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      12-16-2016, 05:10 PM   #1
brandoningram14
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Chances an engine failure claim would get rejected if I have a tune and a/m clutch?

I have a catback exhaust, aftermarket clutch, aa green filter and a tune. What are the chances my claim gets rejected if I have an engine failure? I'm currently shopping 3rd party warranties and comparing prices (zurich, easycare, local CU, etc.) AFAIK, only bmw would pull the ECU and run it to see if there's been any modifications, correct?

If I bring this to an independent shop, would they even bother pulling the ECU?
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      12-16-2016, 07:41 PM   #2
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with a tune it's game over.
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      12-16-2016, 09:07 PM   #3
brandoningram14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by shimmy23 View Post
with a tune it's game over.
Really? Is this standard protocol for them? What if I flash my ECU back to stock?
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      12-16-2016, 09:22 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by brandoningram14 View Post
Really? Is this standard protocol for them? What if I flash my ECU back to stock?

Yes, because you're pushing the engine past its originally designed limits (or something like that). They can detect if the car was reflashed if they really want to, but who knows if they actually would. Mods will always raise suspicion even if they had nothing to do with it.
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      12-16-2016, 09:23 PM   #5
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Yea thats pretty basic across the board, will be able to tell in some cases if you did a tune even if you reflash it. And its fraud if you do manage to get away with it.
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      12-16-2016, 10:12 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by squartus View Post
Yea thats pretty basic across the board, will be able to tell in some cases if you did a tune even if you reflash it. And its fraud if you do manage to get away with it.
Hmm how much would you say a 2011 e90 with a non ucntioning engine would go for? Trying to asses the worst case scenario. My car has full maintainence records since mile 1 but I have no idea how common these engines fail or how hard the car was pushed despite it being maintained well. Now I'm considering just going without a warranty or selling this car and buying a stock one
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      12-17-2016, 02:50 AM   #7
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Is it possible BMW might overlook your car being tuned? maybe
is it likely ? probably not.
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      12-17-2016, 05:08 AM   #8
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What if you have it flashed with the GTS tune. Then you could argue it's OEM addition.
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      12-17-2016, 08:23 AM   #9
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With a third party warranty it's unlikely they would ask to see any tune related data. However-being an owner of a shop they do generally ask if the car has any modifications and in an engine failure case they would likely want to see maintenance history so be aware of that.
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      12-17-2016, 10:00 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GMWNashville View Post
With a third party warranty it's unlikely they would ask to see any tune related data. However-being an owner of a shop they do generally ask if the car has any modifications and in an engine failure case they would likely want to see maintenance history so be aware of that.
Yeah I can provide full maintenance history, but what if I was unaware or just forgot to bring up the tune?

I don't know how often these engines fail, but I never push the car and never get it close to stock redline or maxspeed
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      12-17-2016, 10:20 PM   #11
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I had a leak from the head gasket and transmission that was very minimal but present. The extended warranty company sent an inspector and once he saw my suspension, and cat back exhaust, they cancelled my policy. There was NO engine work done.
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Last edited by aus; 12-18-2016 at 12:47 AM..
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      12-18-2016, 12:07 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by brandoningram14 View Post

I don't know how often these engines fail, but I never push the car and never get it close to stock redline or maxspeed
Lol you never see 8300 rpm? Why did you even buy this car?
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      12-18-2016, 12:38 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aus View Post
I have a leak from the head gasket and transmission that was very minimal but present. The extended warranty company sent an inspector and once he saw my suspension, and cat back exhaust, they cancelled my policy. There was NO engine work done.
that's ridiculous

who was the underwriter?
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      12-18-2016, 12:39 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mdm9 View Post
Lol you never see 8300 rpm? Why did you even buy this car?
what i meant was i'm in 7-8k quite a bit but I don't think I've ever passed redline once (personally)
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      12-20-2016, 02:34 AM   #15
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Depends on your relationship with the shop doing the work and who has the warranty. In my case I had BMW extended but I also had a really good relationship with my SA. Despite being full bolt on with tune, catless, etc. I was always covered, including but not limited to driver side throttle actuator, cylinder 3 valve spring and fuel injector, and other random things in the engine.
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      12-20-2016, 09:36 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pooyab View Post
What if you have it flashed with the GTS tune. Then you could argue it's OEM addition.

Have fun arguing that with BMW or your warranty provider. It's not what came on your ECU from the factory. Your car is not a GTS.

If you want to know for sure, call the warranty provider and ask them something like this: "I am thinking about modifying the engine computer, how will that affect my warranty?"
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      12-20-2016, 09:36 PM   #17
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I would say a clutch is fine, as long as the clutch isn't what caused the failure.

But, a tune, you can kiss your engine warranty goodbye.
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      12-20-2016, 10:30 PM   #18
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Aftermarket car warranties are pure gambles...they're expensive when you don't need them, and even more expensive when you MIGHT need it.

I like to save that money for repairs or parts.

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      12-21-2016, 05:00 PM   #19
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Aftermarket warranties are the best ones, especially for major engine issues.

Fidelity, Easycare, and Zurich are the best three I've seen.
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      12-21-2016, 05:09 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Benvo View Post
Aftermarket warranties are the best ones, especially for major engine issues.

Fidelity, Easycare, and Zurich are the best three I've seen.
But if I run into an engine-related problem, what do I tell the shop? If I tell them I have a tune and an aftermarket clutch, there's no way I'll get the work approved. If I play pretend, it's fraud. In this case I might as well just save the money and not get a warranty and just pray I don't run into a catastrophic failure, right?
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      12-21-2016, 11:16 PM   #21
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Suppose you buy your car pre owned? How is it your fault if it was done prior to your acquisition of the car?
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      12-22-2016, 01:24 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by brandoningram14 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Benvo View Post
Aftermarket warranties are the best ones, especially for major engine issues.

Fidelity, Easycare, and Zurich are the best three I've seen.
But if I run into an engine-related problem, what do I tell the shop? If I tell them I have a tune and an aftermarket clutch, there's no way I'll get the work approved. If I play pretend, it's fraud. In this case I might as well just save the money and not get a warranty and just pray I don't run into a catastrophic failure, right?
A shop will want to perform the warranty work and be paid by an extended warranty company - so take it in and say nothing. It's not fraud unless you believe the modifications caused the failure, which in all likelyhood will not be the case.
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