BeattieWasHere

So it's creeping up on a month since I've bought my car.. I currently have about 88K on the clock. Reading through the forums, I keep thinking back to the extended warranty sales person offered me. I had the dealership do the 105K service before I agreed to sign my name on the dotted line, so I feel like I'm pretty well covered on the side of preventative maintenance.

So my question is.. have you purchased an extended warranty for your car in the past? Is it worth it? Should I expect any other big repairs to rear their ugly head at I creep up there in mileage?

Your opinions are welcomed.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

extended warranties from aftermarket companies are out to get you. read the fine print.

with that being said; warranties only affect people who dont diy.

I do all my work myself and never have to bring it to a dealer. thus saving money in warranty and dealership fees and mark ups.

1black_seven

iTrader: (2)

My friend bought an extended warranty and at best he broke even. It paid for a repair that cost the amount as the warranty. But he had to pay the labor expense.

Not worth it at all. There's a reason they word it to sound like a good deal, because no one in their right mind would buy it.

96SC4

Be aware of this warranty scam, please....

http://www.clublexus.com/forums/car-...-them-out.html

stevejojo

Ext. warranties cost a lot, require you to pay a deductible most of the time, and most people don't even break even on ext. warranties.

Jackass

I didn't buy one for my TL and have no regrets. I think in 6 years I have spent less than $500 in non-regular maintenance repairs to my TL. It may not even be that much...can't remember what I have and have not paid for over the years. Just so little has really gone wrong with it.

We bought an extended warranty for my wife's '08 Equinox and it has worked out well. I think it cost us around $1000 for an additional 5yr/75k miles or something close to that. So far there has been about $3000 worth of work done that was covered by it. $50 deductible and we haven't had any issues at all at the local dealer or the warranty company.

Just make sure you do read the fine print on exactly what is and isn't covered. Also pay attention since some of them require oil changes every 3k miles and require proof of that otherwise they will not warranty the engine or some other odd thing like that.

Research the company as much as possible. Think about the cost and how long it actually covers the car and determine if you would rather pay in the loan over time or just be out a chunk of change when something major does die.

BeattieWasHere

I've done a good amount of research before this and from what I could tell, it's really a gamble. Either you win, or the insurance company does. It's good to hear first hand experience with it though.

96SC4

I bought one when I bought my car...
Never needed it, and now regret it...of course

I'm sure I'd have a different opinion if I used it.

wilztlxs

iTrader: (8)

I bought a extended warranty when i bought my TL. It paid for itself and more. I got my Auto Transmission Rebuilt and had the Power Steering Rack replaced. Only had to pay $100 deductible each time.

M.I.N.O.

iTrader: (1)

Extended warranties are a huge waste of money. Best advice is to invest the money you would have used on the warranty, or even put it in a savings account. If shit hits the fan with your car, the money is there.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

okay, i change my position.

if you have a automatic transmission, it would be advisable to at least consider the warranty.


these auto trannies are made of glass

Sbarbee54

I got one for mine when I just bought it. As it was 1250$ and there is no deductible on it. Had our company lawyer look it over and got one of his other friends opinions and he said it was pretty customer friendly. Just had to make sure I kept all maintenance records.

wilztlxs

iTrader: (8)

the main reason i got my extended warranty

revolutn

I bring a slightly different point of view.

99% of the time, I do agree Extended Warranties are pretty much bogus money maker upsells.

Auto's CAN, but not always, be an exception IMHO...

If you are *not* a DIY'r
Even if you are a Mechanical DIY for your car, replacing parts, doing brakes, oil changes, body kits etc etc, then there's an electrical / technology component that is quite different from being mechanically inclined.

Also say your head unit goes out, even if you are DIY inclined, how much will it cost you out of pocket?

All ext warranties are not created equal however.

I have had personal positive experience with 1 co "The Warranty Group" who happens to under write the Ext Warranties offered through CarMax, at least in my region, I can't say if TWG is a national vendor or not.

The lowest deductible possible on one of these is $50. but can range up to 200
However if you have the service done at CM, they absorb or TWG waives not sure of the behind the scenes processing, the deductible, so that means that you would get the warrantable work done with 0 out of pocket expense....PLUS...you get an Enterprise (again local maybe another vendor in other regions) rental car that should cost you 0 out of pocket for the duration of the time it's in their shop.

I opted for one on a TSX I purchased through CM in 2012.

I had the head unit replaced due to BT module failure.
I had the Heated Seat rocker switches replaced.
A few other minor things that I can't rightly recall at the moment.

now none of these actually got me to a break even point, but it did come closish....and I only had the car 2 years.

After having it about 18 mo's it appeared to be suffering from an oil consumption issue.
So they put me on a very regimented oil level check routine, which I was following....but they did screw up the 1st to records, so had to start at 0 again, all of this was to document a legitimate problem, which would have (potentially) resulted in total engine replacement.

Now if that had come to pass the ExtW would have far beyond been in the black territory for me, red for TWG.

But in the end I got 'bored' with the game, and decided I really never wanted the TSX to begin with, and to seek out the TL Type-S MT that I had really wanted, so I gave up on it, ensuring I never did fully recoup 100% of the EW purchase price....but it was pretty close, and had I held onto it could have easily tripped the line...

There's even a dude that has blogged about intentionally buying known reliability challenged cars via CM with a TWG EW. But he talks about paying the $50 deductible to have the OE Dealership do the work.
http://dougdemuro.kinja.com/why-your...m-ca-814250605

None of this is to say EW's are a good investment, mostly ..... usually...they are not.

But I think there are exceptions to the rule, and a premium luxury class car is a better candidate than many.

Particularly imho the Type-S trim level where parts are more rare and more expensive than their base model contemporaries.

Just

Rev

screaminz28

iTrader: (1)

Auto trans Honda = Warranty worth it just for that
It can also be a savior for a non-diy person that has the spark plug blow out issue - lots of em being reported here lately

Other than that, I'd say it's really only justified on a used premium luxury car, i.e. Mercedes, Land Rover, Audi, BMW, etc.

As revolutn said, Doug Demuro has a series of posts about his Range Rover that has had more than enough repair work to pay for the carmax warranty. I just spoke with a friend that had the starter go out on his Audi S5 - bill was over $2k. He was glad he had the extended warranty.

I think of extended warranties in general as for being the type of person you are. I am a conservative low risk type of person, thus I got the warranty on my wife's Escalade. An engine is $4,000 and a transmission is $2500. If either of those go out, I'm covered, and the warranty was only $1200, so at worst, my opportunity cost if it doesn't go out is only $1200. So I essentially paid $1200 for peace of mind.

When I bought my current TL, I got it so cheap and with so many miles an extended warranty wasn't even an option. But, a used 04 engine is only $400, and a transmission from an Accord is only about $650 (I could always swap the LSD if needed), so there's no justification in purchasing it anyways.

If I were buying a 2008 BMW 335i (which I considered) I would DEFINITELY get the extended warranty.

NBP04TL4ME

You only need extended warrantys when you need and extended warranty. It can be as simple as a roll of the dice. In general, Japanese vehicles are less likely to have major $$ repairs needed, but quality control is never 100%.
With all that being said we have had extended warrantys on our MDX and our TLS. We made out like bandits on the MDX. As others mentioned, the transmissions are a weak point. We had two torque converters replaced under the extended warranty. Beyond that we had the HFL fail as well as a door lock actuator and had a loud belt tensioner pulley all replaced under the warranty.
On our TLS, we had the outside rear view mirror motors replaced because they shuddered when we backed up. If we didn't have the extended warranty, we would have lived with it or fixed ourselves. Other than the mirrors, nothing else has come up.
So two different extremes........

One last thing, I would not purchase anything other than an Acura/Honda backed warranty.

Vlad_Type_S

iTrader: (3)

Hahaha I get those all the time. Can't even say how many times I've received a "final notice".

This is the main thing to highlight. There is a HUGE difference between an aftermarket warranty and a Brand Warranty (i.e. Acura, Ford, etc.).

1) The dealer has to submit claims to the 3rd party company so they will fight you on EVERYTHING so that they don't have to do the work. I came in to my dealer with 3 TSBs, demonstrated the issues to the service advisor and they only did 1 of them claiming "they were unable to reproduce the problems". Before my Acura warranty expired, these guys mined my car for anything that was wrong that they could fix because the way they get paid in the two situations is completely different.

2) There is usually (I haven't heard of one without) a deductible with these aftermarket warranties. So those thousands you spent to just have the warranty still doesn't allow you to use it without paying more.

3) That being said, you can look at this like an insurance policy. With insurance, you're basically gambling with how much coverage you need. Sometimes you come out WAY ahead. And other times you get f***ed. If you think the car is on the brink of imploding or if you're buying something notoriously unreliable, it starts to make good sense.

This.

Also, this is a great example of rolling the dice. Sometimes your car is a lemon. Sometimes it's perfect.


In general, if I'm buying a brand new car (not sure if I ever will) I'll probably opt for the Brand warranty and definitely use it as a negotiation point of the sale. But I will never, ever spend a dime on these aftermarket warranties. Statistically, it's completely stacked against you, especially if you do your own repairs.

ninjai

It's different for everyone.. Many factors come into play. For me, I got the extended warranty and my EW had a 0 deductible option. I had a few things repaired to name a few power steering rack, motor mounts, transmission mount, both side mirror actuators already. I would take it in for anythin I could with 0 deductible who wouldn't. I still do need to get my radio fixed but it's hard to replicate the problem with it. I would believe I am going to surpass my break even point. My half shaft and shocks r leaking but the warranty is being picky about these. So all in all it was worth it for me getting EW your miles may vary.

tyintegra

I have had extended warranties on a couple of my used cars and they both paid for themselves easily. I had one on my '05 TL and upon selling it found out that it needed a new transmission, I paid my $100 deductible and it was done.

On my 06 S4 I needed a new starter and a new window regulator.

On both of my extended warranties, I was able to get a refund for the portion of the warranty that I didn't use. I.e. if you have a 3 year extended warranty for $3,000 and sell the car after 2 year, you will get $1,000 back.

I will probably never buy a used car without one.

sopmodm14

i found some worthwhile reading :

http://www.carbuyingtips.com/warranty.htm

Vlad_Type_S

iTrader: (3)

Wow that's an excellent link. Thank you. I feel my brash opinions are no longer just. Lol.

Mr Marco

I can't believe people still buy these BS extended warranties. Its a suckers bet. More than half the people who buy an extended warranty with their vehicle purchase NEVER use it. The unlucky folks who do make a claim end up getting around $375 worth of repairs covered under the extended plan. A tiny percent of warranty buyers break even, but the majority loose thousands of dollars.
My advice is put that $1,250-2,250 in the bank and save it for a rainy day. If your car does break down, you'll have money for repairs. If your car never breaks you'll still have the money, if you are stupid enough to buy a warranty and the car never breaks down (and the odds are it will not), your out $1,250-$2250.

v8eatr

I work at a new car dealership and they can be helpful but most of the time they don't. Think about it, its like an insurance company, if they had more claims than not, it wouldn't be profitable and they wouldn't exist, same for warranty companies. For the customer that needs a new transmission or something like that it works very well but read the fine print.

nokkieny

My rule of thumb is never insure anything I can afford to fix/replace myself. If insurance was a good deal than insurance companies would not make a profit. On average the extended warranty is going to cost you. The only instance I can possibly think of an extended warranty being a "smart buy" would be if you know something that the person issuing the warranty doesn't know. Not sure if that is considered fraud or not.

On that note, does anyone know the process of buying the warranty from Acura? Do they inspect the vehicle etc.. I am going to the dealer next week to get my SRS light checked and my transmission has been shifting hard for about 20-30k miles, It doesn't seem to want to die and is not getting any worse, but with 140k miles I assume it is eventually going to die, so I would actually consider the warranty depending on the cost, not sure if they even issue them with vehicles with that high of mileage.

Mr Marco

No reputable company will sell a service contract to an individual whose vehicle has 100k+ on the ODO.
Google: us fidelis

tyintegra

This is super funny, I did not google US Fidelis but I am watching an episode of American Greed (about people steeling money and just being greedy) and it is on US Fidelis...

Sbarbee54

I love how people say the same thing but don't have facts to back it up. It is just how they feel or what they have heard. Heck why carry car insurance, your a great driver you will never have anything happen to you you are so good, and heck if something happens I am a DIY person.

Better to protect your investment and well being than to not. Heck I have DIY stuff for years on cars, now I will not. My time and busy life makes it not worth it. Heck I probably lose money DIYing my car with the money I would lose not being at work. I make allot more than a mechanic does, and the ones I use give me there car for the day to use while mine is being worked on.

I have used extended warranties on 2 of my vehicles, my 07 F 250 estimate of cost was 6800, cost me 200$ with the warranty and the ASE shop I went to put all the after market stuff I wanted and upgrades I wanted in instead of just back to factory. On my wife's 04 Tahoe we had the tranny and diff replaced with the extended warranty 100$ 4200$ normal cost. It is a no brainier, as I do all normal MFG maintenance and I change oil every 3200 miles and use above spec products. flat out shit can happen and will happen better have protection than be SOL

ggesq

iTrader: (1)

I gambled that my Honda product would be fine through the proposed extended warranty time frame and didn't purchase it. For me, it worked out in my favor. Purchased brand new in 05.

nokkieny

I have never used full coverage car insurance, been driving about 10 years, those savings are enough to buy a new car. Even if I total a car once every 20 years I still save enough to buy two cars.
That being said I have never owned a car worth more than 10k, intentionally.

NBP04TL4ME

If you ever buy a car and need to finance a part of it, not carrying full insurance is not an option.

nokkieny

I would never finance a car, part 2 of my lesson on accumulating wealth.

NBP04TL4ME

Congrats!

Chad05TL

this is how warranties go.

When you buy:
Oh yes sir, this is the best warranty. Its bumper to bumper and side to side and head to toe..

When you try to make a claim:
Oh sir, you didn't do this, and you didn't do that, and you missed the schedule by 1,000 miles, and that is a "maintenance item" and the other stuff is not covered.

Chad05TL

It is ok to finance 1/2 a car as long as you get a good rate. Problems arise when or if you try to sell and you owe more than the car is worth. Or if you finance for 5+ years. Or you simply pay too much for the sales price.


Just paying cash for a car is not a get rich formula. Because you will pay for the car either Now or Later. Just make sure that you put down 1/2 of the sales price or that you have that much extra cash in the bank, so you can bail if you have to. But truthfully, if you have to bail on a car, then you paid too much!! You should not have bought it to begin with. So, I say go ahead an finance 1/2 the car and a good low rate. And don't sweat the rest. If you pay 100% cash, then you have a dead asset. It took all your cash. And it will take years to get it back or make it pay for itself. So, just finance half and spread it out. If you finance 1/2 then you are guaranteed to not be "upside down" when you try to sell. If you pay it off completely at the time of purchase then you have lost all that capital for nothing. AND it is not doing you any good to have it paid off. But if you have a few extra bucks for finance charges, then just spread it out over 2 years and keep your cash.

When you put down half, your finance charges are lower too! So I don't bother with 100% down anymore if someone will loan me 1/2 the car at 3% interest. My gosh. It's better to just pay a little interest for 2 years or less and keep that big stash.

So the goal for me is:
Don't buy more car than you can afford.
Don't be upside down in finance.
Use as little cash as you can to keep from having a big impact on your accounts
Put down as much as you can to pay it off quickly.
finance at a low rate.
Dont finance longer than 2 yrs.

Summary, if you finance longer than 2 yrs, then you start paying too much interest.
If you have to finance longer than 2 yrs, then you probably bought too much car
If you can't put down half, then you might have bought too much car.
If you are upside down, then you financed too much and/or bought too much car.

nokkieny

Any interest is too much interest, but yes car loans do have notoriously low rates, at least nowadays. I am not familiar with the fees, but I assume that is how the bank makes a chunk of the money. Another drawback is you have to use full coverage insurance. Basically what I am saying is instead of putting 50% down, just take that 50% and buy a car. Some people finance furniture, some finance cars and some finance houses. I hope to eventually be none of these.

Conan O'Brien

nice post.

Sbarbee54

Good luck, play the lottery too that could be lesson 3. Little things matter, but there are allot of other things in life you could cut out and save more than full coverage car insurance. As when you do, and I mean when, hit someone and you have cut rate none full coverage, they will own you and anyone living with you.

I accumulate wealth by hard work and being good at what I do, not by cutting life's corners. Work hard show your worth at your job and money will follow.

nokkieny

not playing the lottery could be lesson #3
There's not many things I can think of cutting out that would save $1k a year, especially something that doesn't change my quality of life.
Also, I have the highest liability limits offered, just nothing protecting my car.

Jackass

And to top this off, the Equinox is getting a new transmission and rear main seal replaced this week. Another $4500 that the warranty company is covering for a $50 deductible.

We dug out our paperwork and we paid $1500 for 48 months or 55k miles of coverage. For what its worth, we have had zero problems with Olympicare covering anything at all on the car. The dealer has handled all communication with the warranty company for us.
Anyone want to buy an Equinox?
This is my feeling as well these days. I don't have time to DIY most things on my car anymore.
Savings are enough to buy a new car? Maybe while you are in your teens and 20's. Your rates should drop quite a bit later in life that it doesn't make nearly enough difference to justify not having full coverage on a car worth 10-20k. I ran full coverage on my car that was worth $3500. If some idiot were to rear-end me that was un-insured, I would be out $3500. For the extra $200-300 a year it cost for full coverage, it was worth it. I have rarely been concerned with me wrecking my own car, but much more concerned with someone else hitting it.