After market coilovers & warranty

[ndk83]

Ive yet to talk to the correct person at the Audi about this but,

If i change out my shocks and springs to aftermarket, i know and am OK with loosing all suspension related warranty. Control arms, bushings, tie rods etc can all be upgraded when they fail at a reasonable cost.

IS there anyway they can realisticly void my drive train warranty? My main concern would be Turbo, Engine, drive shaft, Transmission etc that i would like to maintain my warranty on. Im aslo considering a 2 year extended warranty so long as they do not void my entire warranty when i change my coilovers.

My main question really relates to what my rights are, with regards to a dealership that may want to void my entire warranty (drivetrain and everything) because i changed out the coils.

is warranty confirmed or denied by Audi HQ? So does this over ride my dealerships rules on what part voids what warranty?


Word on the street locally is that Audi Dubai are extremely anal. Any mod will void your entire warranty (Everything).
I know that this cannot be true, but id expect them to put up a stink when something goes (non suspension related) wrong and try and blame the coilovers.

 

[alijnclarke]

If I remember rightly there was a post a few days ago that was an internal audi memo talking another warranty and modifications.

It said someonething along the lines of they had to prove that the modification directly effected the other part for them to refuse a claim. The example it gave was something like.. A warranty claim for paint work couldn't be denied if the user had modified the engine.

So is assume that the suspension system has nothing to do with the drive train.. Good question though, I'll be following this as I'm interested in some kind of lowering, be it coils or springs

 

[ndk83]

Yea that's my assumption as well, well it's more than an assumption as I've never had this problem before. On my last car I changed up my coils without giving it a second thought. My car was relatively modded and all the dealership ever did was compliment me on my car. Randomly voiding my warranty was never an issue.

It seems like Audi are a little bit more concerned, and rightly so, with their highly strung out turbo engines, and everyone wanting to chiptune them, the perceived reliability of their cars comes into effect. So I can understand their situation. But it also seems like locally the dealer here in Dubai is taking it to new heights.

@alijnclarke link to said post?

 

[ndk83]

A secondary question

Bilstein list two sets with part numbers for the b14 suspension for the 2015 Audi S3. The difference between them is that one set has an outer diameter of 50mm and the other is 55mm the part numbers are: bil 023947 and bil 023948.

http://web1.carparts-cat.com/defaul...244BB60B9C8A44AEBB671F03435317C4018004&12=130

Anyone know which is the correct one? I got the MY15 210kw S3, and both sets are listed for the same car.

 

[veeeight]

How far do you want to take the chain though?

Eg
You lower ride height
This affects the angle at which the drive shafts exit the final drive

Immediately you've included the drive shafts and gearbox into this link.

I would prepare yourself for CV joints and drive shafts and gearbox to be considered as part of affected drivetrain by changing springs that change ride height.

If it's a Haldex car, then include rear drive shafts and rear diff.

 

[ndk83]

Thanks veeeight for that informative post. Gave me lots to think about.

How solid is the build quality of the the Driveshaft and DSG transmission? Transmission failure would be a nightmare.

 

[veeeight]

Well, it is solid, but - from Audi's POV, Audi won't have tested and done vehicle validation over 000's of miles, with the driveshafts at an angle that wasn't originally designed, so - why should they cover warranty on a component/system that was used in a position/situation that wasn't designed/tested/validated at?

I think that if you mentally prepare yourself for potential warranty discussions about cover, up to the DMF (so, suspension, affecting drive shafts, affecting CV joints, affecting gearbox final drive, affecting gearbox, affecting DMF), you should have it covered. It's hard to make a link further back than that, (e.g.: it's hard to demonstrate turbo failure caused by springs), and it's fairly hard to link conclusively that driveshafts at unequal angles or extreme angles will cause the 1st gear shaft to fail. It could cause strain on the output shaft, but unlikely on anything further back.

But, this is just hypothesis.

 

[ndk83]

Yea awesome response, that's exactly what I needed to hear.mentally preparing yourself for these issues helps tremendously. I didnt think for a second that the driveshaft angles, and therefore transmission and diff could be affected. You've given me the info I needed, so thank you.
I dont think Audi will need to work that hard to conclusively "prove" that springs/ coils were the cause of a failed drive shaft/transmission etc, just the fact that its a possibility for greater wear and tear could lead to premature failure is prob enough cause for them to void the warranty on those parts.
I dont know enough about what constitutes as sufficient "proof" for a connection, but I'd assume the worst and obviously fight it tooth and nail If/when it happens.

Fingers crossed.

 

[steeve]

I would guess that your rights in Dubai may not be similar to those in the UK or the rest of the EU

 

[nervus]

I would guess that your rights in Dubai may not be similar to those in the UK or the rest of the EU

Nooo, What makes you say that....

 

[steeve]

Nooo, What makes you say that....

Well there's lots of customer rights legislation, though not as much as in the US. I'm guessing Dubai might be a little less interested.