Tunes and warranty

[stylin8o8]

ALOHA!!!!!

Hey guys im hearing a lot of mixed thoughts about tunes. I heard about ESS's tune for primary cat delete which is what i want to do, but the dealer here is kind of a stickler on that ind of stuff. I heard that putting on a tune kills warranty and some people saying it doesn't. Can you guys please shed some light on this? Will a tune from ESS kill my warranty? I wanna get rid of my primary cats and the CEL that comes with that. I have a 2011 e90 M3.

Mahalo,
Puna

[rjd598]

catless exhaust WILL kill your warranty most likely. the odds of a tune voiding your warranty are slim

[BPMSport]

Never had an issue with warranty with my car or any of my clients cars.

If catless though, they can definitely cause problems for you. Catless + no CEL is also a giveaway but you could say you just cleared the fault.

[Will@P]

It really depends on how strict your dealer is about mods. Going cat less is a dead give a away, but if you get a flash tune where you can unflash with your laptop then they cannot do anything about it.

[C|3R1C]

The catless pipes are the big thing. Some dealers just tell you to swap to original oem xpipe before taking it in. Reflash just be safe. It's what I do so much effort (then again all my problems are always O2 related lol)

[stylin8o8]

Thanks guys. What about Akras r delete. I heard the software records every flash you do.

[Bushido Brown]

Originally Posted by stylin8o8

Thanks guys. What about Akras r delete. I heard the software records every flash you do.

The Delete-R just keeps resetting it to keep the CEL off.

[BPMSport]

Originally Posted by stylin8o8

Thanks guys. What about Akras r delete. I heard the software records every flash you do.

When I flash a car it actually does not increase the flash counters. You're much better off with a flash to turn the CEL off for Increased emissions over the delete-r. I have had quite a few people come by to have it done right and then they sell the delete-r to someone else. Seems to hold it's value though - but definitely not the right way of doing it!

[rjd598]

Originally Posted by Mike Benvo

When I flash a car it actually does not increase the flash counters. You're much better off with a flash to turn the CEL off for Increased emissions over the delete-r. I have had quite a few people come by to have it done right and then they sell the delete-r to someone else. Seems to hold it's value though - but definitely not the right way of doing it!

i always thought if you're paying for the delete-r just pay a little more and you get a tune that gives way more added benefits

[edwinm3]

If BMW NA wants to know if your car had a tune they will know and use that excuse to deny any warranty claims. Of course that will be for major repair bills.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by edwinm3

If BMW NA wants to know if your car had a tune they will know and use that excuse to deny any warranty claims. Of course that will be for major repair bills.

Bingo. Here's the deal: changing ANYTHING on your car that's not part of the BMW maintenance program *can* kill your warranty. It really doesn't matter what your dealer says.

The question is, when does it become a problem?

Some dealers will make it a problem on the next service, some won't. Your real concern is the risk of something BIG happening and having your claim denied because you did something that's outside of the maintenance program.

This is why tunes, check-r, and messing with cats are no-nos for the risk averse like me. The odds are *probably* small and if you can afford $35000 if that risk triggers then go for it.

If you want to stay in the safe zone stick to cosmetics and an axel-back.

Remember, none of the vendors or fan boys who tell you go for it will be sending you checks or lawyers if your engine blows due to a manufacturing defect.

[edwinm3]

Originally Posted by GrussGott

Bingo. Here's the deal: changing ANYTHING on your car that's not part of the BMW maintenance program *can* kill your warranty. It really doesn't matter what your dealer says.

The question is, when does it become a problem?

Some dealers will make it a problem on the next service, some won't. Your real concern is the risk of something BIG happening and having your claim denied because you did something that's outside of the maintenance program.

This is why tunes, check-r, and messing with cats are no-nos for the risk averse like me. The odds are *probably* small and if you can afford $35000 if that risk triggers then go for it.

If you want to stay in the safe zone stick to cosmetics and an axel-back.

Remember, none of the vendors or fan boys who tell you go for it will be sending you checks or lawyers if your engine blows due to a manufacturing defect.

When sh*t hits the fan and something expensive needs repair data is read and they'll know everything about the car, what's been done, how's been driven, etc. then its gonna be up to corporate and not up to the dealer anymore regardless of how cool your service advisor is and how mod friendly the dealer is.

I have mine tuned and it's catless but that's because I was willing to sacrifice and take the risk. But it's just something to keep in mind if you're really concerned about your warranty. Even Dinan is a PIA to deal with.

[6spdg37s]

Originally Posted by GrussGott

Bingo. Here's the deal: changing ANYTHING on your car that's not part of the BMW maintenance program *can* kill your warranty. It really doesn't matter what your dealer says.

The question is, when does it become a problem?

Some dealers will make it a problem on the next service, some won't. Your real concern is the risk of something BIG happening and having your claim denied because you did something that's outside of the maintenance program.

This is why tunes, check-r, and messing with cats are no-nos for the risk averse like me. The odds are *probably* small and if you can afford $35000 if that risk triggers then go for it.

If you want to stay in the safe zone stick to cosmetics and an axel-back.

Remember, none of the vendors or fan boys who tell you go for it will be sending you checks or lawyers if your engine blows due to a manufacturing defect.

+ 1 bro I am doing an exhaust, coding, tint and DTEC halos thats it

[mlhj83]

Simple answer: if you are in anyway worried about warranty, don't mod the drivetrain. Regardless to the quality of the mod, when major problems occur, BMW can turn around and say anything they like and it's up to you to prove them wrong. Are you willing to go through the hassle?

Also, no remap is invisible, even if it's removed before going to the dealership. A casual diagnostic will not show any signs of a remap but if BMW wants to find it, they will.

[stylin8o8]

Thanks guys appreciate it!

that made my mind up im gunna wait till after warranty to delete the cats yay for 4 years