Toyota Warranty

[spunjian]

Does anyone know how the Toyota Warranty works?

I just bought a '03 Tacoma 4x4.

Any info would help such as;

What kind of upgrades would break a warranty,
What kind of upgrades I could do that wont effect the warranty;
and etc.

I pretty much just want to:
Lift it a little more, Bigger Tires, and Exhaust.
im new at this so I dont know much at all....

Thanks.

[Sean]

Usually warranty issues are more a dealer policy then a company policy, My brother works at a Dodge dealer in the middle of BC where forestry is the biggest industry. Since most people lift there new trucks the dealer excepts warrranty work that would never be excepted in a city dealership.
Toyota's parts counter sells Revtek lifts and a TRD exhaust system so those upgrades should definately be covered by warranty although they may require dealer installation to qualify. Check with your dealer.

[L8sho2003]

Regardless of what the dealership says, if you live in the U.S. this is what the law says:
The Magnusson-Moss Warranty - Federal Trade Commission Improvement Act of 1975 protects consumers from such fradulent activity by new car dealers. Under this Act, aftermarket equipment that improves performance does not void a vehicle manufacturer's orginial warranty, unless the warranty clearly states the addition of aftermarket equipment automatically voids your vehicle's warrany or if it can be proven that the aftermarket device is the direct cause of the failure. The easiest way to check this is to look in your owner's manual under, "what is not covered". Under Magnusson-Moss Act a dealer must prove, not just vocalize, that aftermarket equipment caused the need for repairs before they can deny warranty coverage. If they cannot prove such claim-or offer an explanation- it is your legal right to demand compliance with the warranty. The Federal Trade Commission (202.326.3128) administers the Magnusson-Moss Act and monitors compliance with warranty law.


Disclaimer: L8sho2003 is in no way affilated with any law firm and in fact is not licensed to practice law within the United States. This means take this post with a grain of salt and do your own research. But I hope this helps. Anybody doing mods needs to know about this act. Alot of manufacturers of aftermarket parts will actually help you out in case of conflict.

[L8sho2003]

During my last term as a car electronics installer, we had people with suburbans and tahoes that would get us to install video systems in the headrests etc. Two of them came back a few months later saying that thier trucks wouldn't start. The dealer told them that it was the equipment that caused the problem. Based on our instructions, our company attorney cited the act and busted the dealerships "chops" on this one. They later found out that it was an electrical problem in this platform of trucks and I believe there was a recall. If they went unchecked, like they do most of the time, it would have cost us thousands on just these two trucks.

[Hoodlum]

You can do a 3'' lift anything bigger will void you can only go one size bigger anything bigger will void exhaust you can get TRD hedders must be dealer installed otherwise void as long as the cat and the 02 sensor are in place anything else on exhaust should be fine but keep in mind like SEAN said it is dealer discretion

[L8sho2003]

No, the bottom line is not dealer discretion. It is thier choice on whether or not to jerk you around though. We have a trade commision for a reason. It all boils down to how much patience, money and balls you have when you take on a dealer. Knowing the law is the biggest element. Having a lawyer in the family helps

[Hoodlum]

ok then almost every truck that comes through our dealership including employees any truck that shows evedince of being used in extreme off road use can and will void your warranty it depends on where you live and what is concidered normal driving conditions for the area I live near the city and the dealerships can't do alot on doing warranty work on 4x4's TOYOTA rejects claims all the time now if you live outside of urban ares toyota is more leanient the normals conditions are ruogher but are concidered normal for the area

[L8sho2003]

Consumer law and warranties are not written to be interpreted differently depending on the area you live in. If your dealership jerks around it's customers by interpreting the warranty to be different in it's area than another area, then it is truly worthy of the label "stealer". This brings up the point that in any auto warranty dispute it is generally productive to contact the regional warranty center for the manufacturer. Most of the time, Darrel and Cletus back at the dealership will be a little more helpful when they know you have been over their heads. By not properly honoring the warranties of the vehicles they sell, they are jeopardizing their dealership status by not following contract terms. Dealers also almost always come up with some B.S. regarding warranty work if you bought the vehicle elsewhere. Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that I should be able to install a lift and 33's and then go whining to the dealer when I start breaking c.v.'s. I'm just saying that if you let them tell you how it is instead of vice versa, you will get shat on! They are in the business to make money after all. My point is, you could lift your truck and have someting go out that is completely unrelated such as a power window switch, and it is not uncommon for the customer to be told that it will not be covered now that the truck has been lifted. This is wrong and absolutely illegal. Most people just bend over and take it, but we actually have a department of the Federal Trade Commission that exists solely for this kind of dispute. Also keep in mind that states differ in terms of warranty law, some being way more helpful to the consumer than others. I also sold vehicles for a dealership at one time so I have been on both sides of this issue.

[Hoodlum]

WELCOME TO CORPORATE AMERICA cause that's how it goes like or not they still get your money and thats why all lawyers/polititions should be executed