers all those SCCA memberships. Devious folks over there at Subaru...

 

Very well put - my thoughts exactly. There has to be a common ground...

 

Hey guys, I thought I'd post my experience with this as it relates directly to Nissan. I'll refrain from posting the whole story here, but my car has had problems with the tire "feathering", and since my z is my daily driver I did not want to spend a wad on fixing the suspension myself. I did autocross my car a couple times, but for the record I have the tire wear problem on tires that I did not autocross on.

Local Nissan dealers would not try to fix my car, instead claiming that everything is fine. So I pushed the issue with letters to NNA informing them that I would pursue a Lemon Law buyback. They responded by saying they had evidence that I "race" the car. I believe they gathered this from a service advisor at one of the dealers, who happens to autocross and saw my car at a local event, and also by looking at results online. Anyway, they claimed that nothing was covered on my car, especially tires/suspension, because of this "racing".

So...fast forward a bit... I go to the BBB arbitration hearing, and the Nissan rep starts off with this information about me autocrossing. In short, the arbitrator said that autocross or track use is not misuse or abuse of the car, given the marketing materials. Therefore, they have to fix the car. I filed for a buyback, and have not been awarded that yet, because the arbitrator wants to give them yet another chance to fix the car buy "aligning" it even though they've had numerous chances already.

The point is, Nissan will try to get out of warranty work on cars that have been autocrossed. The warranty however does not indicate that use on a racetrack or in timed events is reason for voiding the warranty or exclusions from warranty. So, technically it is ok to autocross or take your z to the track and Nissan can't legally deny warranty work, but in practice they will try to do so. You might be lucky and have a local dealer that isn't manned by a bunch of jerks, in which case the dealer may treat you right.

 

GaryK:

Thanks for sharing your experience. When this first came to light, I searched the Nissan warranty and could find nothing that explicitly prohibits autox, "racing" or track use. The only thing that comes close is the reference to "misuse" with its reference to "proper use" in the owners manual. Those "proper use" rules would be things like break-in schedule, maintenance interval and the rest of the "how to use it" crap.

I would expect the dealer to try to use the racing excuse and any other thing they think they can get away with. If they give me crap, I'm going to ask them to show me where in the manuals does it prohibit autocrossing or the type of driving that goes on at one.