I know I have brought this up before, but a bit more info (Mods may want to sticky this)

I know most of us want bigger wheels, but it comes at a cost. I was back at the dealer ordering my wheels last night, and I was going to go with an 18 in the rear, and a different offset. Even though it shouldnt matter since it is the rear and the car is FWD, even if you change the sizing in the back, it will affect your warranty!

Specifically if you have ANY tranny issues, the FIRST thing chevy asks the dealer when they place a warranty request is to read off the wheel/tire size. Even if the over all diameter doesnt change (ie bigger wheel, smaller tire) it doesnt matter.

Now the guy did tell me its about a 50/50 chance of having a warranty claim denied, that it depends on the person they talk to at chevy, and the mood that person is in that day.

You would think going to a dealer that deals more with performance, and sport "looks" would help, but apparently they have to call GM direct to get warranty stuff done.

He said they have seen this time and time again on the Impala and the Monte Carlo, and GM just flat wont do the warranty work for free.

Moral of the story is keep your old wheels and tires, and put them back on before you go to the dealer for ANY work, and do it EVERY time.

Just an FYI, you may have better luck, but its better safe than sorry when it comes to a big item like the tranny!

good info to know..

Moral of the story is keep your old wheels and tires, and put them back on before you go to the dealer for ANY work, and do it EVERY time.

Just an FYI, you may have better luck, but its better safe than sorry when it comes to a big item like the tranny!

I agree because I have lived this nightmare in 2001.
GM voided my warranty when I was towed in for a pass key problem.
(I could not take the custom tune out before it got there).

I fought this for 6 months along with backing from SEMA in Washington and the manufacturers of the aftermarket parts (who all put in writing that GM can't do that).Along with the backing that unless proven that the aftermarket parts contributed to the failure of the covered part,the parts can not void warranty.

The final answer...
GM has to right to void warranty if the vehicle IS NOT as it came from the factory as it was designed. End of story and my warranty at that time! :eek:

that's why you take your car in to the shop with the stock wheels on

I guess I'm lucky then.
I had to take my HHR in because my check engine light came on and my temp guage wasn't working. They had to reprogram the PCM.

It has 18's and is lowered...had no problems with warranty coverage.

JT if you would have had a suspension or wheel related or even brake problem's, they will most likely tell you that you are s**t out of luck.

If you buy that bs they are spouting at you, then you deserve to be had. Under federal law, the dealer has to PROVE that the wheel tire combination was the cause of the defect. If they cannot, then thay CAN NOT deny your warranty. I took my 02 escalade in with 22's on it, and my dealer never voided my warranty, and they fixed both the transfer case and front differential.

Now, if there is evidence that the wheel/tire combination caused the issue, then your out of luck. That said, they cannot void your entire warranty for wheels/tires, as that has no effect on electronics or rusting.

That's bull sh*t, I'm a service consultant at the local GM dealership, we have never hammered any one for that. You need to take your car somewhere else, and if you ever have a trans prob, swap back to stock

This brings me to another question. What about lowering the HHR? And I don't mean slamming it! When I get mine that's 1 of the first things I know I'll want to do. I would understand if the dealer didn't want to relpace a leaking (shock/strut) but would they still want to void the vehicles intire warranty? I'd like to change the wheel style but w/ stock specs on the wheel & tire.

...I but would they still want to void the vehicles intire warranty? I'd like to change the wheel style but w/ stock specs on the wheel & tire.

Check this thread: Warranty & Magnuson Moss Warranty Act (http://chevyhhr.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2751)

I hope this helps!

That's bull sh*t, I'm a service consultant at the local GM dealership, we have never hammered any one for that. You need to take your car somewhere else, and if you ever have a trans prob, swap back to stock

this is true, its total BS... i talked to the manager at my local dealer(very good family friend) and he told me that putting any rims on it will not void warranty. NOw what Phantom said about wheels/tires having no effect on electronics, it CAN affect your tranny/computer/electronics, because when you put on larger wheels on this HHR im more than positive you will have to recalibrate the tranny and computer to compensate, which in time will mess up, or at the very least might get you a ticket

This brings me to another question. What about lowering the HHR? And I don't mean slamming it! When I get mine that's 1 of the first things I know I'll want to do. I would understand if the dealer didn't want to relpace a leaking (shock/strut) but would they still want to void the vehicles intire warranty? I'd like to change the wheel style but w/ stock specs on the wheel & tire.

now he did tell me this, if you EVER mess with the suspension, and something Fs UP, then its YOUR fault and it will void warranty.

I've had some friends go through this same thing with their Dodge trucks that have had rear end problems. They put 22's on their trucks, same weight or lighter, same overall diameter, but some dealerships blame the rear end problem on the 22's. It's not an easy battle to fight either. It just depends on the mood of the service writer that day.

Having said that..... The dealership where I bought my HHR had 3 HHR's with aftermarket 18's on them and just added the price to the MSRP. That's the kind of dealership you need to find. One that slightly mods brand new cars prior to selling them. Like King of Cars (http://www.kingofcars.com/) out in Vegas.

I've had some friends go through this same thing with their Dodge trucks that have had rear end problems. They put 22's on their trucks, same weight or lighter, same overall diameter, but some dealerships blame the rear end problem on the 22's. It's not an easy battle to fight either. It just depends on the mood of the service writer that day.

Having said that..... The dealership where I bought my HHR had 3 HHR's with aftermarket 18's on them and just added the price to the MSRP. That's the kind of dealership you need to find. One that slightly mods brand new cars prior to selling them. Like King of Cars (http://www.kingofcars.com/) out in Vegas.

I might be be off thread, but I've owned the hhr with 2.4 auto, and now 2.4 with 5spd. I love the 2.4 w/5spd......:thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

Check this thread: Warranty & Magnuson Moss Warranty Act (http://chevyhhr.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2751)

I hope this helps!
Thanks! Good info for future reference.:thumb:

I know I have brought this up before, but a bit more info (Mods may want to sticky this)

I know most of us want bigger wheels, but it comes at a cost. I was back at the dealer ordering my wheels last night, and I was going to go with an 18 in the rear, and a different offset. Even though it shouldnt matter since it is the rear and the car is FWD, even if you change the sizing in the back, it will affect your warranty!

Specifically if you have ANY tranny issues, the FIRST thing chevy asks the dealer when they place a warranty request is to read off the wheel/tire size. Even if the over all diameter doesnt change (ie bigger wheel, smaller tire) it doesnt matter.

Now the guy did tell me its about a 50/50 chance of having a warranty claim denied, that it depends on the person they talk to at chevy, and the mood that person is in that day.

You would think going to a dealer that deals more with performance, and sport "looks" would help, but apparently they have to call GM direct to get warranty stuff done.

He said they have seen this time and time again on the Impala and the Monte Carlo, and GM just flat wont do the warranty work for free.

Moral of the story is keep your old wheels and tires, and put them back on before you go to the dealer for ANY work, and do it EVERY time.

Just an FYI, you may have better luck, but its better safe than sorry when it comes to a big item like the tranny!


I work at a chevy dealership, and when i read this i kinda get pissed. You'll bring your car in, and we might not be able to fix the problem or you go home and put your wheels back on or whatever part it may be, and then when your car breaks you blame it on gm's making shitty cars, shitty parts and shitty quality. Just know that its not also the auto maker who is it fault for some of the cars problems...we have this happen all the time.

Well I'm curious on this issue; and though I know its quite a few months old... the fact that it is Stickied; to me.. means it still applies.

I have a faulty Stereo unit in my HHR; and my Chevy Dealer has agreed to replace it, under Warranty. They already have it "on order" for me; and they told me to expect to hear from them within 1 week to 10 days, for them to call and set up an appointment to install it.

Well; sometime before then, I am expecting to recieve my new wheels. They're 17" RIAX Fontana's; and a set of Falken tires to go with them. If they arrive sometime during this week, I was going to try to get someone to mount the tires onto the new RIAX Rims this weekend; and then put them on my car myself. I'de be taking my existing factory wheels and sticking them on my porch for now.

But; after skimming through this thread, I got to wondering...

Would putting those wheels on my car truly effect whether or not my Chevy Dealer backs out of their promise to change my factory stereo under Warranty?

Should I just put the RIAX's on my porch for now; once I get them... and not try to get them put on my car until after the warranty replacement on the stereo is done?

Hmm... Well maybe never mind.

I missed it a moment ago but just saw the link above to:

Warranty & Magnuson Moss Warranty Act (http://chevyhhr.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2751)

Sounds like it might be a worthy printout that'll make good ammunition to use against them if they try to bullshit me... cause, after all. How could aftermarket wheels effect the stereo's preformance? :wink:

just to bring some proof to this we had a clk come in with a shifting issue. it had biger rims and tires. the non oem warrany declined the clam because the overall size of the tire rim combo was 4mm smaller.

Guys I have run the Customer Relations departments for two vehicle mfgs. Read Magnuson-Moss. Unless the problem is related to the modification the warranty can't be voided and then only for that which is effected. Wheels and radio have no common connection unless the tire fell off and hit the radio.

Tire/wheel size changes WILL effect anything that is speed effected such as ABS, PCM, trans, bearings (wheel/axle).

Oil coated air filter contaminates sensors in the intake..... You pay and yes this happens and it's part of the emissions warranty too!.. But cancel the warranty on the windshield wiper motor or anything else unrelated, that's against federal law.

I think all this goes to show that it really helps to establish a long relationship with a dealership that will go to bat for their customers. I have been buying from the same dealership since 1968 and on the two occasions where I was out of warranty and Chevy denied coverage, they got it covered in full. They also have mechanics that use intelligent common sense in determining whether mods (lift kits, wheels, etc) really bear a relationship to the failure or not. It amazes me the attitude that some "mechanics" apparently have based on the posts here. Major chip on their shoulder or something. Rule#1 never forget who is overhead (the employee) and who is potential future profit (your customer). Regarding dealership loyalty, if you go 100 miles away to save $200 on your purchase, you should not expect your local dealer to go out of their way to help you.

This type of warraty denial claim is not without base. I had a 73 V8 Gremlin that needed more tire in the rear. I used AMC wheels and I think the tires were G60/14's. They denied all warranty work after I put the tires on. OK, that was in 73. Let's go to my 93 Ranger. I put the closest sized snowtires on it that I could find. I was denied warranty coverage because of them.
In my opinion, nothing has changed from 1973 to now. If there is a way for them to escape honoring anything, they will. The problem becomes yours alone.

I have never had a Warranty problem with Chevy but I haven't done any Modifications on the ones I owned till the HHR. That being said I am a little worried about doing much at all. It seems to me that if the after-market guys do such a bad job at their products we must be putting all our vehicles at risk.( not too likely) My changes will probably go on any but I will try to stay wihtin some reason. Like Wheels would be Smoothies the same size as stock with the stock tire size. Warranties make my head hurt anyway you never know what is covered until the Dealer says OK. Then you had better know your rights and start complaining to anyone who will listen.

Outstanding Information
Thanks all

Z

being a tech starting of with ford in the good old 5.0 days i have seen may come in with superchargers, diesels with non oe turbo kits and have done much work under warranty. as long as i can prove that the mod dosent affect it it fine by me. what erks me is i have seen a c230 come in with an aftermarket cat and the cel keeps coming on for a cat efficency code. the is a broken vacuum line that is a known concern. i told them that they should fix it and it would probably solve the problem. but my shop forman who thinks hes mister hot rod says dont touch it. and he gets all the sema info and magazines. i aske if he knew about the magnuson moss act and he didnt have a clue. im just a tech not a forman so what do i know.

I have heard lots of different stories on voided warranties and it goes back and forth a lot....All I know is that Chevrolet has to prove that whatever after market stuff you put on the car actually caused the problem.....Like say you engine seized or you burned a hole one of the pistons, but you had a cold air intake on it....They have to prove that the intake made the motor do that before they can deny your warranty claim....I have had my car in for blown out struts and I have the gold line coil overs on it and they have replaced them without question....so I dont know if I'm just lucky but I do know that they have to prove that your after market items damaged or ruined that part of your car...:thumb:

There are so many posts in this thread that I wanted to "quote" but too many to do so. So here is how it is in the Dallas Zone for Chevrolet.

If a modification affects/damages or causes a failure, that failure is not covered. The warranty is not voided on the vehicle JUST THAT FAILURE.

Changing wheels and tires DOES NOT void warranties on unrelated repairs such as radios, door alignments or what have you.

Warranty is NEVER denied just because a mod is done. But if common sense and technical reasoning deems that the mod created the failure then it CAN be denied.

The most common denied warranty repairs are for lifting or lowering a vehicle, causing suspension components to break/crack or fail and programmers added that cause powertrain failures.

If you have a certain engine that you never see any internal engine failures with it and a vehicle comes in with a hole in the piston, plus it has a program in it, then common sense would tell you that is what caused the problem and warranty should be denied. This is no different then failure to maintain a vehicle by doing simple oil changes. If you drive 30,000 miles and do 2 oil changes, your engine is going to sludge up and fail. This would not be a warranty failure.

Now to the issue of who authorizes warranty repairs. 95% of all warranty repairs are authorized by the DEALERSHIP service manager(s), not GM. The prior post concerning a "what if" powertrain repair being denied if you added different wheels to the vehicle is a different subject. They took the authority away from Service Managers a few years back on high dollar engine and transmission repairs. We have to now call a group called PQC. Yes they do ask the size of the tires and wheels. No they do not automatically deny these claims based on this. If the tires and wheels are close to the original or the vehicle has these same size tire/wheels on other models they do not deny. EVEN IF PQC DENIES THE CLAIM THE SERVICE MANAGER CAN CALL HIS LOCAL REP AND HAVE THAT DENIAL OVERRIDEN, IF THE MANAGER FEELS THIS WAS NOT THE CAUSE OF FAILURE.

Another thing is that my dealership, the techs and myself get PAID by GM to perform warranty repairs. We don't get "retail" pricing but it is still income, so we really don't try to deny warranty unless it is blatant abuse and/or we are going to have to call PQC to get a powertrain authorization.

My own personal thoughts on programming is this. Some of them are fine, but some of them are not. When I was young and customized my own cars we didn't have computers so programming was never an issue. But I knew that street racing the vehicle would cause a lot of abnormal stress to the powertrain and that there were going to be failures. I also knew that it would be MY MONEY paying to fix these failures whether it was a blown engine, differential, clutch or transmission. In other words I TOOK RESPONSIBILITY for my actions and ponied up the cash to fix it. So don't blame GM or the dealer for your actions. If you want to play sometimes you have to pay.

Well said Chevy Mgr! Thank's for your input.

Let me throw in my two cents...

From a guy that has always modded my cars (my Mother thinks that cars don't come with wheels or tires as I have to get new ones days after I get a new car)

I have never had a problem with a warranty issue most of the time even with a modded part. That being said, I just took my freshly lowered 07 to the dealership to have the suspension checked out and also a Mobil 1 oil change. While there I picked up my black chrome parts that I ordered from the parts counter (even though I could have saved $20 buying them online) I also picked up my GM Perf intake... I also BSed with the Service Manager/Parts Manager and a few others that commented on my HHR (including raving to a couple that were looking at one in the showroom). I talked to a Tech and told him I was slapping 20s on it as soon as the weather broke and wondered about better brakes such as the ones on the SS...are you getting the picture?

Buy local if you can, take the time to get to know the guys that can either treat you well or drop you in a well...as my Mom says " you catch more flys with sugar"

BTW, they made sure to hand me a flyer for a Vett sponsored car show, told me I should do well and they can't wait to see it with my 20s

Lowering it can possible void the suspension warranty but wheels should not have any bearing on your waranty and most people are only putting 18's on
I have 20 inch rims on my HHR and no warranty issues but like said early by almost everyone ...if you have a problem put your stock back on!
happy hunting

http://www.chevyhhr.net/gallery/files/5/2/9/1/100_1626.JPG

Lowering it can possible void the suspension warranty but wheels should not have any bearing on your waranty and most people are only putting 18's on
I have 20 inch rims on my HHR and no warranty issues but like said early by almost everyone ...if you have a problem put your stock back on!
happy hunting


Most likely you wont have a problem except that unless you can reprogram the computer your speed readings are off as well as anything related to that. Also, if the offset of the wheels causes premature bearing wear then you could be cooked. Keep the old wheels should you need them.

Mikep01- I guess your boss has never delt with a lemon law case or BBB. He's lucky he has techs like you. If I had to show up at a hearing due to a Service managers/dealer issue, he is coming a long.

Good thread, I know I'm posting years later...I have the HHR-SS and DON"T want to run the 18's through a buffalo winter. I was hoping to find an aftermarket or even stock rim that is smaller in diameter so I can run snow tires with a thicker sidewall, keeping the overall diameter the same. I haven't found out if 16" or 17" factory rims will fit over my brakes but if they did, would I risk voiding the warranty?
Speaking of Tranny problems, my Jeep's tranny is toast and it's not from the different size wheels or the offroading. It wasn't built proper in Mexico back in 2000. Only 54K. I'm stuck with the bill.

JIm

Jim,
Have you tried contacting Tire-Rack or places like that?
They might be able to find a useable combination for you.
I really don't see why your warranty would be void.
What about talking to some of the tire shops in Buffalo, like Dunn Tire, if you talk to the right manager of the shop they might work with you.
Good luck....

this actually not true,
there is an act that protects the purchaser of aftermarket products from the companies voiding your warranty but barely anyone knows about it and they companies will never tell you!
it is called the magnuson moss act.

They have to honor it and if it comes down to it they will lose!
so you got shafted...
do your homework and try again!
you'll win trust me i know (check out my car and you'll see why)!
-Caponecar


*have you ever seen a chevy with the butterfly doors

hey everyone...new to the forum..jus got my hhr 2008 and cant wait to do mods...but i have a question for any tire guys or gals out there....can I fit a 245/40 18 tire on the hhr?

Yes

Guys,

Good info thanks!

QuickRick