[ybbiz34]

Originally Posted by HyperM3

Why do you have nitrous in your 335? Trying to emulate Brian Spillner?

"Brian Earl Spillner...that sounds like a serial killer name"

[markis64]

Originally Posted by ybbiz34

"Brian Earl Spillner...that sounds like a serial killer name"

I need one of the big bottles, no better yet better make it two, and I need them tonight. Are u kidding me Brian?! amateurs don't use NOS!"


On another note, good luck!

[nespharym]

For the others

I am not a novice driver

This is my third MT BMW, my second is heavily modified

I was a production manager on an assembly line......parts do come defective....that's why the whole warranty plan came about

If an aftermarket clutch or flywheel was available, I would buy them

The closest dealership, besides the local one is 3.5 hrs away

This dealership has not even inspected the car, and has already blamed my mods- from suspension to the BOV, for the clutch failure

I am just requesting help, esp. from those who have had their clutch replaced

[HyperM3]

Originally Posted by nespharym

For the others

I am not a novice driver

This is my third MT BMW, my second is heavily modified

I was a production manager on an assembly line......parts do come defective....that's why the whole warranty plan came about

If an aftermarket clutch or flywheel was available, I would buy them

The closest dealership, besides the local one is 3.5 hrs away

This dealership has not even inspected the car, and has already blamed my mods- from suspension to the BOV, for the clutch failure

I am just requesting help, esp. from those who have had their clutch replaced

Well, unfortunately youre SOL. You either need to deal with driving 3.5 hours to get a second opinion, or suck it up and deal with your closer one. Either way, theres not much we can do here to help you sleep better at night about it.

[Michael Schott]

Originally Posted by nespharym

For the others

I am not a novice driver

This is my third MT BMW, my second is heavily modified

I was a production manager on an assembly line......parts do come defective....that's why the whole warranty plan came about

If an aftermarket clutch or flywheel was available, I would buy them

The closest dealership, besides the local one is 3.5 hrs away

This dealership has not even inspected the car, and has already blamed my mods- from suspension to the BOV, for the clutch failure

I am just requesting help, esp. from those who have had their clutch replaced

It's tough to be sympathetic towards your situation. You didn't like the answers you received on another BMW forum so you came here to see if it would any different and it is not. It seems no one has the answer you are looking for. I suggest you bite the bullet and either pay for a new OEM clutch or have a stronger aftermarket unit installed. I can't imagine one is not available.

Thanks, Mike.

[scollins]

Originally Posted by JSpira

It won´t help because it´s not true. Magnuson-Moss doesn´t cover this nor state anything related to aftermarket equipment or the need to prove anything. What you quoted was written by someone who obviously hasn´t read the Act.

I think these guys have read the act and understand it pretty well:
SEMA's "Warranty Denied?" information

To quote from their page about Magnuson-Moss:
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act may also be helpful. Under this federal law, you can sue on breach of express and implied warranties. The main point of interest here is that the Act says warranty coverage may not be conditioned upon the use of only the vehicle manufacturer's parts unless the parts are provided free of charge. In other words, use of a non-carmaker product should not void your warranty unless it caused the problem.

[canucklion]

nicely said.

Originally Posted by Michael Schott

It's tough to be sympathetic towards your situation. You didn't like the answers you received on another BMW forum so you came here to see if it would any different and it is not. It seems no one has the answer you are looking for. I suggest you bite the bullet and either pay for a new OEM clutch or have a stronger aftermarket unit installed. I can't imagine one is not available.

Thanks, Mike.

[pittyinSC]

Um BOV's dont add any power, if anything you lose power

[nespharym]

Originally Posted by Michael Schott

It's tough to be sympathetic towards your situation. You didn't like the answers you received on another BMW forum so you came here to see if it would any different and it is not. It seems no one has the answer you are looking for. I suggest you bite the bullet and either pay for a new OEM clutch or have a stronger aftermarket unit installed. I can't imagine one is not available.

Thanks, Mike.

Please tell me what other forum I posted this issue on

This one has its share of band wagon climbers who luv to lay blame....that is why I caveated the OP. I am looking for suggestions to help with the warranty, not on opinions why the clutch went out.

Furthermore, if you can't imagine an aftermarket clutch not being available, show me one

[jscott]

"fit for purpose". By definition, a clutch that is fit for purpose does not break at 6,400 miles regardless of how clumsy the driver is.

I completely agree. For the sake of argument let's just say one of his mods was causing the clutch to wear at 4x the normal rate. The clutch is dead now at 6,400 miles, so if he didn't have the mod the clutch would have expired in 25,600 miles.

That would seem like premature failure to me. I'm thinking the clutch should last 50K+ miles.

I tried to read back but I didn't see where he listed mods that increased the engine's HP. The nitrous spray across the intercooler would generate some HP, even though he stated it has never been used. I think you would have to be making 50+ hp over stock for them to even have a claim that the mod caused clutch failure. Even then it would likely only cause the friction surface to wear out sooner than it's expected life.

@nespharym: Has the dealership even told you specifically what's wrong with the clutch? Did the friction surface wear out, did some mechanical component fail? I don't see how they can even say a mod caused the failure if they haven't looked at it close enough to know what failed.

[jscott]

@nespharym : Can you find out the specs of the oem clutch? How much HP is it rated for and what's it's expected life span?

If you had this info you could then ask the dealer to prove that your mods exceeded the specifications.

Just an idea...

[AltecBX]

Go to a different dealer. Case close.

[JSpira]

Originally Posted by scollins

I think these guys have read the act and understand it pretty well:
SEMA's "Warranty Denied?" information

To quote from their page about Magnuson-Moss:
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act may also be helpful. Under this federal law, you can sue on breach of express and implied warranties. The main point of interest here is that the Act says warranty coverage may not be conditioned upon the use of only the vehicle manufacturer's parts unless the parts are provided free of charge. In other words, use of a non-carmaker product should not void your warranty unless it caused the problem.

If they read it, they got it wrong.

This has ONLY to do with tie-in sales, nothing more, nothing less.

Modifying your car has nothing to do with tie-in sales.

[JSpira]

Originally Posted by AltecBX

Go to a different dealer. Case close.

Not sure how that will help. Do you think a different dealer won´t read the car´s service history?

[BoostedBMW]

I feel sympathetic towards your situation because it is one that I have been in myself with previous cars where the dealership would blame totally unrelated mods in an attempt to deny warranty work. On my first car, a honda civic, they didn't want to see why my airbag light was on in the car because I had a neon light plugged into the cigarette lighter (give me a break here, I was 17 at the time).

Sometimes certain service departments simply won't want to work on cars with mods, and you can either bring your car to another dealer or try to fight them on it, which will probably be an uphill battle. Have you tried speaking with the service manager to grease the wheels so to speak. Sometimes that helps things go a little smoother, but I make sure to do so before I have a problem with my car. Sounds like you are SOL with this dealer though.

[turbotko]

BMW does not usually cover clutches under warranty anyway..........so you would be SOL even if it was stock. The only exception is if a rear main was leaking and got oil on the clutch somehow or some other type of consequential damage.

If you look at it logically, they really can't cover clutches. Think about it, I could go out and destroy the clutch on a brand spanking new car within 2 miles of owing it.

This is what normally happens to clutches on BMW's. Some idiot goes out and sidesteps the clutch at 6K rpm to see it "burn out"..........only problem is they didn't know to turn off the DSC. The first thing DSC does when it see's the rear tires spinning wildly is grab the rear brakes, which usually pulverizes the poor clutch before it even gets fully engaged.

Man up, buy a clutch, and hope the $1000 flywheel isn't toast too.

[Mr. 5]

There's something weird about this.
I'm wondering if we're getting the whole story.
Good luck man.

[O-cha]

Originally Posted by turbotko

BMW does not usually cover clutches under warranty anyway..........so you would be SOL even if it was stock. The only exception is if a rear main was leaking and got oil on the clutch somehow or some other type of consequential damage.

If you look at it logically, they really can't cover clutches. Think about it, I could go out and destroy the clutch on a brand spanking new car within 2 miles of owing it.

This is what normally happens to clutches on BMW's. Some idiot goes out and sidesteps the clutch at 6K rpm to see it "burn out"..........only problem is they didn't know to turn off the DSC. The first thing DSC does when it see's the rear tires spinning wildly is grab the rear brakes, which usually pulverizes the poor clutch before it even gets fully engaged.

Man up, buy a clutch, and hope the $1000 flywheel isn't toast too.

1: Abused clutches show signs of abuse.
2: Dsc does not grab the rear brakes It either limits the throttle, pulls timings way back, or engages ONE rear brake at a time.
3: It is my understanding that BMW covers one "good faith" clutch under the service plan.

[stressdoc]

Talk directly with BMW customer relations.

[scooby9]

I don't get what the dealer's problem is. They get paid by BMW for warranty work anyways. It's not like they lose money for doing warranty work...

[Michael Schott]

Originally Posted by nespharym

Please tell me what other forum I posted this issue on

This one has its share of band wagon climbers who luv to lay blame....that is why I caveated the OP. I am looking for suggestions to help with the warranty, not on opinions why the clutch went out.

Furthermore, if you can't imagine an aftermarket clutch not being available, show me one

I apologize, it was a post on the same topic on this website from 1-12. Sorry, but the responses are the same in both posts. You are still looking for a way to get this fixed under warranty and my original response stands.

Thanks, Mike.

[GMWNashville]

no the clutch isnt a covered wear and tear thing in the longterm but given his low miles...however yes the tech and dealer get paid but they do keep track of how much warranty stuff you do...