Warranty and other questions
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Member
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 29
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From: Moorpark, CA
Warranty and other questions
I bought a used 2000 F150 Lariat with the 5.4l V-8 about two weeks ago. I also bought an extended bumper-to-bumper warranty that goes through 2006 or 100,000 miles. Obviously, I don't want to void the warranty, so I am very interested in concrete information on how to approach using a Superchip with respect to taking the truck in for service. Do I take the chip out when the truck goes in for service? Does the chip require high octane fuel? If I use a flip-chip, is there a danger that if the chip is installed the dealer might reprogram it unknowningly (or do they inspect to see if the stock chip is or is not installed? By the way, I live in California. Thanks for any information you folks can provide.
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 1,919
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From: Western Massachusetts
my opinion.....
No, the Superchip does not void the factory warranty. If you had a problem that was caused by the Superchip then they can deny warranty coverage for that repair. Dealers may try to tell you otherwise, I think it's because they don't know as much as they think they do. You might want to take a look at www.sema.org . You will find more info on the law. Look for the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act. You also might find it helpful to do a search in this (computer chips) section. This is a topic that is pretty common. It has been discussed at length. There is some good stuff buried here!
As a general rule it is reccomended that you remove the chip before going in for service. If they need to diognose a problem a chip might get in the way, or send them in the wrong direction, if they don't know it's there. Some may even try to blame the chip for the problem, but as you will find in your search for info that is highly unlikely.
A Superchip will require high octane fuel. That and some tweeking of the factory settings is how we get the gains. Some will say it's not worth the extra money but I think it is! Some may experiance an increase in mpg, for them it basicly evens out. Keep in mind that this is a performance chip not something to increase mpg.
You have come to the right place! Take your time to learn what to expect. Mike from Performance Products is the one to look for. He will be able to fill you in! I pipe in because I think for the money the Superchip is one of the best performance deals you can get!
Good luck!
Tom
No, the Superchip does not void the factory warranty. If you had a problem that was caused by the Superchip then they can deny warranty coverage for that repair. Dealers may try to tell you otherwise, I think it's because they don't know as much as they think they do. You might want to take a look at www.sema.org . You will find more info on the law. Look for the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act. You also might find it helpful to do a search in this (computer chips) section. This is a topic that is pretty common. It has been discussed at length. There is some good stuff buried here!
As a general rule it is reccomended that you remove the chip before going in for service. If they need to diognose a problem a chip might get in the way, or send them in the wrong direction, if they don't know it's there. Some may even try to blame the chip for the problem, but as you will find in your search for info that is highly unlikely.
A Superchip will require high octane fuel. That and some tweeking of the factory settings is how we get the gains. Some will say it's not worth the extra money but I think it is! Some may experiance an increase in mpg, for them it basicly evens out. Keep in mind that this is a performance chip not something to increase mpg.
You have come to the right place! Take your time to learn what to expect. Mike from Performance Products is the one to look for. He will be able to fill you in! I pipe in because I think for the money the Superchip is one of the best performance deals you can get!
Good luck!
Tom
Former Sponsor
Joined: Mar 1998
Posts: 13,385
Likes: 4
From: Virginia
Hi Douga49,
Welcome to F-150 Online!
As Wittom mentioned, no, the Superchip will not void your warranty, in fact, that is highly *illegal* as you have very specfic legal rights in this regard, many of which are provided by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.
The SEMA website is a good place to look for info, try this link: www.sema.org/fedleg/warranty
You can also use the search feature of these message boards to find many, many detailed discussions of this very same issue.
Yes, we recommend removing the Superchip prior to service (it only takes 6 minutes to prepare your vehicle for service) whether you are under warranty or not, just in case they need to do diagnostics, you always want the ECU (your powertrain computer) in stock trim.
Yes, the Superchip requires the use of good quality premium gasoline; and for those who want to be able to use regular gas, we also have a 2-program type of Superchip called the Flip Chip that has our normal program for premium gas as well as another program optimized for use on 87 octane gas.
Dealerships cannot change the program in the Superchip, only we can, so you don't have to worry about that; besides, you'll be removing it for service anyway.
The Superchip is also 50-state emissions certified, and comes with the EO# card to put in your glovebox for emissions inspections in case they want to see it, so you're fully covered for emissions.
You might want to give us a call when you get a chance, and we'll be happy to go over all of this and more in detail with you, if you like.
In the meantime, we hope you'll hang out here with us in your spare time!
Welcome to F-150 Online!
As Wittom mentioned, no, the Superchip will not void your warranty, in fact, that is highly *illegal* as you have very specfic legal rights in this regard, many of which are provided by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.
The SEMA website is a good place to look for info, try this link: www.sema.org/fedleg/warranty
You can also use the search feature of these message boards to find many, many detailed discussions of this very same issue.
Yes, we recommend removing the Superchip prior to service (it only takes 6 minutes to prepare your vehicle for service) whether you are under warranty or not, just in case they need to do diagnostics, you always want the ECU (your powertrain computer) in stock trim.
Yes, the Superchip requires the use of good quality premium gasoline; and for those who want to be able to use regular gas, we also have a 2-program type of Superchip called the Flip Chip that has our normal program for premium gas as well as another program optimized for use on 87 octane gas.
Dealerships cannot change the program in the Superchip, only we can, so you don't have to worry about that; besides, you'll be removing it for service anyway.
The Superchip is also 50-state emissions certified, and comes with the EO# card to put in your glovebox for emissions inspections in case they want to see it, so you're fully covered for emissions.
You might want to give us a call when you get a chance, and we'll be happy to go over all of this and more in detail with you, if you like.
In the meantime, we hope you'll hang out here with us in your spare time!
Former Sponsor
Joined: Mar 1998
Posts: 13,385
Likes: 4
From: Virginia
Hi Doug,
The raw power gains on 87 octane will be smaller than on premium gas of course, usually about 6 to 8 hp at the wheels in terms of the peak gain on the 5.4 motor, though the areas "under the curve" have larger improvements. The 87 octane program will still have all the other improvements as well, to shift characteristics, delays & retards removed, TS limiter pulled, etc., so while the peak hp gain on 87 octane isn't large, the vehicle will still be noticeably quicker in it's response and will accelerate quicker than the stock factory 87 octane program.
The raw power gains on 87 octane will be smaller than on premium gas of course, usually about 6 to 8 hp at the wheels in terms of the peak gain on the 5.4 motor, though the areas "under the curve" have larger improvements. The 87 octane program will still have all the other improvements as well, to shift characteristics, delays & retards removed, TS limiter pulled, etc., so while the peak hp gain on 87 octane isn't large, the vehicle will still be noticeably quicker in it's response and will accelerate quicker than the stock factory 87 octane program.