While in the process of selling my car, I've been asked time and time again about "mods" and voiding the factory warranty. I've explained that the mods I've done (basically just intake and exhaust) are usually of no concern to any dealers that I'm familiar with. And, unless an engine failure etc. can be traced diectly to, and are a result of said mods.......nada problem. Been a member here for a while now and never heard any different, and I've run more than a few searches and haven't been able to find anything to the contrary either. Anybody ........? thanx jbx

 

+1. The mods HAVE TO BE the source of the problem and the dealer has to prove so. Otherwise, they have to cover any warranty work that's needed.

 

Although you are technically correct, it really depends on your relationship with the dealer/service advisor, and their attitude towards mods. I've seen extremes on both sides. Having owned a Maxima prior go the G, I took it to a dealer who refused to touch the car only because it had aftermarket springs. I was essentially told that having modified the suspension I have voided the powertrain warranty. Having heard that, I figured there was no point in arguing with the guy, and I took my car to another dealer. Granted, I had the luxury of having 4-5 Nissan dealerships within 20 mile raduis, but still goes to show how some dealers view mods. I've had a complete opposite experience with the second dealer where the mods were either ignored, or in some cases components impacted by the mods were still replaced under warranty. Ultimately it comes down to the dealer you're working with, and despite them having the burden of proof that your mod has somehow impacted a warrantied component, if they want to, they can make your life difficult.
One thing I found that usually helps is making an appointment to have the car serviced at the dealership, and just as they wrap up the paperwork, just mention the problem you're having, they seem to be a lot more receptive... Just an observation

 

Excellent post. Agree completely.

The burden of proof may be on the dealer, but sometimes they can make life so miserable it's easier to roll down the street.

 

I was told by an Infiniti dealership that my Injen CAI and Borla TD exhaust caused excessive oil consumption which ultimately led to engine failure. It was complete BS and the bottom line is the dealership didn't want to pay to replace my engine. I had my way in the end, but it was a real hassle.

EDIT: I have saved all my stock parts and will re-install them when it's time to sell my sedan.

 

Exactly!
IMHO That's the only way to deal with mods at resale time.

 

It's illegal for a dealer to deny warranty work if the aftermarket part in question didn't cause the failure. However, the dealer can make it VERY hard for you and they can basically refuse service. You have to understand where the dealerships are coming from. When they fix a car under warranty, they're reimmbersed by the company. On the off chance Nissan/Infiniti finds out an aftermarket part caused the failure, it's quite possible the dealership won't get their money. This is why they've become so fearful of mods. You also have to understand that nearly person that helps you in the service department doesn't know a valve spring from a potato.

I'll say it again, pull the mods off the car and sell it as stock. You'll get more money for the car and you can make money off the highly sought after mods. Selling your car with these mods severely limits the amount of buyers you'll have because modified cars scare people away. Team that with the fact that you're trying to sell the car in the high 20s and it becomes very hard to find someone willing to spend that kind of money on a modded G35. If the car was in the $5000-8000 range and modded it would be far easier to sell.

 

Ditto!

 

As others have said.. keep stock parts and provide to new owner, or sell them separate after installing stock for car sell... I have all my stock and plan to include with car when sold.

 

Depends on your demographic... Costa Mesa Infiniti sells and installs Stillen parts - they would turn a modded car easily! Unfortunately their service department sucks, but that's not the discussion... Tustin Infiniti, which has an excellent service dept, wants to get into selling and installing after market mods because of the high demand. Point is - in So Cal a modded car won’t have a problem fetching top dollar. I do agree it's best to give the buyer the option of taking all stock parts... but by the time most of our cars are sold the first time, the warranty isn’t much of an issue anyway.

 

My Inifiniti delaership that they will not install aftermarket parts at their place, even Nismo/Stillen items. However, the Nissan Dealership will.