what can the dealership find out about my car
 

i just had a maintenance required light come on, so im gonna take my car into the dealership tomorrow since its still under warranty (only 13k miles), and i was just wondering if they could tell that i often drive at 100+ mph, like does the stock ecu record that kind of stuff or what, and would they still honor the warranty under "abusive" driving conditions

maintenance light means nothing.. it's just a reminder to get an oil change and other maintenance...

And I don't think they care about your driving habits.. they wont check that..

^^^ yup

well, not to contradict what you are saying ( and this will be apples to oranges comparison ), i remember reading or watching something on tv about some guys modifying a VW Jetta, and when it exceeded a certain speed, the ECU registered vehicle speed limit exceeded and to void warranty. (though I'm sure it had to do with them removing a speed limiter and going over that speed).

If our cars are designed to go say 127MPH and you drive it that fast without making ANY modifications to the ecu, engine or drivetrain, there is no grounds on denying warranty. Even IF they would check on that.
Honda can only mess with you on aftermarket parts. As for abusive driving? They have to PROVE that. IE Neutral drops causing a fried transmission.

i believe all new cars now-a-days record the highest RPM you went to. i know for a fact that people with RSXs are having their warrenty voided because they misshifted or over reved.

Some newer ems systems can tell the checker your max speed ever travelled, and if there has been abusive driving. I think vdub does this.

VW protects their own butts by doing that... You still have to buy the parts from them and everything...

If you have modified the car, the dealership can tell. They won't know what speed you've gone. They can tell quite easily if you have abused the car as it will show up on the car itself. It depends on how abused the car is, but they'll tell you if there are any problems.

yeah, the light comes on at certain milage intervals.

Is there a way to flash the ECU? You could of course purchase a "test" ECU and not return the core, and install that one when you go the stealership for service. None the wiser.

i know for a fact that the BMW M3's have them and so do the 330CI's, the E46 models. all they have to do is plug in your key into one of those desktop key inserts and tehy will have all the info they want about your car like max speed, max RPM shift, etc.

The problem here, and in Hondas case is that the dealers will use the "abuse" excuse to avoid warranty work. Often time there was NO abuse of the car. In our case, the transmissions are flawed from the start, but Honda just won't own up to it. It's easier to claim everyone raced their civic or RSX.

I am very good to my coupe, but have bounced the rev limiter once or twice simply avoiding a bus that cut over without a signal, and a truck on the freeway. You know, things do happen out there. But If I ever have a problem and the dealer claims I race my car, it's going to get very ugly. Honestly, this is the LAST car I'd ever try to abuse. It's just too fragile to begin with.

I don't buy into ecu logging. There are many legit situations out on the road where the ecu may log what LOOKS like racing or abuse. Only a video record would tell for sure. ECU logs are a guideline, but I'd take them to court if the manufacturer tries to deny warranty based ONLY on electronic logs.

Now obvious physical damage, say bottoming out, bending stuff, and so on... that's a whole different story.

I'm pretty sure it does log how many times you hit the rev limiter. In which case mine reads 21341234523464356657547865785678

Push down and hold the odo trip button.
Insert key and turn ignition to ON (don't start the car).
Wait about 10 seconds...you just saved yourself time and money.

My dealership (Colonial Honda) is very nice when it comes to mods.
I had an intake when I brought the car in for broken motor mounts.
It was fixed under warranty no questions asked.

if something happens to your car which can be a fault of the dealership or defective car but is your fault than just so the ecu doesnt come up with answers to your lies just disconnect the battery for 15 seconds than reset your radio and drive into the dearship

yeah i have definately voided any type of warranty honda has i hit redline once a day. haul ass onto the highway. gone as fast as the car could handle and loaded down with me and my friend, two sets of golf clubs, 2 individuals week supply of clothes, and a 100lbs stereo. that was 115mph. after that the car pretty much couldnt push any further with all the weight. that was the most entertaining 6 minutes i have ever driven. buddy really had to pee and the next exit was 10 miles away.