Nitrous oxide & manufacturers warranties
Discussion
Vladimir Pukin said:
Is that a serious question?
It's apparently safe to fit on any engine that is in good condition and an engine in a new car should be in good condition.Don't be fooled by what you see on The Fast & Furious where they "blow the welds on the manifold" and the floor pan drops out of the car.
Kentish said:
Vladimir Pukin said:
Is that a serious question?
It's apparently safe to fit on any engine that is in good condition and an engine in a new car should be in good condition.Don't be fooled by what you see on The Fast & Furious where they "blow the welds on the manifold" and the floor pan drops out of the car.
Edited by TommyBuoy on Wednesday 25th August 09:27
Nitrous oxide always seems pointless to me. You have to pay a super-inflated performance-adder insurance premium for something that lasts 10 minutes and which you can never prove you weren't using at the time of an accident. What a gift in a collision to notice the other driver has an N2O installation.
It shouldn't affect the warranty on anything bar the engine and gearbox and maybe drive components.
It shouldn't affect the warranty on anything bar the engine and gearbox and maybe drive components.
Edited by LuS1fer on Wednesday 25th August 09:31
TommyBuoy said:
I can confidently say that your original manufactuers warranty will be void if you fit NO2.
Not sure that's legal or true.I mean if the stereo breaks or window mech then these are still covered and not affected by the addition of nitrous oxide.
Also in the US it's very much up to the garage to prove a mod had caused the direct failure of a component. I would assume with a bit of work something similar should apply here.
Lastly, if you need to make a warranty claim - remove the nitrous kit. It'll only take a couple of hours and the dealer will be non the wiser.
LuS1fer said:
Nitrous oxide always seems pointless to me. You have to pay a super-inflated performance-adder insurance premium for something that lasts 10 minutes and which you can never prove you weren't using at the time of an accident. What a gift in a collision to notice the other driver has an N2O installation.
Meh? Why does a N2O installation matter in a accident? As long as it's fitted correctly and declared to the insurance company, it's no different to any other after market modification.doogz said:
Mr E said:
LuS1fer said:
Nitrous oxide always seems pointless to me. You have to pay a super-inflated performance-adder insurance premium for something that lasts 10 minutes and which you can never prove you weren't using at the time of an accident. What a gift in a collision to notice the other driver has an N2O installation.
Meh? Why does a N2O installation matter in a accident? As long as it's fitted correctly and declared to the insurance company, it's no different to any other after market modification.5th Gear also did a presentation on the show about it and the benefits and I'm pretty sure they commented on it being 100% legal.
I can actually see the practical appeal of NO2 systems. My wife commutes along a very twisty country road with very few straights where you can pass the OAPs trying to tour the county on a gallon of petrol. A NO2 system would increase your opportunities to pass, and leave you with an economical car for the city portion of her commute.
doogz said:
I could be completely wrong here, so feel free to correct me, but isn't it illegal to use on the road?
You are, as far as I'm aware, completely wrong. The green celica had a 50 shot of laughing gas plumbed in and was insured with no issues.I'm unaware of any legislation that prohibits N2O on a road car.
The fact that it then blew piston #4 to bits 300 miles later was unfortunate....
Edited by Mr E on Wednesday 25th August 10:53
Mr E said:
doogz said:
I could be completely wrong here, so feel free to correct me, but isn't it illegal to use on the road?
You are, as far as I'm aware, completely wrong. The green celica had a 50 shot of laughing gas plumbed in and was insured with no issues.I'm unaware of any legislation that prohibits N2O on a road car.
The fact that it then blew piston #4 to bits 300 miles later was unfortunate....
Edited by Mr E on Wednesday 25th August 10:53
I don't know what you had but the safest system would appear to be the ones that operate at full throttle only as that ensures you have enough petrol in the mixture.
Mr E said:
LuS1fer said:
Nitrous oxide always seems pointless to me. You have to pay a super-inflated performance-adder insurance premium for something that lasts 10 minutes and which you can never prove you weren't using at the time of an accident. What a gift in a collision to notice the other driver has an N2O installation.
Meh? Why does a N2O installation matter in a accident? As long as it's fitted correctly and declared to the insurance company, it's no different to any other after market modification.Kentish said:
Not enough fuel to N2O mixture?
I don't know what you had but the safest system would appear to be the ones that operate at full throttle only as that ensures you have enough petrol in the mixture.
This system only operated on WOT (as I believe they all do), but wasn't the type that had individual injectors on each cylinder. We had an extra fuel injector that kicked in when the system was running, but it mixed (not very well it seems) the N2O behind the throttle butterfly, and our suspicion is #4 ran lean and detonated. There's also a suspicion that the piston may have been less than 100% before the laughing gas was plumbed and failed as a result of the extra load.I don't know what you had but the safest system would appear to be the ones that operate at full throttle only as that ensures you have enough petrol in the mixture.
Yes, we should have bought an expensive kit that did fuel/O2 mix and tested the engine before installing. But, the car was worth 3K tops, and a new engine cost us 500 quid. It was a learning experience, and we learnt not to piss about with stuff we didn't understand very well.
The general consensus from the experts who examined the wreckage was that the N2O was working correctly and we were "unlucky, but s
t happens".LuS1fer said:
Because you can make all sorts of allegations and you can't prove you weren't using it if someone suggests you were. I think most courts would see it as a boy-racer attachment. It's different to a turbo or supercharger that you can't turn off and which has a clear system of delivery that you get used to. As for it having any advantage over something like a supercharger, my blown Mustang retrurns 24mpg on a commute and I don't have to worry about getting a bottle refilled, whether it's the right temperature or whether I'll run out halfway through a critical overtake.
I suspect if that's were the case is going and you're in a car that isn't a bland box, it's going to end badly for you regardless of modifications, but I understand the point you're making.The N2O kit installed was 400 quid. A custom supercharger for the same engine I estimated at north of 2 grand.
Yes, laughing gas is cheap speed. Yes, I would much rather have proper forced induction (and at the time had a second car with a proper FI engine in it). But N2O is cheap and a giggle (pun very much intended).
doogz said:
No, you misunderstand me.
I was under the impression that is was illegal to use on the road. Not illegal to have fitted to a road car. But as has been said, it would appear i am wrong anyway, but the impression i had was that you could have it fitted, you just couldn't use it on public roads.
I understand you perfectly. There is (to my knowledge) no legislation regarding the use of N2O on the public road. I am not a lawyer, and could be wrong in this.I was under the impression that is was illegal to use on the road. Not illegal to have fitted to a road car. But as has been said, it would appear i am wrong anyway, but the impression i had was that you could have it fitted, you just couldn't use it on public roads.
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