smkettner said:
Blastphemy said:
I refused to sign that form because it basically says, "use of any charger other than the Toyota recommended Leviton 40amp charger will void your warranty." It hides that in a bunch of legalese, but fundamentally that's what it's trying to say.
I don't see that at all. Please elaborate what paragraph contains "void warranty"
The paragraph prominently surrounded by a border:
"I agree to accept delivery of a RAV4 EV without having installed a Toyota-approved Level 2 (240V) 30A or 40A EVSE, and release & hold dealer and Toyota harmless from any damages resulting from this decision."
By signing that acknowledgment, you agree that use of any 240V charger other than the Toyota-approved Leviton chargers that results in damage (as determined by Toyota) to your Ra4 EV is
not covered by your warranty. All damages will be at
your expense since you're holding the dealer and Toyota harmless from such. The statement does not state that explicitly, but the implied intent is there, and a good lawyer could prove that the customer was agreeing to waive all relevant warranty provisions should his/her Rav4 EV ever use a non-Leviton EVSE.
Whether or not Toyota's lawyers enforce that provision is another question, and whether it's enforceable is debatable, but your signature on that line gives Toyota a
lot of credibility for arguing in their favor should they choose to cite it when denying warranty coverage related to the charging system.
Let's say you start getting those
"Check EV System" warning messages we've all seen. You bring your Rav4 EV to the dealership, and the first question you're asked is "Did you use a non-Leviton charger before seeing this error message?" You say, "yes," and the dealership hands you an estimate for repairs. You argue that the 240V charger you used was SAE J1772 compliant. The dealership pulls your signed release form and shows you where you specifically agreed that not using a Toyota-approved Level 2 EVSE (i.e., Leviton 30A or 40A charger) results in the dealer and Toyota being held harmless. You argue that the Check EV System warning indicates the car requires a known firmware update. The dealership asks you if you're a qualified technician certified to evaluate and repair the Rav4 EV. You say, "no." The dealership points to the estimate and says, "then if you want your car serviced, you have to pay for it since you did not comply with Toyota's requirements for charging the car under warranty."
I'm not saying you can't fight that in court and win, but it would be an uphill battle and would cost far more than just installing an approved charger at home.