Avoid Voiding Your Toyota Warranty with This Important Advice on How Warranties Work and Don’t Work

Car Warranties Explained

For most cars, a bumper-to-bumper warranty is 36 months/ 36,000 miles and the powertrain warranty is 5 years/60,000 miles. When buying a new car, those warranties might not seem like a big deal---it’s far into the future…right? Well, the reality of buying a new car is that in fact, you can expect many models to have problems just within the first year of purchase.

And, for those of you who are buying a relatively new used car, the significance of those aforementioned warranties become even more important and can seriously affect whether that used car turns out to be a bad purchase.

But rather than focus on car model reliability predictions, in today’s article we will take a look at how warranties can wind up being voided---not so much by the car---but by the owner or the person who has done some maintenance service or other work on your Toyota.

Slap in the Head Moments

Have you ever had of one those “slap yourself in the head” moments when you discover that what you thought was protected by your car’s warranty turned out not to be due to some mistake you made in the past? Or, failed to understand that your car warranty did apply, but a service department made you think otherwise?

Related article: Consumer Reports Analysts Reveal the Used Cars Most Likely to Need an Engine Rebuild

If so, then this is an important” must-see” bit of advice from a Toyota Master Diagnostic Technician from the “The Car Care Nut" YouTube channel who explains everything you need to know about car warranties to ensure that you are making the most of your vehicle’s warranty.

The significance of this video is that it serves as an excellent source of information for both new and used car shoppers/owners who are unaware of what it really takes to void a warranty and how you can protect yourself and your car.

What You Will Learn

Some of the things you will learn include:

• What the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is and how it works
• Whether car dealerships can force you to buy only OEM parts
• Instances of when buying non-OEM aftermarket parts can void your warranty
• Instances of when using non-OEM parts does not void your warranty
• Whether doing some of your own maintenance work can void your warranty
• How a commercial service center can cause your warranty to be voided
• When you need to go after the insurer and not the manufacturer about a problem
• Whether lying or committing a sin of omission can cost you your warranty
• Instances when off-road driving an off-road vehicle can void your warranty

Related article: Toyota Maintenance Non-OEM Parts Warning

Related article: Toyota Maintenance Mechanic Shows How to Cut Brake Repair Job Costs in Half

How NOT to void your Car's Warranty---Everything you need to know

And finally…

For additional articles about protecting yourself and your car, here are two selected articles titled “Fast Lube Type Service Center Warning for New and Used Cars” and “Ceramic Coating for Car Paint Protection Questioned and Answered by Car Experts.”

Timothy Boyer is a Torque News automotive reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites for daily new and used vehicle news.

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