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How does Tekno's 50% discount warranty work out?

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cr8tor

Active member
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Location
Idaho, USA
Driving Style
Basher
I'm curious, how does Tekno's 50% warranty discount on parts work out once you factor in the costs of shipping broken parts back in order to get the discount coupon?
I feel like paying to ship the old part back is going to erode the discount, and i feel like this is more gimmick than actual value.
Not to mention aftermarket parts bought elsewhere, if they are simply cheaper than OEM than the warranty/discount is devalued even more.

I'm not trying to be negative, i'm trying to ask about the true value of this in regards to actual usage?
Please note, im planning to purchase an MT410 kit soon, and am more curious about how it works out for my own knowledge, not as part of the purchase decision.

Does anyone consistently use this feature and have an opinion on the true value of this 50% discount warranty feature?
Also curious on their response/turnaround times also. (understanding covid is a thing also)

If needed, here is a link to the warranty page, look under the General Warranty section.
www.teknorc.com/warranty-repair/
 
I've been using it for a long time, though I try to wait until I have at least a half dozen or so parts to ship in where average cost for shipping is between $3-$5 most of the time. Plan for 3-4 week total turn around... 1 week for them get the parts you ship in... 1 week to process and another week for parts to arrive.

Only parts I stopped buying are the bodies because they charge way too much on shipping for the bodies where it's cheaper for me to get aftermarket bodies than what they're charging for return shipping.

It would be nice if they offered free shipping on orders over $100, but the higher the order total the more they charge for shipping which makes no sense, there is a flaw in their shipping program because I know it costs me a fraction of the price to ship the same parts to them :(

*** UPDATE ***
See post#14 for updates to shipping... I have not placed an order for a body in quite some time, but it seems TEKNO has since fixed the glitch in their shipping algorithm
 
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I've been using it for a long time, though I try to wait until I have at least a half dozen or so parts to ship in where average cost for shipping is between $3-$5 most of the time. Plan for 3-4 week total turn around... 1 week for them get the parts you ship in... 1 week to process and another week for parts to arrive.

Only parts I stopped buying are the bodies because they charge way too much on shipping for the bodies where it's cheaper for me to get aftermarket bodies than what they're charging for return shipping.

It would be nice if they offered free shipping on orders over $100, but the higher the order total the more they charge for shipping which makes no sense, there is a flaw in their shipping program because I know it costs me a fraction of the price to ship the same parts to them :(
I was planning on the same thing, send a few parts back at a time.

I understand the turnaround time, kind of.
I think they could make it happen much faster, especially considering all customers do to prep for the process.
It's not like it shows up unexpectedly when you ship it to them.
They do show up unexpectedly, i did not understand the warranty process properly when i originally said this.

Anyway, when they get the part, someone should verify the RMA info, verify the part is as expected, and ship out new part. It should take a single person a few moments to complete the process. From opening the return box to slapping the label on the new one, it should take someone no more than 3 to 5 minutes. And that's if they are half asleep. I would assume an experienced person with a mild amount of motivation could turn around orders in less than 2 minutes.
I almost bet that they are processing incoming orders on a once a week basis.
Once processed as incoming, they then order the parts themselves for multiple orders.
Wait for their bulk parts order to "arrive from the warehouse" and then box and ship the individual items to the customer.
That's purely speculation and guessing on my part though. Why else would you make customers wait? Their is no business reason for a long turnaround that i can think of.

And hearing they may be taking advantage of people in regards to shipping is unfortunate.
As they are selling parts at a 50% price point, i can understand if that is near or pretty close to the break even point. So i can understand them not eating the cost of shipping. After all you are likely going to pay for shipping on a new part somewhere else also.
I do think they should be combining shipping on multiple items going back to the customer though.
They are a US based company so if i can ship it to them in a USPS flat rate box, they should be able to also. And basing it off the order total? That sound like where they are recovering cost, or possibly even profiting off their warranty customers. hhhmmm, sounds like something Traxxas would do.

I'm curious if anyone else will share their experience on these points also.
I would really like to know how many people are experiencing the same thing.
And also, is this taking into account pre-covid experience also?
 
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I believe they are still making a decent profit with the 50% discount, plus the added rake on the over inflated shipping rates... they're simply cutting out the middle man and passing the markup back to the consumer.
 
I've not broken enough to bother with it. I 've set a few items aside to collect into a larger group to consider in the future. Paying for shipping there and back has outweighed any benefit of the discount for me so far. I've bent about 5 five axles which they don't cover if remember correct, only broken. Literally just got back from my LHS where I got replacement rear hubs due to a bearing failure Sunday, another set of front axles and somne bearings I didn't have. Add to the pile..
 
The warranty is "no questions asked", only requirement is that the part must still be in production... I ran into a case where they had a revised part and I broke the original version and they didn't warranty it because they discontinued the original part. I had to pay full price for the revised part and then I could warranty the revised part going forward.

They will even warranty diff gaskets, rubber seals, shock boots... literally every item that is in production :)
 
I just get a little flat rate box. It is called the carnage box that sits on the bench. Send it when it gets full enough. Little boy had a rough day at Thornhill last weekend, added a few parts in it..... Those columns on the back straight suck.
 
Most covered tracks have way more columns than Thornhill, if you've ever raced on a non covered track where rain perpetually cancels racing or the sun is baking the back of your neck, then you'll gladly welcome those columns ;)

I've had my share of broken parts on those columns myself, it teaches you to drive cleaner, ha!
 
Thanks for all the great feedback.
I appreciate everyone who took the time to share their opinions and experiences.

It sounds like Tekno RC is playing a bit of a game with the 50% warranty thing.
If it sounds too good to be true, it's probably a well researched numbers game.
Isn't that what they say? haha

Anyway, I still plan to order an MT410.
It's too bad about the gimmick warranty thing though.
I was hopeful Tekno RC was a better company than other entities in the RC industry.
It seems as though everyone has some kind of gimmick though. *sigh*
 
The warranty is "no questions asked", only requirement is that the part must still be in production... I ran into a case where they had a revised part and I broke the original version and they didn't warranty it because they discontinued the original part. I had to pay full price for the revised part and then I could warranty the revised part going forward.

They will even warranty diff gaskets, rubber seals, shock boots... literally every item that is in production :)
That's kind of messed up they didn't offer you a discount of some kind on what is essentially an upgrade.
I would think a warranty should be valid regardless of their choice to produce the part or not.
Otherwise they can produce a part, say it has a 50 year warranty and then stop producing it for version 1.1 next year, version 1.2 the next year and so on. Effectively canceling their own warranty.

I would be surprised if this is legal in thinking about it. hhhmmm
Like i know though.
What's the saying for this?
There are no moral in business.
If there isn't a law against it, then its legal.
 
The warranty is "no questions asked", only requirement is that the part must still be in production... I ran into a case where they had a revised part and I broke the original version and they didn't warranty it because they discontinued the original part. I had to pay full price for the revised part and then I could warranty the revised part going forward.

They will even warranty diff gaskets, rubber seals, shock boots... literally every item that is in production :)
I appreciate the clarification.
It seems like its worth utilizing but not necessarily a value add feature.
I question the legality of saying a part isn't warrantied due to production though.
Seems shady. Lacking ethics. Legal or not.
Either warranty it or don't.
I get you need to have the part to warranty the part. But on the other hand, if you say its warrantied for 10 years, you better plan to have stock of that part to cover 10 years of needs.
I think i would rather see a 5 year warranty that i know is good for 5 years (when purchased from them) than a lifetime warranty that will end at some random point whenever they decide to update the part.
Sure, i want them to update the part, make it better, but not at the cost of my warranty.
 
Keep in mind that TEKNO does a really good job supporting their legacy vehicles, there is an upgrade path for all their OG platforms so you can reasonably maintain every platform indefinitely. As revisions are made, provided they are compatible, they will discontinue the older version of a part... this is far less expensive to replace the revisions separately than to have to buy a whole new kit which is very common practice for most other brands so in this respect it's far less expensive to maintain a TEKNO than any other brand hands down.

Yeah they charge a little more for shipping than I prefer, but they are still offering a product that saves more money than anyone else by a long shot.
 
Keep in mind that TEKNO does a really good job supporting their legacy vehicles, there is an upgrade path for all their OG platforms so you can reasonably maintain every platform indefinitely. As revisions are made, provided they are compatible, they will discontinue the older version of a part... this is far less expensive to replace the revisions separately than to have to buy a whole new kit which is very common practice for most other brands so in this respect it's far less expensive to maintain a TEKNO than any other brand hands down.

Yeah they charge a little more for shipping than I prefer, but they are still offering a product that saves more money than anyone else by a long shot.
I hear ya. To be fair i didn't really understand their process due to a few misleading comments.
Ultimately it seems to me their shipping prices are fair.
I thought there was a hidden process in regards to shipping but you just get a coupon and then order new from the site.
I added a few misc parts to my cart and added my zip code and there are options for USPS cheap to more expensive options.
I felt the cheap USPS options were pretty fair for what i had added to the cart.

So all things considered the 50% warranty seems fair once you dig into it.
I personally dont know how valuable the 50% off is as im not used to offroad parts and so overall cost is hard for me to judge, but it seems worth it.

I've also seen a few comments about them having good support so i feel confident in the purchase still.
And the warranty seems fair once you dig into it and get facts over opinions and false info.

You have answered a number of posts Bill so many thanks for your time.
 
I stand corrected, I think someone at TEKNO has been listening or they fixed the shipping glitch... it's been a long time since I've ordered any TEKNO bodies, but I just placed 3 bodies in the cart and they kept the shipping to a reasonable price :)
 
Most covered tracks have way more columns than Thornhill, if you've ever raced on a non covered track where rain perpetually cancels racing or the sun is baking the back of your neck, then you'll gladly welcome those columns ;)

I've had my share of broken parts on those columns myself, it teaches you to drive cleaner, ha!
Oh I know! Gotta hold the roof up somehow! My 9y/I was having hell with that column that was to the right of the second double double. It was hell on front shocks, A block, and A arms!

The Tekno sure takes a beating and going.
 
I stand corrected, I think someone at TEKNO has been listening or they fixed the shipping glitch... it's been a long time since I've ordered any TEKNO bodies, but I just placed 3 bodies in the cart and they kept the shipping to a reasonable price :)
Yeah, bodies was one of the things i checked also.
Servo arms, and a couple other random things. All seemed fair in regards to shipping cost.
And with everything in the cart it was still reasonable.

I hope if anyone reads the previous posts they continue far enough to see the last few comments.
 
didn't even know tekno had a warranty discount, lol. The mt410 is the best thing around that which I have broken (other than bent shock tower) has been body mounts. I'll look into for curiosity, cause I already bought some suspension arms for when I need them. . .
 
didn't even know tekno had a warranty discount, lol. The mt410 is the best thing around that which I have broken (other than bent shock tower) has been body mounts. I'll look into for curiosity, cause I already bought some suspension arms for when I need them. . .
Well i guess it was a useful post then. yay. :)

Seems pretty straightforward once you read the FAQ's about it. :)
 

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