Track day void warranty?
 

Hi everyone, recently got my 3is. I want to take it to track day, but it seems Toyota has a clause in their warranty that states that the following: "warranty does not cover failures from: your vehicle is vandalised, abused, raced or used in any other competition".

Wondering if anyone has experience regarding this.

Cheers!

I am not a lawyer and an expert on the specific nature of the clause - full disclosure I don't race so that is not a concern to me however, the way I read the statement as you quoted it would suggest that if the racing causes a damage, that specific damage will not be covered under warranty....I am not sure it says that if you go racing that it automatically means that your warranty will be voided.

For example, if you go racing and somehow damage a front suspension component as a result, if they can demonstrate that you went racing and that that racing cause that part to fail, then it wouldn't be covered.

Now I could be TOTALLY wrong but that is how I seem to interpret it..

As above, I don't think a warranty can limit what you can or cannot do with your car, just that damage won't be covered. Get track day insurance. Your normal car insurance policy will NOT cover you at a race track. It's 2-300 for the day, but worth it for piece of mind you won't have to write off 40-50k.

See if the local track offers any kind of insurance for the day. I've driven my car on the Nuremberg Ring many times here in Germany and I've purchased track insurance from the local vendor here for the day.

Thanks for the info everyone. Didn't know about track day insurance. I'll look into that.

It's not the warranty I'd be concerned about but accident damage (striking a wall or another car) That you'd have to consult your insurance policy on.

If you're autocrossing, the chances are pretty low you'd crash. They usually have wide open parking lots with plenty of spacing.

If you are taking your IS on an actual race track where you enter a sustained high speed section with steep banking, you could starve your engine from oil. I wouldn't race any street car in such a manner. Auto cross is fine though.

As others have mentioned above, getting track day insurance would cover you for damages from collisions on the track.

Regarding warranted components that could fail on the track, as long as your pre-track prep work is done (e.g. fresh engine/coolant/brake fluid, track-suitable tires and brake pads/fluid), you should experience little to no issues with your 3IS that would warrant a trip to the service center.

Take the numbers off the doors and limp it into the shop. Outside chance one of the mechanics was also
at that track that day and saw you but give it a try, right?

You mean like this? Ironic isn't it?

Of course it will, even McLaren voids the warranty for racing events. Be smart about it and you might get it covered if something brakes, don’t broadcast it, especially to the dealership

Agree with this. Even if you drive flawlessly, someone else on the track could hit you and you’re screwed. This won’t happen in autocrossing. They space cars out and the only things to hit are orange cones. My AE86 will never see the track when it’s road ready again. Too risky.

Use to "Corner Work" for SCCA track events. In an IT, Improved Touring session of
basically street stock cars with roll cages a fellow drifted slightly off a wet track and
got sideways on the grass. Sliding at under 30 MPH the wheels dug in and in slow
motion it tripped up and rolled "door handle the door handle". Brand new at the time
Audi Quattro Coupe... had driven (not trailered) to the event. Owner decided he
would head home and "stage" an off road crash so he could collect the insurance.