Aftermarket speakers void warranty???

[Jason Klinger]

So yeah...Apparently the service department at my Ford dealer says that my aftermarket speakers, Infinity Reference 6x8s, have caused the right channels in my Audiophile headunit to die and thus voiding any warranty and their liabilities. Yet the left ones AND the sub (also aftermarket) continue to work. All of these have the same impedence as the factory units they replaced. I checked voltage at one of the right speakers and got less than 1 VDC. I'm going to hook up the stock speaker at the suggestion of the service guy, because he's sooooo convinced that will fix the issue.



I'm so mad I could literally explode right now... :angry:



WTF mate?

 

[Jeff C]

Can they prove it?



Go back with a copy of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act and ask them to explain how it happened...



I can see an aftermarket head unit voiding the warranty on factory speakers, but not the other way around...

 

[Andy Chase]

Check the fine print of the warranty, they might have a statement in there of what void's the warranty.

 

[Richard L]

They cannot add statements to the warranty that violate the Magnusson-Moss warranty act.



Unless they can prove that the speaker is the wrong ohms or was wired incorectly so as to cause the channel amp to blow, they cannot void the warranty.



Dealer do that crap all the time and think they can get a way with it. The problem is that most people believe them and that's why they do it.



In order to prove that the radio was damaged by the speaker they would have to have the readio removed, sent out to a repair depot for inspection and only then could it be determined that the speaker blew the channel out on the unit. I suspect that they simply saw that aftermarket speakers and assumed the speakers were to blame, which violates the Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act. That clearly states, that the simple presence of an aftermarket part cannot be grounds for voiding the warranty. The dealer is required to prove that the failed part was directly caused by the aftermarket part.



Lookup the Magnusson - Moss Warranty Act on the Internet and read it. You can actuall file a Federal complaint about this dealership. Just letting the Dealership know that you know about the Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act will probably be enough to get them to fix your radio.



...Rich

 

[shawn stonbraker 2]

Well put Richard L. Jason, they are giving you a load of crap my friend. There is no way (unless wired wrong) that a speaker can harm a headunit. Most speaker meet or exceed OEM so tell them they are full of it and have them prove it to you.

 

[Dingo]

Just go to a different dealer.

 

[Jason Klinger]

WOOT!... I removed the right door panels last evening to just verify everything physically. Snug as its getting, so I touched the speaker terminals together with a 4 ohm resistor between the two. Not sure what I was hoping to accomplish, but what do I have to lose at this point? I hear a slight hum from the left side. Reconnect the right speaker and *BOOM*... LET THERE BE ROCK! \m/ With my mostly basic knowledge of board level electronics I cannot explain why this worked, but hey...it WORKED! Any gurus out there wanna take a stab?



Now onto the fact that this dealership (to be named later on the dealer report card) employs incompetent and lying people... :angry:



Anyhow, thanks for the suggestions and for letting me b*tch!

 

[Shawn Bialas]

Jason,



Ideally you should have 0VDC to your speakers. Putting the 4 ohm resistor in parallel with your speaker is essentially cutting the impedance of your entire system (on that channel). So if it was a 4 ohm speaker you put in, you now how a 2 ohm impedance, if it was an 8 ohm, you have a 2 2/3 ohm impedance. I personally think your head unit should be replaced, I really can't be certain of why this lower impedance system works, but I do know that the resistor you installed is wasting power and causing you to have an unbalanced load (between the right and left channels) on the amplifier. So you will be getting more power out of the lower impedance speaker channel.



I re-read what you wrote...I'm not sure if you left the resistor in your system, but if you did, the above paragraph still applies. If not, I have no idea what happened for you, but if it continues to work for you then that's awesome, it seems like the resistor may not have done anything and you might just have had a loose connection to that speaker. I'd say still try to get a free updated head unit though



-Shawn

 

[Carey Frennier]

Give the dealership a break. The tech probably isn't a degree holding electronics expert. The tech probably didn't know exactly what caused the issue. If someone brought a vehicle to me with engine problems and I saw a ton of aftermarket crap on it...that would be my first place for investigation. Especially with aftermarket audio equipment. Unless it was something really obvious.



For instance; I brought my STA in to my dealership because the check engine light was on. The tech looked at it and the first thing that came out of his mouth was; " we need to make sure that your aftermarkets are no causing this issue." When I got the truck home it turned out to be a loose MAF sensor connection.



I can't imagine that they were trying to knowingly deceive you. They want it to be under warranty just as much as you do!

 

[Jason Klinger]

Shawn,



Resistor is out, I just wanted to "replicate" a speaker without a real speaker.



Thanks for the info!

Give the dealership a break.

I'm about as easy going as they get, follow the golden rule, and I've worked retail so I know customers can be jerks. I didn't lose my patience, etc. But I purchased my ST here, I take it there for service, take my work truck there for service, purchase parts there etc...These guys were the exclusive place for my auto needs. I don't have a garage at the moment, so I'm not able to change my oil, etc. So I rely on someone trusted to do it for me until I can buy a place more condusive to DIY.



I wasn't asking/expecting them to be electronic wizards, but I thought my loyalty to them might just bring some, oh...i don't know...HONESTY. The service manager couldn't have been more scripted. He was like a robot with every question I asked. I wasn't being a douche, so I don't know why he was. Since when do Infinity speakers qualify as a "ton of aftermarket crap". Really it is more about the fact that I know they lied than the stereo/speaker issue.



Chapter is closed imo.

 

[Roger Batts]

They want it to be under warranty just as much as you do!

The truth of the matter is, most dealerships DON'T want the job to be warranty. Dealers make more money on customer pay jobs than they do warranty. Also, when a dealer has a lot of warranty claims, the manufacturer will audit the dealer and then charge what they feel are frivolous claims back to them.



I've been working in dealerships for 16 years in parts. I've seen it happen several times.

 

[Fudged Undies]

Richard L. - Mag-Moss has NOTHING to do with <b>upgrading</b> equipment. The MM act is in place for the sake of not getting raped by dealers parts dept. when it comes to maintenance items ie oil filters, oil etc.

 

[Carey Frennier]

Rodger,



No dought we make more on retail jobs.



There is a competitive, failing Ford dealership at the other end of the city. They have been losing service customers for around 30 years and we get almost half of their service customers because they are not satisfied with their work.



I've actually spoken about this with my service manager. Warranty work is going by the wayside as quality continues to improve with FLM vehicles. Warranty work used to be close to 45% of our sold labor...it is now less than 30%. This has been over the last 3 - 4 years that it has steadily dropped. Ford is on a par with Toyota quality now which was their goal about 10 years ago. As far as profitability...Retail is far more profitable. Ford is very stingy on labor allowances...they dictate what we get paid. Parts are only marked up 40% where as with Retail they can be marked up as much as 200%. Due to the loss of warranty work we have had to try extra hard to sell services to customers and give away the Multipoint inspections to keep track of tire and brake wear, battery condition etc. The techs don't care one way or the other as they are paid hourly not by flat rate. It makes for a better quality job. You can make more money with flat rate but the comebacks are doubled or tripled because everybody is looking out for their pocket and not the customer.



Despite the fact that retail is more profitable, we WANT you to bring us your warranty work. We want you to come to us when your warranty is expired. We actively seek every single bit of business we can get.

 

[Gypsy me]

Once this is fixed, I would write a '"nice" letter to the dealership owner, explain all that happened and included a copy of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, this act was put into place to protect the consumer (also the car makers/dealerships/warranty companies) trying to get warranty work done. If the unit was Ford factory installed and you are still under warranty. It will apply. They have to prove an aftermarket part or the instillation of it is the cause. If that dealership is losing business, it's because of the scripted words the Service Manger used.



Document all your findings. make a copy of what you send to the dealership owner. Explain to him or her that you just felt they needed to know how one customer was treated and if one was..then probably others have been too and you felt as a customer he or she had a right to know how just one customer was treated.



I know dealerships that don't mind after market parts at all, They will service the vehicle under warranty with no issues, if there is a warranty in place. The problem now days with Ford (and I am sure other makers) and warranty work, is IF the dealership has an excess of warranty work done...Ford may have a cap, if you will, placed on the dealership that may limit them from getting warranty work paid. then again, I know dealerships that have lost tons of warranty work money of things that were not covered...and paid it themselves JUST SO THE CUSTOMER WAS SERVICED AND HAPPY...BECAUSEi] those dealerships understand what quality service is all about and want repeat business.[/i] And guess what?...So far, that idea is working well even in today's auto market for those particular dealerships!

I m a g i n e THAT?!?!



if you don't do any of the above Cool...but at least after you place them on the report card list here. Drop off that part of the site web link to the owner so at least he can read it. They need to know WHY they are losing business. or why you lost faith in them at the very least. The Owner probably don't even know what is going on.