Warranty, product support, etc on a used Smarty product
 

Is the warranty, product support, etc. the same on a used Smarty product as with a new one? I was ready to buy a JR this weekend, but if I can save a few $$ on a used and get the same support as buying new, I’d like to do that. With the Smarty SSR on the market now, a few more used Smartys will be for sale.

The Support you get from the Smarty users is reason enough to buy one if you can get it for lower cost all the better..

Bob and Marco have been great over the years..

From the various posts I’ve read, Bob, Marco, Admin, and many others have been very helpful with Smarty, as well as most other items related to diesels.

My question is more about the warranty of the Smarty: I’ve read somewhere on this site that Ebay sellers are not authorized to sell Smarty, and therefore can’t warranty the product. So if the person selling a Smarty in the classified isn’t an “authorized” dealer, is the product still warranted?

I just did more research and came across this thread: https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...ht=ebay+smarty

Here’s one of the quotes ref buying from non-authorized dealers,
“Are you aware that there are NO Authorized Smarty dealers on Ebay? and that if you actually bought one from Ebay you have NO US Support for the unit if it breaks or malfunctions? You would have to ship it to Italy and wait possibly a month or longer to get it back.”

I’m concerned that if I buy a used Smarty and it turns out to be a faulty item, I won’t get the same support because I didn’t purchase from the DTR store. If that’s the case, I’d rather pay the extra $$ and buy from DTR.

Maybe you can ask the seller if they can prove they bought it in the US and from "who" (i.e. original receipt), that may help address your warranty question.

Also, I recall reading about a 'VIN lock'. If I read the info correctly, essentially, the seller needs to change the JR. setting back to original / stock, so the JR is no longer tied to that VIN and is ready to be programmed for another VIN (I may not be phrasing this correctly, but i think you get the point).

This is true. All Smarty products need to be set back to STOCK before removing from the truck to use on another truck or to sell it.

Just to support what both rockcrawler304 and I are saying, here is a Smarty FAQ that addresses the 'VIN Lock'.

Q) Could you take Smarty and install it on several different trucks ONE-AT-A-TIME"?
A) Yes! No problem, when you go back to stock Smarty unlocks from the VIN# and ECM. Now you're ready to go into another truck. As many times as you want. Smarty only works with one truck AND one ECM at one time.
Please! Notice!!! 1 Smarty = One truck AND one ECM!

I understand the ability to program one truck at a time. However, my question is geared more towards the warranty and support of the product.

Is there any warranty on a used Smarty?

Several years ago, I bought a used vehicle with NEW tires from “Big O Tires”. The tires had a warranty. However, “Big O Tires” refused to honor the warranty to me because I wasn’t the person who originally purchased the tires.

So if purchasing a USED Smarty could result in the same issues I had with the tires, I would rather buy NEW and not deal with any possible future issues, or have to try to get the original owner to help out with possible warranty issues.

Personally, I'd just buy new. That way, I know that I'm the only one who has violated the smarty and warranty is not a issue. Plus you'd be supporting DTR if you bought it from them.

Very good point... I'm leaning that way too.

Myself as well as many friends have been running smarty's since they were released for the CR's. Some of us purchased new, some second hand, I have had both myself. Never at any time did one of us have an issue with any of them. Buy used...your right on the increased volume from the new release of ssr. Just sold my s-06 at a lower than prefered price because of it to get the ssr.

Just buy a new one from the DTR store - you won't regret it!

Never have I heard of anyone needing any warranty work on any Smarty... Buy new or used, it dosen't really matter. Just make sure you buy it from a reputable person. You don't want to end up with one that is VIN locked to another truck. MADS not gonna fix that for you unless you bought new as far as I know.