Hi guys,

As tj@steeda mentioned, aftermarket parts will not automatically void any of your warranties. However, if they cause a concern, that specific repair will not be covered. You can refer to your Warranty Guide on page 13 for further info. Also, there is a TSB regarding tunes and aftermarket enhancements that may affect the engine, so I recommend you speak to your Ford dealer before installing any aftermarket parts on your vehicle.

Deysha

 

The last time I checked this thread yesterday, there wasn't anything to address yet. I left at 5, and didn't check this thread until 9:20. Still going through 4 pages of posts.

We would like to clarify TJ's comments regarding warranty. Our parts are manufactured under ISO9001:2008 certification, which basically means we have been certified to consistently make high-quality parts. The vast majority of our parts are made right here in the USA. Our parts do carry a lifetime warranty. If an issue arises with your Steeda part, please contact us and we will resolve the issue to the best of our abilities. We, in no way, claim that our parts will not void your vehicle's manufacturer powertrain warranty should an issue arise that the dealership can attribute in some way to our part. Warranty voidances are conducted at the individual dealership level, and as such they vary from dealership to dealership.


Respectfully, I disagree. That is not correct at all.


Again, respectfully, I disagree.

 

I said that the tune voids the warranty. Your reply was:


But then a few posts prior you stated:

Ford stated:
The end game is this, if you install a tune and something goes wrong on your car, the game begins. Will Ford automatically null your warranty, I never said they would. I said they "can" and then the burdon of disproof is on YOU. Now it is YOUR time, YOUR money to prove them wrong. Sure Steeda "may" step up to argue (they have not said yay or nay) but in that time its YOU who suffers the lack of car etc. Its up to the individual to decide if the juice is worth the squeeze on that.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteedaBrandon

The last time I checked this thread yesterday, there wasn't anything to address yet. I left at 5, and didn't check this thread until 9:20. Still going through 4 pages of posts.

Nice, I've got 9 pages on my phone . . . I appreciate you taking the time to respond!

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteedaBrandon

We would like to clarify TJ's comments regarding warranty. Our parts are manufactured under ISO9001:2008 certification, which basically means we have been certified to consistently make high-quality parts. The vast majority of our parts are made right here in the USA. Our parts do carry a lifetime warranty. If an issue arises with your Steeda part, please contact us and we will resolve the issue to the best of our abilities. We, in no way, claim that our parts will not void your vehicle's manufacturer powertrain warranty should an issue arise that the dealership can attribute in some way to our part. Warranty voidances are conducted at the individual dealership level, and as such they vary from dealership to dealership.

So if you agree this is handled on a dealership level why would you or others from Steeda constantly claim you work directly with Ford implying that would help in these situations if it’s the dealers end play? Frankly I don't understand much of the warranty process at all and hope I never have to find out - I just see varying statements from you guys.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteedaBrandon

Respectfully, I disagree. That is not correct at all.

Can you elaborate - "respectfully, I disagree" isn't really much of an answer for anyone to go by . . .

Once again, I am IN NO WAY bashing Steeda. Great parts and great service. Just trying to get clarification on what they are saying.

 

Actually, you did :

Five different times total, actually :
I didn't see "can" when referring to our parts voiding a warranty anywhere in your posts?

This is where any potential issue comes from:
Warranty voidances are not handled by Ford, they leave it up to the dealership to decide that.

This is why we recommend discussing any potential future modifications to your vehicle with your local dealership's service manager.

 

Our warranty program is basically us standing behind the product. If a customer has an issue then we would work with them to resolve it. We have built our reputation on the fact that we don't cause issues to begin with. Our tunes have a very comfortable safety factor in them for that reason, so we don’t have to have customers worrying that they will need to be in some warranty program because we are pushing the limits. With that said, if on the off chance an issue does come up, we would cooperate with the customer to determine the cause and if found to be an issue caused by us we would of course stand behind it.

Keep in mind if an engine does fail, its certainly not an overnight process. Everything from what tune was in the car, fuel grade testing, engine teardown and inspection, and more, a lot of things would have to take place if such a thing occured and no one wants to go through that, it is an unpleasant process for everyone, so we have done our best to make sure that the chances of that happening with our setup are as low as they could possibly be. So our customers don't have to worry about such things.

 

So, let's say a particular mustang has a manufacturing defect which results in a lean condition that damages a piston. Let's also say that prior to this manufacturing defect the owner of this mustang installed a CAI and tune for it. The dealership declares that the lean condition was caused by the CAI/tune. (also note they can see there was a tune if returned to stock, so they can still blame a tune) The tech doesn't even look further for the manufacturing defect. He sees the aftermarket part and blames it. What then?

Sure the maker of the CAI didn't have a defective product. They stand behind their product. Are they going to pay for a manufacturing defect from a Ford supplier? Doubtful. Will the CAI vendor be able to get the full investigation to happen to find root cause? Maybe, perhaps. Will that in turn over-ride the dealership's initial diagnosis and classification? hopefully.

Where is the owner of the car in all this? In the middle coordinating between the CAI vendor, the dealership, and ford in what could dissolve into a bunch of finger pointing. Let's say the dealership or ford decides that their part was out of spec but it wouldn't have been an issue if the tune/CAI had not been done. They deny warranty. What then?

And there lies the problem. It's not that the aftermarket part isn't quality. It is that it creates confusion and finger pointing and ways for the dealership to not do a warranty claim and ford not to pay one. It is at the mercy of those people, their moods that day, that moment.

Now are there safer bets in mods than others? Sure. The houses that have a direct line to the right people at Ford and Ford racing parts are the best bet. However neither is a sure thing. It would be nice if there was some sort of 'ford approved' list of products that wouldn't damage warranty coverage but there isn't. And even if there were it would probably mandate dealer installation jacking up the cost of even simple things.

On another related subject, the reason for modding after the warranty is out but not before is because at that point it doesn't matter if if the failure was some manufacturing defect that hadn't reared its ugly head or not, owner pays either way. The gamble that the car doesn't have some defect no longer exists.

It all comes down to a person's tolerance for risk and possible hassle vs. reward.

 

Touche. The summation was merely, let people know there is a potential warranty issue regarding installing of this tune required CAI. If it seems I am stating you make a garbage product let me state that is NOT my stance. I am merely saying that installing the tune can cause an issue with dealerships, some more so than others. You dont dispute this, neither does Ford. That should be the end of that discussion.

 

In your scenario, no, we would not pay for a rental, and would not after the fact either, and neither will anyone else from what I am aware of. If you read the warranty copy from AM which is the reason we get so many questions now, theirs wont cover it either.

Their warranty specifically outlines what they will cover, which is specific parts of the engine, basically the whole bottom end and labor up to a certain total. No other incidental costs, such as a rental car, would be covered.

In cases like yours your thinking is probably right in that you should not really buy a cold air from anyone. In my experience when you are over worried about what might happen when you modify the car you also tend to lose the enjoyment that usually comes from modifying, I know cause I was there once, and that is what putting mods on your car is really all about, it is about the smile on your face after you put the parts on your car

 

May I ask what cold air intake manufacturer has claimed a guarantee that their intake will not void your warranty?

This is a write up to show the differences between our CAI and the competition. As for the truth in the results, this comes from our gathered data from years of doing this. We have been in the Mustang business since 1988 and have been able to build 2 up into two separate locations in Florida and Georgia. The point of this article was to show what we do to truly “improve” the air flow to the engine. This article also address the questions we get on a daily basis about what is different and better about our CAI.

We also have a direct relationship with Ford and have since the beginning. We work closely with them and have developed many parts for Ford, Ford Racing, Shelby, Roush, and others at one time or another over our 24 year history. We have an engineering team that works closely with Ford engineers to help get you the best performance part for your Ford vehicle.

 

With respect, that's simply not good enough. You standing behind your product verbally and in advertisements won't help a client who has his warranty voided by Ford for a problem your equipment may or may not have caused. Ultimately, warranties come down to this: if it's enforceable in a court of law, it's valid. Verbal contracts are, as you and anyone else can imagine, laughably invalid. You can "stand behind" your equipment and tunes all you want to, and still don't assume the legal responsibility of covering repairs to a vehicle that were caused by your equipment.

Another issue is the fact that cars go into the shop all the time for all kinds of things. As you (or someone else from steeda) stated, the decision to honor the warranty (with aftermarket equipment/tunes installed) is up to each individual dealership. What, exactly, keeps any arbitrary dealership repair shop from claiming the aftermarket equipment caused the problem and is now therefore not covered under warranty--whether the equipment caused the problem at all? It's not just about how good Steeda's equipment is, it's the fact that Ford dealerships (and other automotive dealerships as well) can make their own determination as to whether the vehicle has suffered a malfunction as a result of aftermarket equipment whether that equipment actually caused the problem or not. How are you going to prove them wrong? It doesn't take much forethought to realize that this only ends up in court if the customer really wants to fight it, at significant cost and inconvenience to him--where the validity of warranties becomes paramount.

It's not necessarily the quality of Steeda equipment and products that poses the problem, it's the individual dealership's determination of what caused that problem. An easy out is aftermarket equipment = voided warranty...whether the customer's Steeda CAI/tune had anything to do with the problem or not. THAT is the real problem.

 

Actually, there are several companies that offer CAIs without ancillary tunes required that you can install and remove prior to service which wont cause dealership issues. I am not claiming that they state their CAI wont nullify warranty, I am saying you can remove and replace it to stock without anyone ever knowing, you cannot do that with yours unless you know something we do not.

So you mean to tell me when you install cams and headers and superchargers you never think, hmmm maybe I might break something at the track? When buying a product at the store (e.g stereo, can opener, etc) you never worry about the quality or reliability, you just go for it? You good sir are a braver man than most, if we were all so sure I doubt warranties would even exist.

The warranty issue is about money, you bought a product that while adhering to the guidelines will be "cost for repair" free for a minimum of 3 years. To jeopardize that is a risk some are not willing to take, its not about feeling warm and fuzzy or being more manly, its being responsible. Why risk it with one product when I dont have to with another?

 

Agreed, and why we took care from the beginning to stay within limits we found acceptable, and that has worked great for us so far.

Telling customers not to modify the engine has pretty much been the party line since I started being an enthusiast in the early 90's. It is just getting more publicity now in the internet age.

Although the risk is extremely low, it is always a calculated risk when you modify your vehicle. It then becomes a risk assessment on your part as to whether you want to take that risk.

 

I have a HUGE smile on my face currently, as my Mustang, in it's current stock form, is doing just that. For the record, I have a CAI, tune, and exhaust on my 2005 F150; it however is out of warrantee, so the issue of this conversation does not apply.

I will eventually install some "goodies" on my Mustang, and my decision as to whom I buy from will be based on reputation, honesty, and support; all of which have been answered to my satisfaction from Steeda. They were (finally) honest with what they will and cannot do with Ford and their warrantee issue. I thank them for that.

So for now, the smile on my face will continue with my stock Mustang!

 

So you don't mind fraudulently making a claim to Ford?

 

Steeda themselves have said that their intake will not cause damage to your motor. I believe this to be true. Neither will Roush or AirRaids. My point was that as stated multiple times, a dealership can claim whatever they want as causality. Right or wrong. Does it happen, maybe so, is it worth the risk that they might? If my rings break and I have a CAI installed we all know that isnt the cause, so removing it prior to service isnt really being fraudulent now is it? Its merely keeping a dealership from passing the buck and making us prove it wrong.

Ill leave this discussion at this, because the debate is over, answers given. We all know the CAI is the easiest mod to perform and that is why it is usually the first one everyone does. You dont need any real mechanical knowledge, you can do it yourself, you dont need to hire anyone to do so. Ergo you prob find this mod in the car community across the board more than any other. That being said, I just wanted people who maybe are not thinking about it to realize that this CAI will potentially cause warranty issues. If that makes me a troll, call me Shrek!

 

Do all you people really expect companies to back you for modding you car then abusing it and tell them to pay for it?
If you want not to worry about your engine/car in any way and keep your full warranty stay stock. period.

If you want to improve certain things about your car with aftermarket parts you should know its not a factory Ford part so why on earth would Ford back it?
Also nothing is going to happen with just a new air filter/housing and a quality tune from a company like steeda, Bama, BBR etc. people have been running them with no problems for years.
on top of that Ford cant void your whole cars warranty for one part, they can only void that one section that is causing the problem.

 

Valid point. We realize to some being able to remove an intake before going to the dealer may be appealing, in the end we chose the combination that gave actual performance. An intake that works with the stock tune does almost nothing for measureable performance. It is the direction we chose to go in.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fridaze

So you mean to tell me when you install cams and headers and superchargers you never think, hmmm maybe I might break something at the track? When buying a product at the store (e.g stereo, can opener, etc) you never worry about the quality or reliability, you just go for it? You good sir are a braver man than most, if we were all so sure I doubt warranties would even exist.

I'm at a loss right now as how my response prompted yours. They almost seem like its not even the same topic when you read what you quoted vs the response. I thought I was giving sound advice and even related it to my own experience saying I've been in the guys shoes, torn between whether I should modify a car or not and warranty. I've even done modifications that led me to worries that took the enjoyment out of what I was doing. I was giving advice based on those experiences.

I'm also at a loss on why I cant switch back from Italic to normal text... LOL

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fridaze

The warranty issue is about money, you bought a product that while adhering to the guidelines will be "cost for repair" free for a minimum of 3 years. To jeopardize that is a risk some are not willing to take, its not about feeling warm and fuzzy or being more manly, its being responsible. Why risk it with one product when I dont have to with another?

Valid points to some consumers, absolutely. Its not for everyone.

As I stated a few posts back we will cover the engine if the cold air and tune causes an issue, but thats it, pretty cut and dry. That may be enough for some, not enough for others. This is how we stand behind the product and I hope that will clarify it for everyone.

 

No one is expecting Ford to cover an engine that blows from a bad tune and no one is expecting the tuner to cover an engine that blows from an internal defect (at least I'm not). The issue is why should the customer be the one losing out here and that fear is why some are on the fence of tuning or not.

Another concern is - what happens if my transmission or rear end goes out and I have a Steeda tune? The dealer is going to likely not cover because you are tuned, even though that probably isn't why the part failed, they can per Fords TSB. You can scream Magnuson Moss blah blah blah all you want but its probably not going to do anything for you, unless you want to go to court and risk more $ for who knows what. What is Steeda going to do in this circumstance? I'd be shocked if they paid for it, so who loses again . . .

In a perfect world you could buy a new car and have it tuned. Steeda stands behind the tune and Ford stands behind the rest. The issue is the area in between where a customer could get screwed out of having their parts warrantied because neither side will compromise and step up to fix the problem because its easier to blame it on the other.

If you say nothing is going to happen if I change my intake & tune will you then cover me if it does

 

the issue is clear.. why do you keep on asking the same questions?? You do not want to do anything until the warranty is used up and thats fine. They are not going to cover you in the way you like so move on. BTW like I said in a post already those non tune cai's will give you the same increases as a drop in K&N filter.

FYI your warranty claim for a bone stock car can be rejected also if they feel you were miss using the car. Its silly to think or expect someone else to fix and or make Your problems go away. Its really that kind of thinking that Harms America. Car modding is a money pit and it never is or will be a good investment and thats just fine for someone that has a stick that measures in smiles and not dollar signs or mpg. I feel you should of bought a prius and joined a mpg club.

please move on.... you got the answer and it wasnt what you wanted to hear but what you are doing has gotten old..