Aftermarket parts warrantied if installed at time of purchase?

I have a 2013 R1200R that I purchased in March. What a great bike. Anyway, I had BMW install Pazzo levers because my hands are smaller than the average German. They worked great on my F650GS twin. Well, after a month, I had some issues with the clutch engaging if the levers were in the #1 position. The dealer investigated (and charged me) and determined that I need to leave them in the 4 position. I have adapted to that, even though it defeats the purpose of having them. I realised that when I use the heated grips, I am only receiving the benefit of heat on the lowest part of my palm! I need to handle this issue. So, Pazzo says that it can be adjusted and I am going to print out the instructions and take them to the dealer. I did speak to another shop about this and they informed me that all aftermarket parts installed by the authorized dealer at the time of purchase are covered under warranty. Is this true?

The only time I have had a dealer warranty after market parts were if they were installed incorrectly or a material defect. And it was part specific. Don't expect BMW to cover anything they didn't produce or offer as an accessory. It is, in my experience up to the dealer who sold you the parts.

It will depend entirely on the goodwill of the dealer I would guess. BMWNA is unlikely to involve themselves in any dispute that arises out aftermarket sales and installation.

The PO installed Pazzo levers on my '07 R12R, and I've had no difficulty with them. I don't see any installation adjustments; perhaps the wrong model was installed on your bike. Let us know what you find out.

dbrick, thanks for that. It's a really good point. I will speak to the dealer about the part number and contact Pazzo.

You bought a new bike, asked the dealer to change the levers and now expect BMW or the dealer to warrant an aftermarket part?

Not very likely. If I were the dealer and specifically tried to sell you the levers I'd look at it for good will- otherwise I'd laugh hysterically.

The old maxim about the cheapest thing about owning a BMW certainly applies here...

You are surely naive if you think aftermarket stuff will always fit and function as well as oem. No matter who makes it, they typically make it after looking at a single example of the model its supposed to fit- without the benefit of the original engineering drawings with tolerances. That practice alone causes all kinds of problems with aftermarket stuff that are all to familiar to folks who spin wrenches.

Why would any vehicle manufacturer cover warranty on any parts it does not manufacture, install, or provide as original equipment? Doesn't matter if the dealer installed it at original point of sale or not, unless the manufacturer (not the dealer) has express, published data to support the product. Sure, a dealer can provide "warranty" in the form of customer support, but that is independent of the manufacturer.

I worked as a chassis engineer for a vehicle OEM at one time, so I got some viewpoint from the vehicle maker. Unless the OEM authorizes the part, or installs the part as of thier original design, there would be no OEM warranty on aftermarket parts, regardless of who installed them or when they were installed.

Sounds like some confusion here. BMW parts installed with the bike new as delivered are covered for the bike's warranty of 3 years. BMW parts installed after purchase of the bike have their own BMW parts and accessory warranty which is less. Aftermarket, non BMW parts when ever they were installed are not ever covered by BMW.

Um, yeah. Looks like some people didn't read my post too closely. I have always believed that aftermarket parts are my responsibility even if installed before I take delivery....until the other shop owner told me otherwise. That's why I was asking you guys. Seems like I struck some kind of nerve here.

Didn't mean to get all high and mighty about it.

We gotta remember that most BMW owners posting on the forum are likely more informed than your typical forum rider.

Read your warranty

BMW parts and accessories installed by your dealer get a 24 month unlimited mileage warranty of their own regardless of your bike's warranty. I doubt your levers fall under this as they are not BMW parts. However, since your dealer installed them you can argue your case with them, especially if (as I suspect) they offered these levers as a solution in an effort to get you to buy the bike.

You should read your warranty as it has many exclusions, including heated hand grips, various bearings, shocks, brake discs, etc. It was pretty surprising to me all that wasn't covered. There is also a longer (time) but shorter mileage warranty that applies to emissions related systems. That's 5 years or 18,700 miles, whichever comes first.

There is nothing in the warranty booklet about aftermarket parts warranty except to say that if one causes a failure in a warrantied part then the warranty does not cover that. So it is a little risky to install non BMW aftermarket parts unless you are pretty sure they won't cause any collateral damage.