In a surprise press release issued by Mazda North American Operations (MNAO), the company advocates the use of original equipment parts instead of pieces built by the aftermarket. The company goes on saying that in the event of an accident causing damage, all parts used to repair a Mazda car should be Genuine Mazda Parts. According to Mazda, their parts are blueprinted as original parts found in production cars and offer the best solution for repair.
“MNAO does not recommend the use of aftermarket parts (or imitation parts) for any Mazda maintenance or collision repair. These aftermarket parts are generally made to a lower standard in order to cut costs and lack the testing required to determine their effectiveness in vehicle performance and safety.” Perhaps an obvious statement, it does however give some insight into a problem that Mazda and other companies offering performance oriented vehicles: aftermarket parts. A lot of companies do not advocate any of these items and even go as far as to say that installation of any aftermarket part will void a vehicle’s warranty. Mazda is now one of those companies.
“The original warranty could become invalid if aftermarket parts contribute to the damage of original parts. Even lease-end charges can be affected if the replacement parts fit poorly. MNAO will not be responsible for any subsequent repair costs associated with the vehicle or part failure caused by the use of parts other than Genuine Mazda Parts purchased from an authorized Mazda dealer.”
This means that putting an aftermarket exhaust or intake on your Mazdaspeed 3 or MX-5 could make your full-powertrain warranty completely moot. Mitsubishi went through a similar situation when the Lancer Evolution came to the states, going as far as saying drag racing would void a warranty. Mazda’s release shows that they do not want their buyers going to the aftermarket for anything and will penalize owners for doing so.
Source: Mazda
