Denied warranty claim due to aftermarket radio

[djthom]

so my airbag light went on and went to get it fixed and the guys says it isn't covered under the warranty because i have an aftermarket radio installed. He says this is because everything is plugged into the CAN+ CAN-.

So be aware kiddies that you need to take out your head unit too before warranty work.(confused)

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

Beware?

You need to seriously march right back in there and speak to the Service Manager. If the Service Manager wants to try and pretend he knows what he's talking about, then you can request to stay in the office while he calls Mazda TechLine and verify the legitimacy of the two being connected in some ungodly way.

I appreciate your motive in warning us, but that is not correct in any way, shape, or form. I'm not going to de-mod my ******* car every time an issue pops up that has NOTHING to do with my aftermarket products. What's next, they're going to void my warranty for leather seats wrinkling because of an air freshener?

"Guys, be careful, take your air fresheners out before you get warranty work done"..

 

[djthom]

Beware?

You need to seriously march right back in there and speak to the Service Manager. If the Service Manager wants to try and pretend he knows what he's talking about, then you can request to stay in the office while he calls Mazda TechLine and verify the legitimacy of the two being connected in some ungodly way.

I appreciate your motive in warning us, but that is not correct in any way, shape, or form. I'm not going to de-mod my ******* car every time an issue pops up that has NOTHING to do with my aftermarket products. What's next, they're going to void my warranty for leather seats wrinkling because of an air freshener?

"Guys, be careful, take your air fresheners out before you get warranty work done"..

i agree that it is ridiculous but if they can show that the failed part is somehow related to the CAN+ CAN- system and the radio also plugs into that system then isn't that enough of an excuse for them?

its the same loose connection between say an aftermarket BPV and an engine blowing that they will use/have used to deny warranty claims.

while i agree that there is grounds to appeal this i am just going to demod and go to another dealer to get sorted out.

 

[60181]

Silver is right....march right back there. I'd also have him put that in writing and sign it personally and let him know that if there's ever an accident that your attorney will be calling him personally, the dealer and Mazda into court.

If he's willing to say it, have him prove it in writing and sign it. Otherwise he's full of sh#$. If he's right, so be it, but prove it and sign it.

I wish that would happen to me....my wife is an attorney and would have a field day with this guy if he's even .01% wrong.

so my airbag light went on and went to get it fixed and the guys says it isn't covered under the warranty because i have an aftermarket radio installed. He says this is because everything is plugged into the CAN+ CAN-.

So be aware kiddies that you need to take out your head unit too before warranty work.(confused)

 

[coololddude]

I heard that dealers are really Terrorists!!

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

I speak boldly on standing up to this because I have been the victim of dealer's excuses OVER and OVER again.

For example, they "plugged" my two tires with nails in them. That is the worst thing you can do and it totally takes the tire out of it's speed rating. If one were to fail at high speed, I could quite easily be harmed or killed in the process. Yet..the dealer's excuse is "We've been plugging tires for 15 years and never had a problem."

But that's not the point of this thread. I firmly stand by my suggestion to visit the dealership again and sit with them while they talk to Mazda Techline. If they refuse..then you've got proof that they basically don't want to do their job and a call to Mazda Customer Service is in order.

 

[speedracer]

just because a dealer denied a warranty claim dosn't mean that your warranty is voided.
You can just go to another dealer and have the issue fixed there. I had to deal with that a lot with my MSP because of Fox Mazda over here. I just went to another Mazda dealer and they took care of it. ( and told me that Fox was full of $h!t too) lol

 

[Mybeauner]

gay. now I have to take out my aftermarket cup holders . . .

 

[fastmazdams3]

Did they even scan the SRS light to see what the light was on for? Like what was the code, aftermarket radio interference in the CAN?!?

 

[jabba]

I'm sure Mazda Corporate had an annual meeting for Service Manager where they spell out how to save money, and denying claims is probably their #1 item on their long list of great ideas. Having anything aftermarket is like gold to them, they can basically say anything they want, knowing the most the customer will do is just walk away (just like you did). I got the same story from the salesman where I got my last car when I mentioned (stupidly) that I didn't need the bad Bose upgrade because I would put in my own head unit, and his first answer was that it would void the entire warranty since the car communicates through the head unit.

So as you can see, the enemy is well organized.

 

[JCell]

is there a chance you actually plugged into the wrong wire while installing the radio?

probably want to check that b4 you go back there

 

[oaklandopen]

never know what can happen with the new CANBUS systems in cars today. mercedes like to apply a little more pressure to the brakes when the windshield senses rain. and i know with the rain sensing windshields they specifically say not to use products like rainX as they may interfere with the system. systems that you would never think are related are actually talking to each other through the computers, so the slightest variation could actually mess something up

that being said it doesn't surprise me that they don't want to warrant the airbag problem because of your aftermarket radio. buuuuuut, i would like to know specifically why the radio interfered with the system (because i think you have the right to know since they are making you pay for it)

 

[CorkSport]

I would try another dealer. We are pretty lucky locally with several to choose from that are mod friendly.

-Derrick

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

never know what can happen with the new CANBUS systems in cars today. mercedes like to apply a little more pressure to the brakes when the windshield senses rain. and i know with the rain sensing windshields they specifically say not to use products like rainX as they may interfere with the system. systems that you would never think are related are actually talking to each other through the computers, so the slightest variation could actually mess something up

that being said it doesn't surprise me that they don't want to warrant the airbag problem because of your aftermarket radio. buuuuuut, i would like to know specifically why the radio interfered with the system (because i think you have the right to know since they are making you pay for it)

I can vouch that rainx on rain-sensing windshields, just makes the wipers go extra fast. But it doesn't mess it up.

 

[djthom]

i would think that they might be remotely related if the radio wasn't installed like 8 months ago...

either way i am going in to another dealer to see if i can get this sorted...

thanks for the feedback.

 

[Mid_Life_Crisis]

The only way they have a prayer of making this stick is if your radio is actually connected to the bus. If not, they got nothin.
The only thing that communicates through the radio in these cars as far as I know (of course I could be wrong) is the trip computer. I've had an aftermarket radio in my 07 for almost as long as I've had the car.

 

[eg6motion]

wow, im shocked they pulled that card. I'd call Mazda.

 

[djthom]

The only way they have a prayer of making this stick is if your radio is actually connected to the bus. If not, they got nothin.
The only thing that communicates through the radio in these cars as far as I know (of course I could be wrong) is the trip computer. I've had an aftermarket radio in my 07 for almost as long as I've had the car.

i got that red stripe dvd/nav radio from caradvanced.com so it does plug into the can+ and can-

 

[eg6motion]

i got that red stripe dvd/nav radio from caradvanced.com so it does plug into the can+ and can-

I still can't see how that would affect it at all. Interesting to see how this plays out as I have the same unit. Going to try another dealer or what?

 

[Mid_Life_Crisis]

i got that red stripe dvd/nav radio from caradvanced.com so it does plug into the can+ and can-

I still can't see how that would affect it at all. Interesting to see how this plays out as I have the same unit. Going to try another dealer or what?

It may have nothing to do with it at all in reality.
That doesn't change the fact that the radio is tapped into the bus, and if the problem is in the bus, they have a very good chance of making it stick. The question is, what was the exact code? Could screwed up signals on the bus cause the problem?
You might want to enlist tech support for the H/U manufacturer if you can. Send an e-mail asking about the problem you have and let them know that a significant number of people are waiting to see if Mazda ends up honoring the warranty or if their product voided it.