Alerted by several of its Canadian fast lube operator members, the Automotive Oil Change Association recently investigated a misleading warranty notice – which said that using non-genuine Mopar lubricants could void the warranty – that a dealer had printed and placed under the hoods of Chrysler vehicles in Ontario, Canada.
The label read, Daimler Chrysler Canada reserves the right to deny warranty coverage if not all of the recommended scheduled maintenance is completed and performed using only genuine Mopar parts and lubricants.
Vehicle owners whose cars are under warranty will not violate their warranty by having oil changes performed by someone – including fast lubes – other than their dealers. To our knowledge, this kind of activity is inconsistent with Canadian law, as it would be in the U.S.,AOCA said about the notice.
According to AOCA Executive Director Steve Christie, the associationcontacted Chrysler Canada Inc. about the notice in mid-November. When AOCA questioned Chrysler Canada, the company responded it is not familiar with and has no knowledge relating to the notice … and the contents are not attributable to Chrysler Canada Inc. in any way.
We were quite convinced Chrysler had nothing to do with putting these together, Christie told Lube Report. They just wouldnt take that risk, Im sure.
Further investigation revealed that the stickers had been produced and attached to vehicles by a local dealer.
It appears there is only one [car] dealer in Canada that were aware of, and Im sure that will be corrected shortly, Christie said. We wanted to stop it now because its misleading to the consumers. We havent seen it in the U.S.
There was no pattern of particularChrysler models having the notice. It was just random, he said.
The association has forwarded to all its members in Canada a copy of Chrysler Canadas written response, sothey can provide it to customers for clarification.
Based in Dallas, Texas, AOCA represents the fast lube industry in North America.