remember that he has had these mods for quite awhile with no cels. then after he went for his 30k mile service he got a cel that keeps re -occuring and they dont know why. instead of tracking down what is causing the cel (quite possibly an error made by their mechanic during the service) they have decided to refuse to work on it and brand his entire warrenty. something is fishy here.

 

He wasn't trying to get warranty work done, it sounds to me like he went in for help, and they told him the entire warranty is void based on what they saw. Which is utter crap. However without the time/money/willpower to go to court over it.... He would definately win the case however.

I would recommend checking with another dealer and seeing if the warranty is actually 'voided.' I'm betting that it's not, and this is their way of refusing future warranty work on your car.

 

I do belive he had a SR Mid pipe installed.

The thing I can't figure out is the cell after the 30k service check up.

Are the fuel injectors are sending too much fuel? If so, how and why did it occur after the 30k checkup?

 

Yeah.. I believe it may be something with the fuel injectors but I am not sure. The day that I got my car back after the 30k service, I had this really bad smell of fuel that didnt go away for about a month. I couldnt even drive with the windows down because the smell was so bad. When I first would get into the car I would have to put on the A/C for a few minutes just to get the smell out of the car. It was terrible!

I am going to take my car into a local shop here to see if they can fix the CEL. If that involves replacing some parts back to stock then so be it. If we get the car all the way back to OEM and the CEL light is still on, then I will contact someone at SEMA and ask them for assistance in obtaining a lawyer because obviously it wasnt my mods. We'll see. I have no problem with paying for labor or new parts if it's something I caused but that has yet to be determined...

Thankx for all the advice everyone. I'll let you guys know whats up in the coming days.. Hopefully i'll know something tomorrow.

 

Do you or did you have an intake Dave? They can mess with the maf sensor and screw up the air fuel ratio. Sometimes even after you take them off if it was a oil coated filter the problem will still exist. There's also the possibilty of fouled plugs as a result of the intake. Even though I believe if you mod you should be prepared to deal with warranty problems I hope it turns out to be something minor and not costly. Goodluck to you, and keep us posted.

 

Here's an example of Freeze Frame Data (FFD) for any interested in how the dealership knows how fast you were going.



This of course is only an autoxray capture (4000 series), and isn't a full WDS capture (which has more info).

Only way to clear the FFD is to clear the cel...and if you do that, you'll have no diagnostic information for troubleshooting the problem.

Got mods? Buy a scanner. Got even more mods? Buy the workshop manuals and wiring diagrams.

And don't forget yee old creed

"Don't mod what you can't afford to replace."

 

How long does that data stay in memory? For example I got a CEL / loss of power issue once on the track. Doing 100+/ 7000 + RPM. Driving back the 300 miles home no CEL but I didn’t push it hard. The dealer claimed there wasn’t any “definitive” info in the PCM. Ended up just changing the plugs. Did I erase the CEL info with my 300-mile "normal" trip home?

 

Each CEL has a different type of "condition". Some are continuous monitors, while others are drive cycle checkers. (Problem has to exist for two concurrent drive cycles).

The FFD data will remain as long as its not overwritten by a trouble code with a higher priority (or you reset it). If you get multiple cels or pending codes, whatever code has the highest prority will overwrite the other codes FFD's.

As far as I'm aware you can only have Freeze Frame Data for a single cel. Examples of overriding cel's would be misfires.

 

DAVEFZR, I asked some questions of my local dealership service check-in~manager (Guy at the front service desk) before I installed my SR underdrive pulley kit and Racing Beat flywheel. That dealership did not have any issues with the Pulley or Flywheel modifications..... He even told me about one customer in the Raleigh NC area that had done everything he could to make his 8 faster and they seemed alright withit. Basically he shared with me that those mods would not void my warranty, but he did say changing the computer (Chip upgrade/Piggyback ECU) would void it.

 

The beauty of CanZoomer is, once it's removed, the factory ECU is none-the-wiser

 

It's amazing how Mazda would do this to someone that just spent 30K with them. We are the enthusiast for this car. They have sold thousands of these RX8’s to people that do not even know that this type of forum exists. They made their money – and should be willing to work with Dave to help him resolve this issue without loosing his loyalty.

I’m not sure how many of you will one day buy another rotary, but when the RX7 comes out again, or whatever they decide to call it, Dave will most likely have reservations about buying it after having to deal with this BS.

It’s a shame that we like our cars so much that we spend thousands of dollars on aftermarket parts, countless hours on shining them up to look good going down the road. It’s people like Dave and the rest of us that have given the RX8 a status on the road. Our cars have most likely lead to sales of more RX8’s. People look at mine and are always grinning when I pass them. Our cars are not the typical RX8’s out there, ours are meticulously pampered and modified to reflect who we are. We are rotary enthusiast’s damit – Mazda fix his car!

 

Just a little update.. A sad update at that though which pissies me off.

I have been talking with Snap-On through PM and he gave me a list of the different types of warranties that can be voided, Full, Drive Train, etc... Well.. It just so happens Mazda issued me a full warranty loss and it's just not limitied to the drive train...

Looks like i'll be contacting SEMA regardless now..

Oh the fun

 

There has got to be more to this than we have seen here??

Is there some kind of extenuating circumstance that is out of the ordinary?

A dickball service manager?
regional manager?
Client?

Why would Mazda void the whole warranty when it knows that it wont fly in court?

 

No matter what car company you're talking about a lot is always going to depend on the specific dealer and beyond that your regional rep that oks waranty claims. I'm very lucky and have a mod friendly dealer and a regional rep that overlooks a lot of basic mods. Other people have not been so lucky with their WRXs and I've even heard of dealers trying to deny warranty claims because of aftermarket wheels.

 

Because they know the chances of you taking them to court over such a matter is slim to none.

 

This is getting even worse guys.. I just found out tonight that it stated in one of the work orders produced by Mazda encouraging the customer to return the car to stock if the warranty work is to continue. Mazda NA nor my dealership made me aware of this fact and just voided my warranty.

This is getting uglier and uglier.

 

One other bit of information I found interesting was that it states I complained of the CEL occuring at 6700 rpm and not 6000 rpm. I think they deliberately did this because 6700 rpm is right at 90 mph and not 80...

This is getting wierd....

 

And is your signature on this work order? Whenever mine is in the shop I have to sign one upon pick-up of the car no matter how simple the work. If Mazda can present a signed work order advising you to return the car to stock months before this issue you’re screwed.

 

It's on the Mazda NA customer service system...

 

There are just way too many conflicting reports. Mazda NA saying it's a characteristic of the car vs. Mazda technical finding my aftermarket parts not causing any issues.

Mazda NA recommends to the customer that they should return the car back to stock or else the warranty will be voided. I was never made aware of this fact.

They document on the system that I stated it comes on at 6700 when in fact I said 6000 which is on all of the work orders my dealership gives to me.

Mazda NA wants to void my warranty because I drove 85 mph.

My car smells of fuel for 1 1/2 months after my 30k service and I could barely drive it, yet nobody is talking about this.

How long do they think they can drag me through the coals before I get a lawyer? I think I have reached that point knowing that they withheld information about my warranty being voided if I didnt return it to stock.

Thats pretty much my case, what do you guys think?

 

I thought you said you can reset the CEL by disconnecting the battery.

Then the CEL would not come on until you hit a specific speed and RPM.

Is this true?

What about a mild acceleration? Is it speed/RPM specific or RPM specific?

If it's RPM, maybe it's the pullies.

I just don't understand how your injectors could get cracked or get larger. If your intake was blocked the ECU should cause the car to run leaner not rich and backfire at high RPM.

You know FANMAN lives near you. He has same MODs but no problems.

Maybe his mechanic can look at it.

 

Yeah I can disconnct the battery/reset my CEL with the CANScan unit, but it comes back on at that RPM. I do not have to drive the car hard for the light to come on either.

I had my pullies checked out today the mechanic didnt find any issues with it except I needed a new belt. I doubt thats the issue but we'll see.

I'll talk to FANMAN as well and see if his mechanic can look at it in the future.

 

So now you need a new belt. Are you sure?

I'm gonna laugh if the computer gave you Cel for the belt and the computer was working fine all along. (The belt fooled the Mazda tech's ?)

In fact we will have to get togeather and I will buy you a beer and drink to that computer chip.

Ummm.. If the belt gets too loose at a certain RPM I believe it should throw a CEL.

If I were you have that mechanic show where or why the belt is no good.

 

I'll talk to him about that tomorrow when I pick up my car....

Thankx all for the advice....

 

I still have the issue of why my entire warranty was voided and why I was never told that it would be unless I returned my car fully to stock.. There is just too much going on here...