Can I Enjoy Warranty Service Without Maintenance at 4S Stores?
3 Answers
You can enjoy the three-year warranty without maintenance at 4S stores. In principle, maintenance done elsewhere does not pose any threat to the owner's three rights policy. The national three rights policy does not specify any connection between maintenance not performed at 4S stores and the three rights service. The three rights policy states that as long as maintenance is performed according to the manufacturer's regulations, the warranty will not be voided. If a problem occurs with parts unrelated to maintenance, enjoying the three rights service within the warranty period is completely acceptable. However, in practical operations, if any issues arise with the engine and maintenance during the warranty period was not done at a 4S store, claiming the three rights service might be somewhat troublesome. Scenarios where the three rights policy does not apply are as follows: Damage caused by improper use, maintenance, or storage by the consumer; damage caused by disassembly by non-authorized three rights repair personnel; lack of a three rights certificate and valid invoice; the model on the three rights certificate does not match the repaired product model or has been altered; damage caused by force majeure.
Many friends have been confused about this issue, and I've specifically researched car warranty policies. In fact, national regulations clearly state that manufacturers must fulfill warranty obligations even if maintenance isn't performed at 4S shops during the warranty period. However, there are two important points to note: first, you must choose a qualified maintenance facility, such as a licensed auto repair shop with a business license; second, keep complete records and invoices for every maintenance service, as manufacturers may require these documents to prove proper maintenance if issues arise. Last year, my neighbor suffered losses when their engine failed because they couldn't provide maintenance records from an unlicensed workshop. I recommend keeping all receipts, especially since the quality of oil used in third-party maintenance may not necessarily be worse than that at 4S shops.
As a car owner who has experienced warranty disputes, my experience is that warranty and maintenance locations are not inherently linked. However, several hurdles may arise in practice. Firstly, 4S shops will find various excuses to shirk responsibility, with the most common being blaming external maintenance for part damage. At this point, you must provide qualification certificates and detailed work orders from third-party repair shops. If you can prove that the maintenance items comply with the manufacturer's manual requirements, they will have nothing to say. That's how I defended my rights when my transmission failed last time. Remember to take photos to document the maintenance process. The key is to prove that the fault is due to product quality issues rather than improper maintenance.
