But stock, the 10-speed is handling over 900 lb*ft of input torque. Why mess with it?
Why Dodge Denied $36k in Warranty Coverage for a New Challenger SRT Hellcat Jailbreak. By Tara Hurlin of Hemmings
- Thread starter wemay
- Start date
I think the point is, the previous owner could have "tuned" it and caused no issues. They sell the car and the new owner has an issue, unrelated to the tune, but the manufacturer finds proof or evidence of a tune, and denies warranty claim. The new owner did nothing wrong.
It's a real problem with performance cars you buy from a dealer used unfortunately.
My point was for example if I went out and bought used but still under warranty hellcat that was tuned by the previous owner ( unknown to me or the dealer ) and the engine just happened to have issues under my ownership. I’d have a hard time proving it wasn’t me that modified the calibration.
I can’t imagine that dealers who take hellcat trade ins that are still under factory warranty are doing pcm scans to see if they were tuned.
Also I doubt that a regular guy or girl who wants a fast car with no intent to modify is going to ask the dealer to scan the pcm for that particular code to see if it was ever “ tuned “ Most regular people have no idea what tuning is, much less how it works.
Can you imagine being stuck with a 36k bill, being told that the warranty claim is denied because of something a previous owner did ?
It would be an interesting situation if a dealer sold the car with a warranty and that warranty was later denied due to something the previous owner did. Any ideas on how that would be handled? Might the PCM have information about the date/time the modifications were made?
gathermewool
Site Donor 2023
Not all tuners are a joke. I trust Cobb, for instance, to provide a safer tune than stock, not just one with a power bump. There is no free lunch of course, so the cost is emissions. OTS tunes tend to be pig rich, which will protect the engine just fine, but with increased emissions.
Im currently running a Stage 1 91 octane tune while running 93 octane. A slight power bump, but what I consider a safer option to the stock tune. My warranty is also long gone, so…
4WD
$50 site donor 2025
This series tells the story: 
Years ago BMW NA's M brand manager told me about a 5 speed E36 M3 that had been flat-bedded into a dealership. The car's owner said he was simply driving down the interstate at 65 mph when the car "just died". Unfortunately for the owner(and his wallet), the DME had recorded a final engine speed of over 9000 rpm- a true "money shift". The owner's previous car was an Oldsmobile, BTW...
Major VAG tuners APR and Unitronic are v. good and spend major R&D on their tuning...hardly a "clown show"...well regarded. I also understand that the clown show exists.
+2
When I browse the row of used WRXs and STIs at my local Subaru dealer and each one of them has a broken or missing HVAC vent where owners usually attach their accessport.... Or maybe the accessport mount is still there...... It makes me wonder what else isn't stock and how much the car has been beat upon.
Sometimes the thinking goes: "Some is good, more is better, too much is enough".
Regards,
John
It's to a point I'm not sure I'd buy a "tuner" car (one commonly tuned/modded by "the kids") used...only new. It's so common in that community to mod them out, beat on them, part them out, and trade them in.
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- Dec 16, 2022
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On the one hand it's not much different than buying a used car where the previous owner neglected oil changes or hit every pothole and squirrel he could find. This is why people some people buy new, to prevent buying someone else's problems.
But if buying used from a dealer, I'd definitely expect them to notify me if the warranty on the engine is gone because of that special flag being tripped. That's something they can easily verify and test as part of the "certified used" process.
This issue has happened and been documented numerous times in the VAG world. Buys CPO Audi, finds out it's "TD1" (the VIN flag for modified ECU) with subsequent engine/powertrain warranty claim denial. It's a mess and knowing it, I would have the dealer verify this before buying but most folks aren't going to know to ask and would assume (rightfully so) that a CPO car/warranty is in-tact. I would lawyer up in this case.
Tunes are cheaper than driving schools and HPDE events. Plus you can't show off your "pulls". Bunch of Jerry's Kids.
100%....dyno sheet pokemon/40 rolls...bro.
Those owners should be going straight to VW or Audi of America as cars with either TD1 or TXD are not allowed to be sold as approved vehicles and it is part of the pre checks to run a PCM scan to check specifically for tuning.