Does a larger intercooler void your warranty?

I know the answer to this is they have to prove it, but what is the likelihood a larger intercooler without the associated tune would cause engine related issues? (Other than it was improperly installed)

I am considering the Stealth R bumper from ADD, so I want to do the Full Race or ADD intercooler at the same time. (The bumper will be off and make it easier to work on) I may not add the MPT tune and Borla exhaust for a while and I need to know if I will run into issues at the Ford Dealer. I know they will "assume" I had a tune installed, but I am pretty sure they can tell if a truck previously had a tune and was returned to stock.

These questions are complicated. A lot of folks will just say the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act protects you; and Ford voiding the warranty is illegal. This is true but if Ford decides to fight you in court, I can assure you they have deeper pockets than anyone here. Technically, any part that fails that could be attributed to the aftermarket part (which BTW has to be PROVEN by Ford) would not be covered. For example, you blow a turbo (or 2) and bring the car in. Ford could say that the intercooler somehow caused the turbo failure. Again, they would legally have to prove this, but if they come back to you and say, "Hey, you're screwed your intercooler caused this", what are you really going to do?

Now, if your rear diff explodes, they obviously can't point to the intercooler as the cause. Essentially an intercooler (or any after market part for that matter) won't just void your entire warranty, just the associated links to that part.

Not sure what your relationship is with your dealer but it may not be a bad idea to go talk to the service manager and explain what you are wanting to do. Maybe even having them do the work (if they even would) may make them more comfortable that the job was done to their satisfaction. The flip side to that is even if they did the install and let's say your motor grenades - Ford will send an engineer from corp to inspect before any warranty decisions are made. This engineer could say that the IC could be partly to blame and that warranty is denied. Then what? You can cry Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act all day long and you might actually be right but as I said before, Ford has deeper pockets than you do.

Bottom line, be prepared to have a catastrophic failure be on you in regards to any engine mods you might do.

if there were metal shavings filling your intercooler- then yes, but generally - a larger intercooler won't void anything... except your wallet

Toadster said:

if there were metal shavings filling your intercooler- then yes, but generally - a larger intercooler won't void anything... except your wallet

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I see you have the Whipple Stage 1 kit. If you could do it again, would you choose the same setup? If not, what other option would you consider?

I am hesitant on Whipple because they do not allow an easy way to go back to stock. I have had tunes on my trucks for many years from VPM, 5-Star, etc, and I always flash it back to stock before taking it to the dealer. It only takes about 15-20 minutes and I like to do it in case they need to update my stock program for some known problem.

I also have to flash back to stock when I take my Gen 1 Raptor in for my yearly state inspection since my 5-star tune disables the O2 sensors which causes my truck to fail.

TXRaptor said:

I know the answer to this is they have to prove it, but what is the likelihood a larger intercooler without the associated tune would cause engine related issues? (Other than it was improperly installed)

I am considering the Stealth R bumper from ADD, so I want to do the Full Race or ADD intercooler at the same time. (The bumper will be off and make it easier to work on) I may not add the MPT tune and Borla exhaust for a while and I need to know if I will run into issues at the Ford Dealer. I know they will "assume" I had a tune installed, but I am pretty sure they can tell if a truck previously had a tune and was returned to stock.

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Stealth R bumper & full race cooler 100%, really like mine!

Ecoop said:

Stealth R bumper & full race cooler 100%, really like mine!

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Do you have any bigger pictures of what your truck looks like with the bumper and full race behind the grille? I am debating between the raw look on the cooler vs their black powder coat for an additional $150.

Also, what tune did you end up going with on yours?

TXRaptor said:

Do you have any bigger pictures of what your truck looks like with the bumper and full race behind the grille? I am debating between the raw look on the cooler vs their black powder coat for an additional $150.

Also, what tune did you end up going with on yours?

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5 star first (first out) then MPT, I like the black intercooler much better. Personal preference...I wanted to just blend in, much cleaner.

Ecoop said:

5 star first (first out) then MPT, I like the black intercooler much better. Personal preference...I wanted to just blend in, much cleaner.

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Same here. I have seen the raw ones behind the grille and it looks jarring. The black blends in much nicer, especially since you painted your grille black!

I also like the stance of your Toyos. What size tire/wheel combo and what is the offset on your rims?

I am looking at the Toyo 36x13.00R18 on a 18x9 wheel with a +1 offset. When I am done, my truck will be leveled with the RPG 2.25 and the stock leafs in the back.

TXRaptor said:

Same here. I have seen the raw ones behind the grille and it looks jarring. The black blends in much nicer, especially since you painted your grille black!

I also like the stance of your Toyos. What size tire/wheel combo and what is the offset on your rims?

I am looking at the Toyo 36x13.00R18 on a 18x9 wheel with a +1 offset. When I am done, my truck will be leveled with the RPG 2.25 and the stock leafs in the back.

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Rubbed fierce with 37s so went back to 35s. 35x12.50x17
Innov8 5" backspacing is perfect
36" will be really close probably rub pretty good...not sure if you offroad. I had mine 3" up in the front and 1" in the back.

TXRaptor said:

I see you have the Whipple Stage 1 kit. If you could do it again, would you choose the same setup? If not, what other option would you consider?

I am hesitant on Whipple because they do not allow an easy way to go back to stock. I have had tunes on my trucks for many years from VPM, 5-Star, etc, and I always flash it back to stock before taking it to the dealer. It only takes about 15-20 minutes and I like to do it in case they need to update my stock program for some known problem.

I also have to flash back to stock when I take my Gen 1 Raptor in for my yearly state inspection since my 5-star tune disables the O2 sensors which causes my truck to fail.

Click to expand...

I love it - tons of research into it and Ford helps with the tune development... I don't plan on returning to stock, even when I sell it... well worth the $$$

the transmission changes alone make the truck a whole different animal!