Mitsubishi has stopped its seven-year warranty offer, now giving either five or ten years warranty depending on where you service your car, though the verdict is not out yet from the ACCC on the legalities of this situation.
Moving to one of the longest warranties available (in years) in Australia, Mitsubishi is officially providing a ten-year warranty on all new models sold from October 1 2020 – but only if you service the vehicle at a Mitsubishi dealership. The Japanese maker is also offering 10-years capped price servicing (for the first time), so it makes it somewhat simpler to maintain the ten-year guarantee.
However, the maximum distance covered before the warranty runs out is 200,000km, so you won’t be covered for 10 years if you hit 200 kays before that time. And if you don’t service at a Mitsubishi dealer, then you only get a five-year/100,000km warranty, moving the guarantee from Mitsubishi below the likes of Kia and MG (seven years/unlimited km), and also short of many brands offering a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty that beat the 100,000km cap.
Mitsubishi’s new warranty was first announced in an investigation by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission last month, as it is currently illegal for a car manufacturer to void a consumer’s warranty if the car is serviced at a recognised independent workshop rather than at a manufacturer dealership.
There is certainly a large benefit to the manufacturer in keeping the customer dollars at a service centre for ten years, as wear and tear parts are not covered by warranty.
The finding into this situation is yet to be announced by the ACCC, so it’s possible there could be amendment made, or even that the ACCC finds that all manufacturers must honour their longest warranty guarantee regardless of servicing location.
In the case of Mitsubishi, the manufacturer is showing that the vehicle should, in reasonable expectations, last ten years and should be covered within that timeframe if something goes wrong. This opens a can of worms for consumers having services completed at independent mechanics to the logbook, which is legal.Â
We’ll update our report when the ACCC makes its findings clear.
I thought the legal position was clear, vehicles under warranty serviced by qualified mechanics using manufacturer’s parts and recommended fluids retain warranty?
Seems simple. No legal hassles I can see. 5 Year Warranty. If you service at dealer approved only , ” free ” extension to 10 years. If you don’t , no hassle , 5 years just like most others.