Thread: My new Puma - good news and bad

I strongly suggest you contact Drivesafe here on Aulro, he is well versed on what is and what isn't allowable RE dual battery systems etc.

JC

This as come up before with regards to people having upgrades/mods done.

I can see LRA point in all this but, the other side of this is the fact that, the Defender is such a vehicle that people adapt to meet there needs.

If LR were to offer a genuine twin0battery set up then i can see there point, but they dont, so having one fitted by a high end supplier would be the way to go.

This really is a great opportunity for land rover to get a big list of non land rover bits together and authorise them for use, without invalidating warranties.

Whats also worrying is that different dealers seem to offer different things, there needs to be transparency across the board on what's allowed.

AFAIK:
In theory they cannot automatically void the warranty if you fit a non standard accessory. However it won't stop them trying at every opportunity, and the onus will be on you to prove the accessory hasn't caused the problem in question.

So line up a good (impartial) electrical engineer before you proceed - just in case you need them down the track...





p.s. - thanks for this post - just when I was getting annoyed with having to fix a few things on a couple of my vehicles - I needed a reminder that I am still much better off than someone with a new landy...

thats the Ford line...

didnt used to be the line. All the accessories that were optioned onto Big red were done prior to purchase and paid for as part of the whole package and all of them were covered by the 100,000KM/3yr warranty.

Which didnt impress blacklocks when they tried to get out of replacing the head unit and LRA told them while its not OEM it is covered by the warrenty as it was changed prior to purchase.

I have fitted a dual battery system, CB, an additional 4 x 12v outlets, 12v gage, winch, driving lights, LED rear lighting system and Anderson plug.

Have not had any issues with warranty claims what-so-ever, my dealer/service manager simply asked for wiring diagram to assist them when trying to decipher the new wiring set up.

At the end of the day, if LR/Dealer wants to knock back a claim then they must have justification to do so - if your work and components are of good quality then I can't see a problem.

Just my 2 cents worth......

I am in the process of fitting a new stereo, more speakers F and R, UHF, cig lighter sockets, air compressor, water tank, reverse camera, with most of it to run off a duel battery. I have arranged with the dealer I purchased from to do the final plug in and run what wires are required behind the dash. I am mounting the hardware and running most of the wiring. Fitting the fuse box, and creating a electrical maps for them. They are happy to plug it in and check it, then both of us are happy with what it has been connected to.

I figure it will cost me a bit more, but if I have an electrical fault they can't really start to blame accessories or a third party as the cause. Having most of the accessories run off a duel battery isolated the vehicles factory electrics anyway.

Ultimately LR cannot dismiss your warranty rights out of hand because an aftermarket accessory has been fitted. The failure must be attributable to the fitment of the accessory for them to be able to reject a claim.

Theoretically, the burden of proof falls on LR, however practice suggests the oppositie often proves to be the case.

With this in mind I've picked my battles i.e. fitted the accessories that I'm either determined to have no matter what and/or am happy to enter into a stoush over in the (unlikely) event something goes wrong.

For example, I've got an aftermarket bullbar fitted as the chances of having a warranty calim denied as a result are, IMO, slim and I don't trust the skippies. However, I won't fit lockers until the warranty has expired as I know LR have tried to deny claims in the past with respect to lockers AND I feel it likely that a Puma will have at least one drive train warranty claim. However, I'm sure others would be prepared to duke it out on lockers (and more power to them!).

Originally Posted by justinc

I strongly suggest you contact Drivesafe here on Aulro, he is well versed on what is and what isn't allowable RE dual battery systems etc.

JC

Done so previously. Nothing I would call definitive.

Anyway, regardless of what I could theoretically get away with, is there a way I can fit something useful that will be fully removable if/when required prior to service? I have a suspicion that a battery box in the back won't be adequate, but maybe I'm just buying into the hype with accessories and will in fact be fine with this.

Does anyone have any advice on what I can do to manage this issue? I want to use my car for what it was intended, but I don't want to **** the dealer off unnecessarily just to prove a point if there is a viable alternative.

Cheers.