Electric mods void warrenty?

[senectus]

Someone on the Australian Prius mail list mentioned that Toyota will not honor the warranty on a Prius if you've made any electrical alterations, such as reversing senors and mobile phone hands free kits..
Does anyone know if this is true?

I really hope not..

[TonyPSchaefer]

Hit this link:
http://www.toyota.com/vehicles/2005/prius/..._prius_faq.html
and scroll all the way down to the very bottom.

Or trust that I've copied and pasted correctly:
25. Does Toyota support the modification of my Prius to be a plug-in Hybrid and run on electric mode only with a switch?
Any such alterations, modifications or tampering with the vehicle voids the warranty and is likely to be counterproductive for air quality and Prius’ durability and safety.

You'll notice that it's the very last question which seems to indicate that it is the last one added. Probably after Toyota got wind that owners are performing mods.

[mikepaul]

Hard to tell if 'plug' is more important than 'switch' there.

I still say that all those European Prii running around with EV switches would be hard for Toyota to explain in court, without a lot of ego:

"But You Honor, *those* cars are in Europe, and *these* cars are here. Same factory, same computers, sure. But WE decided that EV mode was not for the US, and our will should reign supreme..."

[TonyPSchaefer]

It's my understanding that the reason the EV switch is not available as an option in the US has to do with vehicles allowing the driver to choose the fuel source. The Prius does not let the driver directly decide which fuel to use. Yeah, yeah, I love to stealth too, but the point is, there has not yet been an automobile mass-produced by a leading manufacturer with the ability to manually switch from one fuel source to another.

There's a thread somewhere in here explaining it many times clearer than I can.

[naterprius]

I have already had a warrantable condition fixed on the Hybrid computer after performing the EV mod using the japanese button (clearly visible on the dash).

The car died rolling down the road, and would only drive in electric mode. The dealer performed a reprogram of the ECU according to a Technical Service Bulletin. They were well aware of the EV button; they said that had nothing to do with the failure; the failure was well documented in the TSB, so they reprogrammed the unit under warranty and I was on my way.

Nate

[Canuck]

senectus, it should put your mind as ease regarding the reversing sensors , at least for the system that the Toyota dealer installed in mine. I disabled the normal reverse beeps myself 'cause I didn't need those as well as the sensor distance indicator ones. It works very well by the way.

[Wolfman]

There's a little court case called Magnum-Moss. Toyota, nor any other auto manufacturer for that matter, may void the warranty over the existance of electrical "mods", unless they are DIRECTLY responsible for the vehicles malfunction.

[efusco]

A few Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act References:

http://www.sema.org/main/semaorghome.aspx?ID=50096

http://www.mustangmemory.com/Magnuson_Moss.htm

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/usc...1_15_10_50.html

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspub...bs/warranty.htm

http://www.granatellimotorsports.com/magnusonmoss.htm

My summary of reading this is that there is not a specific provision in MM that says anything about modifying your car. However there are several references to using aftermarket/non-OEM parts in the car and it is VERY clearly stated that they cannot void the warranty if you use aftermarket parts unless it can be shown that those parts directly caused the failure you're seeking to have repaired under warranty.

Might there be a legal scrap if your HV battery dies and, for some weird reason, your local dealer decides they don't want to do the warranty work and get the money the will make for doing it and then denies your work THEN you do have lots of resources to pursue this. In fact the act encourages out of court dispute resolution and the FTC has several mechanisms installed to facilitate that. It is in the business's best interest to resolve those out of court b/c if they do have to go to court and they lose then they must not only do the warranty work but also reimburse the consumer for the legal costs incurred!

So, Yes, if your EV mod fries your HV ECU b/c you accidently connected it directly to the inverter and 500v went directly into the HV ECU, you won't have much luck fighting this in court. If your ICE blows a cylinder and you have a properly installed EV button that is completely unrelated then no way can they deny your warranty. There probably is some gray zone. And, as always, if you can not afford to replace the ECU or battery and you're at all unsure about the warranty issue then you should not do the mod.

[senectus]

Ok.. cool thanks..

My main question was really concerning the mobile phone hands free kit, but I feel a lot better about that now too..