Financed + Mods.

[BRZ_Lawyer]

Originally Posted by funwheeldrive

I think I'm the only FRS owner who is keeping their car stock.

I'm doing the same but it's getting tougher to do so. ( tempted to install $400 exhaust from Amazon)

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

[THA STI GUY]

Financed and rocket bunny drift car

[rick s]

Originally Posted by Starkiller

I laugh when people say if you finance it, then you own it. LOL. Miss a payment and see who owns that thing.

If it gets to the point where they are going to repo the car you probably have bigger issues than just worry about the bank getting upset that the car has been modified Just sayin!

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by nobody__

Then why spend money refurnishing a house you don't own?

You can't really compare ownership of an automobile (personal property) with ownership of a house (real property). The law underlying title to personal property and real property are different and in some cases are contradictory. In the US, it also varies by state. Just stick to personal property.

When you buy a car, you do own it, whether you finance it or not. When you finance it, you pledge the car as collateral under a security agreement, and the bank records a lien against it with your state government (usually the Secretary of State's office). What that means is that although you own the vehicle, the bank has the right to seize your property and sell it on your behalf to satisfy the loan if you default.

If you read your loan documents, you will likely notice that the loan agreement not only says that you own the vehicle but also requires you to promise the lender that you own it. Mine says this:

3. OWNERSHIP OF THE PROPERTY - You promise that you own the Property or, if this Loan is to buy the Property, you promise you will use the Loan proceeds for that purpose. You promise that no one else has any interest in or claim against the Property that you have not already told us about.

Since you own it, you can certainly modify it UNLESS your financing contract says you that you agree not to do so. Mine says this:

5. USE OF PROPERTY - Until the Loan has been paid off, you promise you will: (1) Use the Property carefully and keep it in good repair. (2) Obtain our written permission before making major changes to the Property or changing the address where the Property is kept.

Unfortunately they don't specify what constitutes "major changes," but I think common sense would prevail. If it's something that could be undone fairly easily, like swapping out the header or exhaust, I wouldn't expect it to be considered a major change. Trying to turn this car into a convertible would. You could always ask the loan officer who sold you the loan if you weren't sure. If you're a good customer with good credit who always pays on time, those guys want you to be happy so that you'll come back and borrow more money later.

And even if you don't ask and just do it anyway, how would they find out about it, and what could they do about it if they did? As long as you make your payments, it won't matter. If you default, they'll repossess it and try to sell it to pay off your loan. They may not even bother trying to get any extra money for the value of the mods, so you might lose the value you put into them. On the other hand, if you do something stupid to your car (like a botched conversion to a convertible) that hurts the value so that they can't get enough for it to satisfy your loan, you would probably end up paying the difference.

The only thing that worries me about mods is insurance claims. I've been ****ed around by adjusters in the past, and I wouldn't put it past one of them to try to deny the value of the mods if my car were totaled. I would hate to put $20K in mods into a car like this, have some idiot run a red light and have the adjuster total it and offer me just the book value of the stock car. That's the point at which I would call a certain vicious lawyer I know, but I'm not confident even he could help. I would probably just end up buying the car back from the insurance company for salvage value and part it out. It would still be a pain in the ass, though.

On the other hand, if your mods were to severely damage the value of the vehicle in a way that insurance wouldn't pay out, like causing the engine to explode, you might find yourself without a car but still with a payment on whatever's left on your loan.

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by Whitigir

You can only mod it when the title is in your hand...

That's not true. That piece of paper called a title is not the same thing as ownership of the vehicle, and in some states you get the paper title even though the car isn't paid off. When you buy the car, title (the legal concept of ownership) passes to you. Whether you get a piece of paper saying you own it depends on where you are.

In some US states, you get the paper title, but it has the name of the lienholder clearly printed on it so that anybody you tried to sell it to would know there was a lien, and that the lienholder could potentially come take it from them if you didn't pay off the loan. Once you pay off the loan, you go to the DMV to get a new paper title with the lien cleared.

In some states, the lender gets and holds the paper title and releases it to you when you have satisfied the loan.

In most states the government doesn't trust you or the lender, so the government keeps the paper title until either you pay off the loan or the lender repossesses the car and sells it to someone else.

In all these cases, however, you still possess legal title to the vehicle. That piece of paper is only evidence of ownership, not the ownership interest itself. As I quoted above from my own loan documents, most loans actually even spell it out that you own the property.

And if you own the property, you can modify it unless your loan agreement says you have agreed not to do so.

[illest86]

I think the home is a great comparison.

We pretty much work to pay off things like our vehicles which get us to our jobs which earn us an income which will eventually be enough for a home. Just because it's being financed doesn't mean you don't customize things for enjoyment.

Live a little!

[headlikeahole]

I don't get why this would even be an issue? You can finance a car and drive it off a cliff the next day if you feel like it.

The bank does't care about your car, they just want your money. They will get your money regardless of what you do to the car.

[Chad86]

So does this mean I have to wait out the 5 year warranty before adding my Greddy exhaust...

[taylorbosse]

I owe about 15K on my BRZ, I put about 9K down on it 2 months ago and already am on coils, wheels and have exhaust.

I'm 22 and I live on my own, parents moved out to Atlantic City for a job and I stayed put since I work in steel mill and the money is too good too pass up for being my age. So if I lose my job I lose my house and my credit history is destroyed. If i can keep my job I can easily cover cost of living alone and owning the BRZ. Therefore my foreman's butt cheek always has some residual lipstick from me kissing it.

[chas3wba0]

Originally Posted by Chad86

So does this mean I have to wait out the 5 year warranty before adding my Greddy exhaust...

Absolutely not. As long as your mods don't "cause" any failures related to a warranty claim, you're good

[Chad86]

Originally Posted by chas3wba0

Absolutely not. As long as your mods don't "cause" any failures related to a warranty claim, you're good

This is great news, thanks!

[chas3wba0]

Originally Posted by Chad86

This is great news, thanks!

A disclaimer: I don't have any actual references to support that statement, I'm just regurgitating what I commonly hear and have deduced from logical reasoning and past experiences

[Chad86]

Originally Posted by chas3wba0

A disclaimer: I don't have any actual references to support that statement, I'm just regurgitating what I commonly hear and have deduced from logical reasoning and past experiences

I guess it would be best to check with my dealership before I proceed then...?

[m.wood0213]

I am financing and wanting to mod, but Im saving for a house and my wedding so I'm a little restricted.