Nowadays it’s simpler than ever to improve the overall performance of your car or truck by using some auto parts from TDot Performance. Speed parts (performance car parts) are not just meant for racing, especially since they can make a vehicle work better. We’re talking about saving gas using smart car parts, boosting overall power and handling.
Speed parts replace standard components that were made in a factory, and their main purpose is to increase a car’s lifespan. Some of the most common types of speed car parts are intake kits, flowing air filters, and exhausts. Most cars have restrictive exhausts and intakes, thus they can’t perform as well as they could.
The perks of adding performance parts to your car
If you have considered adding performance parts to your car, you may have heard that this will void your warranty. To some extent that’s true. Here’s what you need to know about how putting performance parts on your car could affect your warranty claims.
Thanks to a bill called the Magnusson-Moss Act, a car company cannot deny all warranty claims just because one after market part (performance or otherwise) was added to the car. If they could, it would allow the car companies to deny claims that were totally their fault that had nothing to do with the parts that you changed. They could deny a warranty on the engine because you changed one of the side mirrors. This act ensures that the car companies are still responsible in many situations.
However, if the company can prove that the failure was somehow related to your modifications, then they might still be able to avoid paying some or your entire warranty claim. Since they have teams of design engineers on their side (as well as lots of lawyers) they will have an advantage if it comes to determining whether your updated parts are at fault or not.
There are no fixed rules about this, so it’s a matter of judgment. The more intensive your modifications, however, the more likely you are to have a warranty claim denied.
Adding speed parts to your car – a better understanding of the modifications entailed
When you’re considering a modification, it is good to have an understanding of what this will do to your car. For instance, if you can modify your car to get an additional 100 horsepower, could that lead to a transmission failure? If so, then that transmission failure would probably not be covered by your warranty, even though you didn’t update the transmission itself. Knowing the range of possible impacts and risks lets you make an informed decision about whether to do this or not.
If you are working with a good shop, then they should be able to give you knowledgeable answers about issues like this, and what failures you might see as a result of performance modifications. They can advise you on the likelihood of different problems, and offer alternatives as far as modification ideas.
If and when you do run into a problem with your vehicle, you will usually need to take it straight to the dealer’s shop if you are seeking any type of warranty repair. The dealer’s technicians need to see the car themselves, with all of the parts as they are, in order to validate the warranty claim. If you have an independent shop take apart your engine, or disassemble the transmission, then the dealer will not be able to determine the cause of the failure, and you generally will not get a warranty payment.
You can still do work on your own car, and have an independent shop work on it, too. The issue only arises when you have a problem that you think should be covered on warranty. In that case, you’ll need to have the dealership look at it first.
The performance car parts industry, together with an incredibly high number of engineers, manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers went through a really tough time over the past couple of years. Prices for gas have skyrocketed and people are trying to be more eco-friendly. This “movement” has almost wrecked the performance car parts business; and yet, there are still drivers willing to invest in speed parts in order to lengthen their vehicle’s lifespan.
