WARRANTY ISSUES
With manufacturer guarantees becoming longer, tempting extended mechanical warranties being available and finance exploding in popularity, you need to be careful not to contravene any of the relevant small print. While block-exemption is on your side, as far as car manufacturer warranties are concerned, it protects neither against extended warranties nor PCP terms, which may dictate that only franchised dealer servicing is acceptable. Therefore, fitting Oe-quality aftermarket filters from home is likely not to be permitted by the terms.
Where a manufacturer guarantee is still in place, you are not obliged to fit manufacturer-branded parts from a main dealership. However, it is unreasonable to expect a car manufacturer/importer to insure against mechanical damage, caused by a ‘white box’ filter of dubious origins.
Renowned for its seven-years-long warranty, we contacted Kia Motors UK for clarification about whether the use of aftermarket filters would void its warranty. We were told that any parts used (including filters) must have their part numbers detailed on the invoice and should be either genuine Kia-branded, or of an ‘equivalent quality’. We asked Kia Motors UK to explain how it judged filters to be ‘equivalent quality’ and a spokesperson told us: “Generally, we would be happy if the filter in question were produced by a reputable manufacturer that met the appropriate ISO standards.”
Therefore, choosing an established brand that claims OE quality, bought from a reputable supplier, should not present any issues with carmaker/main dealer warranties.