The subject line says it all. I just bought a new 2005, and I'm planning on having a Clifford Matrix 10.5 alarm installed tomorrow. I chose this over the factory alarm. Has anyone ever had Honda take the position that this voids the warranty?

 

Reasearch the Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act. Nothing can void ANY warranty, unless the manufacturer can PROVE, definitively, that the broken part (or cause of the warranty claim) was a DIRECT RESULT of the aftermarket part. (i.e. - If a fuse fails and for some FREAK reason the alarm back-loads the fuse box, creating a fire and toasting the car.....Yes. That would be one scenario )

Seriously, look it up. Its Federal Law.

John

 

Yep - what John said.

just find a competent installer and all should be well.

If you let everyone know where you are at you will probably get some references on good shops.

- William

 

Note that while it is law, you may just have to take them to court to get your rights. They know that, and that most people will not bother and act accordingly

 

Thanks for everyone's input. Funny thing is I'm a lawyer. I'm very used to going to court, but no lawyer is familiar with every law. Law libraries are a very big place. I read the Magnusson-Moss statutes today. Sounds nice, but I've never had a case in which the parties agreed on the facts. So the issue here would be whether the aftermarket alarm (or whatever) caused the problem that's the basis of the warranty claim. A dealer would be hard-pressed to contend that a blown tranny was the result of an aftermarket alarm system install. But I could see them questioning an electrical problem warranty claim. It would then come down to how much effort you need to expend to compel the dealer to live up to the warranty.

I'm having the alarm installed by Audiomobile in Oakland, CA. I read good things about them in these forums. They're an authorized Clifford dealer and they tell me they've done installs on lots of S2000s. I've always installed third party alarms in my cars, and I've never had an electrical problem, so as WLAURENT said, all should be well.

 

Really, for the sides to differ on the facts of something like this is unlikely. The alarm system is only tied into a few things in the car's electrical system. The fuses and other safeguards keep it from interacting with / possibly affecting things that its not supposed to. If something goes wrong with the alarm, it should not affect the warranty (except for the factory Honda alarm warranty). If it does, either the product was defective (in which case you would have remedies against the manufacturer) or it was installed improperly (in which case you would probably have some remedies against the installer). Either way you look at it, your a$$ is always covered.

Not to mention, if an alarm DOES screw up, it should not really mess anything else up (except for maybe the ignition immobilizer, which might be a PITA). You shouldnt have a problem, especially if you are buying from a reputable brand (and Clifford is one).

John

 

Alarms in gerneral are pretty reliable. The installers are your biggest variable. You need a shop that will stand behind their work.