ok, here is the story, i still have have my wrx my99 (australia), cant move the damn thing, insurance is probably the biggest deterrant for buyers i guess, btw is it bad in the USA, cause it is a mess here in australia however i am only paying about $1400 a year for it though.
anyway, back to my problem, i got the car back in sept 98, put an exhaust 3" hks super dragger full system and a pod filter, car ran great until about 8 months ago when i have had a constant never ending sea of problems. i have to add that the build quality on the subaru is not the best- door and dash rattles in the first 1000 kms, but thats for another time, and i didnt buy the car for build quality...
the problems include two timing belts that have fallen off... dont ask me how, the mechanic was surprised. now most recently,in fact last friday, the air flow meter has gone out, failed on me, this means the car starts, runs for about 2 seconds and then stalls. the problem- get this, the "modifications" that i have done have caused the problems. i think this is bs, i mean the air filter isnt even a wet type filter so it has no oil that can get into the air flow meter, and the air flow sensor is a sealed unit so no particles can get into it.
the thing that pisses me off most is subaru refuses to warranty it cause they claim my mods caused it. anyway, im left to foot the bill, i had to pay it for the timing belt problems as well, so i guess my advice is not to modify a car and to leave it stock cause it does affect your warranty, especially since subaru are such tight asses. i mean they could come to the party and pay a couple of hundred bucks for what could potentially be a couple of thousand dollars in the future, well i guess ill never buy a subaru again.
btw the subaru dealer that i deal with in australia a real assholes and i never take it to them cause their service sucks, i usually service it elsewhere but seeing as though the car was undrivable i could only get it towed there. i told them to shove the repair job, they wanted $750 for a new airflow meter plus 2 hours labour, i managed to source a second hand meter for $400 and i am getting the car towed up the road (300 metres) to my honda dealer, they r probably the best people i have met, honest and straight to the point, as a matter of fact the bmw dealership next door is great as well, i think that a lot of car dealers could learn a lot about the competition ( ikeep reading about the horror stories u guys have i in the usa with shitty dealers, im glad i have a good honda dealership to deal with). the point is the honda servicce manager is going to repair it for me and charge me for 1/2 hour, what it actually takes to fix the part.
what do u guys think about the warranty being voided with "modifications". i mean i can understand if internals were changed, but damn, bolt on equipment is hardly a major modification, i can understand that it may put some "extra" strain on the components but come on now, i smell bs and subaru covering their ass, oh well, its only money, gotta work a little harder now- no shoes for timmy this Xmas

 

Anytime you ask a company to do something for free they will use any excuse to get out of it. Subaru may not realize that every customer has a potential of spending $600k on vehicles in their lifetime. Unfortunately, Honda doesn't realize this either for the most part, which is why I went with Lexus. They are already replacing my dash for free ($4000 if I were to pay) due to some scratches that I say were caused by the dealership during the first service. But during the first service they don't do any work inside the vehicle, and I don't know were they came from, but they are helping me anyway, even when it's not their fault.

 

I think the dealers go to some school where they learn to say, "I'm sorry, but that's not covered under warranty because . . " Modifications of any kind, despite however remotely related to the problem can be, and often are, used as an excuse to void your warranty.

 

yeah, but what avenues can i go through to prove their ass wrong, short of seeing a product liability lawyer. i actually have an old school friend that is a product liability lawyer, he does things like suing when a motorbike catches fire and stuff, anyway, he said that if it is written in the warranty guidelines then ur screwed and their is nothing to argue about.
i mean , owuls an independent engineers report suffice that states that mods of that kind would do nothing, because im sure subaru would turn around and squash that quick smart.
my dad had a major problem with his bmw 528 last year, it basically blew the motor, was 4 years old and the radiator hose had a crack, leaked all the cooleant out and caused the alloy engine to basically shit itself, anyway seeing as it was out of warranty it wasnt covered
but the service manager lobbied hard for him and managed to get bmw to pay for the the major parts (about $7k worth) and we only had to pay for labour and small parts, still cost $2k, anyway my dad is taking delivery of a brand new mercedes benz clk320 (ordered in november) in the next two weeks, i think he deserves it

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by skitz
[B]Anytime you ask a company to do something for free they will use any excuse to get out of it.

 

Sounds like a BS excuse to me. I'd fight it, but in a friendly but firm way. Ask them to explain how your exhaust killed your airflow meter. Obviously they can't since the two are completely unconnected.

My understanding is that they have to demonstrate a causal relationship between the mods and the failure. That said you probably don't want the hassle of taking it to court and they are probably relying on that.

This is kind of relevant to me because I'm planning on modifying my WRX some time soon. I haven't had any mechanical problems but I agree about the interior quality. Everything creaks, rattles and squeaks.

By the way, I thought the timing belt problem was well known on the up to '98 cars? Strange if yours is a '99.

Good luck "talking" to them.

 

That's pathetic dealership operations almost 95% anywhere in Australia these days regardless of car manufacturer. Notice the difference in customer service when you were buying your car and when you have problems with it? I've come to realize one of the most notable stuff is, because you don't get your car serviced at a Subaru dealership ...

That is why they aren't willing to entertain you as well. Because, you haven't been paying your regular maintenance fees which are at least double from non-dealership mechanics usually. Nothing you can really do about it but just keep trying to see some Subaru dealership somewhere else is willing to fix it under warranty, I strongly doubt when they know your car isn't serviced by them once again.

 

naishou: it wasnt the exhaust, but the aftermarket air filter that was the problem (bullshit). their reason was that particles got into the air flow sensor and frigged it, the honda guys (who i had it towed to and are fixing it for me said the air flow sensor probably just shat itself and it is one of those things and that it could have easily been covered by warranty, hell they would cover it for an s2k.
my advice, dont mod the car, resale sucks, im resorting to dumping the car for about $25k for a my99 wrx (aussie dollars), i cant even be bothered to sell the mods- exhaust, killer 17" rims (rays engineering- sesto competition- gold) dual headlight conversion, strut brace, sti bodykit. hey naishou u want to getdown on these- cheap as hell.
hey what info on the timing belt do u have cause i never heard of it.

takashi: i didnt take it to the subaru dealer cause they were complete assholes. i received poor service when i had my 1k service- had to wait 10 minutes to be served, then they couldnt care less about me, treated me like a punk, that pisses me off. in todays competitve business world it just makes good business sense to treat customers right. ill nevert buy a subaru again- euro or honda for me.
another sidenote, the honda guys were telling me that they could have gotten a non genuine airflow meter- hyundai lantra or nissan 200sx to fit it $350. and it would be pretty much the same.

 

Most car dealerships are quite screwups ... Doesn't really matter what car manufacturer it is. I typically hate the idea of not being able to go into the workshop area to look at my car due to insurance purposes. Damn, how in the world would I know what they're doing if I can't see and expect me to pay? Well, I'm like you ... My car isn't serviced at a dealership as well, maybe cuz no one likes to service a personal import. They say, they have no liability of something goes wrong. Screw them, most of them really no nothing about what they do! I'm suprised they can get jobs with zero knowledge basically.