[vbb]

Ahh, the intersection between car owners and warranty companies has come to another crossroads. For those that don't follow this sort of thing, CarShield just reached an 8-figure settlement with the Federal Trade Commission for basically what all of us already know... warranty companies have lists of exclusions a mile long, and tend to fight you tooth and nail if you ever actually try to make a claim no matter how faithful a customer you've been.
https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidanc...vice-contracts
Cars get more and more complex each year, which means that it's harder and harder for a person with basic wrenching skills to diagnose and fix issues themselves, and the service shops (especially at dealerships) have gotten so expensive that driving a car "out of warranty" is a greater risk than ever before.

That said, it can't ALL be bad, right? Surely some of you have good stories where you made a warranty claim and they came through for you. I'm interested in all the stories, though I recognize that there is a difference between factory warranties and 3rd party or extended warranties. USUALLY if you haven't modified your car, the manufacturers will stand behind their products during the factory warranty period.

[vbb]

I have had good luck with the CarMax "Max Care" warranty. It is underwritten by a different warranty company (I forget which), but I bought a used 5-year old Jeep Wrangler from CarMax that had 70K miles on the odo. It was a good price, one owner and had very consistent service records. But, being a Jeep, I figured I ought to buy a warranty to go with it. For those that don't know, CarMax offers various stages of year and mileage warranties that key off the day of purchase, so they're good for awhile. My Jeep developed a slight oil leak after only driving it for about 5K miles. To make a long-story short, I ended up making two separate warranty claims to get it fixed that resulted in a new rear main seal, oil pan, filter housing and a few other things. All of it cost me a $200 deductible and the work done was nearly twice the price of what I paid for my warranty. Thankfully my Jeep was unmodified so they didn't give me a hard time about anything. With that experience alone, I can say I would buy another MaxCare warranty in the future.

[2000cs]

Years ago I learned that insurance companies are in the business of getting paid for risks they don’t take. A car warranty is a form of insurance.
I like to think of all the money I’ve saved over 50 years of owning and driving cars without paying for extended/extra warranties.

[DrVenture]

I am of the same mind generally, but a small percentage of people have claimed wins (like vbb, above). I am curious to hear their stories. Though, I do think that one needs to consider all the money spent on extended warranties (over time) vs. all claims paid to get the true picture.

Otherwise, it is like the gambler who tells you about their occasional wins, but never their losses. It is possible someone might take an extended warranty on just one car, then have it pay out more than it costs, but rather unlikely.

Then there is the "peace of mind" angle. Which, while comforting to some, has the exact opposite effect on me. I would spend the whole time worrying that I wasted several thousand and that if I ever needed them to pay it would be a struggle.

[kscarrol]

I did buy an extended warranty through USAA (forget which company) on my 2011 M3. The only issue I ever had was, not surprisingly, the throttle actuators. One failed and the second had thrown codes but was still working. My indy shop convinced the warranty adjuster to do both at the same time to save the labor on the second that would surely fail. That job alone was more than the cost of the warranty though not by a huge amount. I basically consider it break-even... That was the first and last extended warranty I have ever purchased.

[cmyx6go]

I’ll be following this thread. I just sent in my payoff docs for lease end buyout. I still have a year left on warranty so I have time. I keep flip flopping on what to do.

[zx10guy]

Originally Posted by vbb

I have had good luck with the CarMax "Max Care" warranty. It is underwritten by a different warranty company (I forget which), but I bought a used 5-year old Jeep Wrangler from CarMax that had 70K miles on the odo. It was a good price, one owner and had very consistent service records. But, being a Jeep, I figured I ought to buy a warranty to go with it. For those that don't know, CarMax offers various stages of year and mileage warranties that key off the day of purchase, so they're good for awhile. My Jeep developed a slight oil leak after only driving it for about 5K miles. To make a long-story short, I ended up making two separate warranty claims to get it fixed that resulted in a new rear main seal, oil pan, filter housing and a few other things. All of it cost me a $200 deductible and the work done was nearly twice the price of what I paid for my warranty. Thankfully my Jeep was unmodified so they didn't give me a hard time about anything. With that experience alone, I can say I would buy another MaxCare warranty in the future.

You should look at the videos Doug Demuro did on his experience with CarMax's warranty on his Range Rover he purchased there. He made out like a bandit with all the covered repairs on that thing. The benefits he received were well over what he paid for the warranty. CarMax changed how they underwrite warranties for Range Rover and similar cars so the terms and costs are drastically different now. He mused whether his videos were what triggered CarMax to make those changes.

[zx10guy]

I have a few extended warranty purchases. For the record, I haven't purchased one for any of the two latest vehicles I purchased new.

First one was an extended warranty purchased from my credit union (along with financing) for a used 94 Z28. I don't remember how much I paid for it but I seem to recall I made out over the cost of the warranty. The issue turned out to be the two dumb engineering designs of the LT1 motor. The water pump went out as evidenced from coolant dripping out of the weep hole at the bottom of the pump. Well, the coolant was splashing on the infamous opticrap (optispark). The electronic distributor system GM thought was a good idea. So the failed water pump also took out the opticrap. The process was a bit painful when the claim was filed. Lots of back and forth between the shop and the plan administrator. I got insights into this as the owner of the shop is a friend of mine. He said normally he wouldn't deal with the headaches of these extended warranties but did so for me.

Second situation was an actual factory extended warranty through Ford. I purchased it on a 2006 (I forget the model year now) Focus ZX3. After the standard factory warranty expired, the engine developed a loud valve tick. I took it in to the shop where the tech diagnosed it as a bad harmonic balancer. I thought that was an odd diagnosis but went with it. Well, of course, it didn't fix the problem. Took the car to my mechanic friend mentioned above to get his opinion. He said no question it's a valve tick. Took the car back to the dealership. The service writer grabbed the mechanic that worked on my car out to the parking lot where my car was parked. I demonstrated the noise to both of them. The mechanic barked that the valve train of this car has mechanical buckets and that there's nothing to do to fix it and stormed off. The service writer and I just stood there stunned staring at each other. The service writer said not to worry he'll get a new mechanic to look at my car. Well, this lead to my car being at the dealership for well over a month. The tech had to contact Ford to figure out what to do. Eventually, the plan was to replace the exhaust camshaft and I think all the buckets. So the factory extended warranty paid for all of that plus the rental car I had for the entire period. To say the warranty paid for itself is an understatement.

Third instance was on a 2009 Ducati 848. I purchased the one that was sponsored by Ducati but not really a factory extended warranty. Was afraid of the unknown of owning an Italian made motorcycle and all the stories I've read about them. Well, the standard factory warranty covered the myriad of things that broke on the bike but the extended warranty never came into play as nothing broke during the extended coverage. I guess this would be chalked up to piece of mind purchase.

Fourth instance was on my 2013 135i. Again, wasn't sure what I was getting myself into as I've never owned a car at this level. I typically have owned econoboxes where the complexities and parts costs are minimal. The warranty was sold through my dealer and if I have my car serviced at the dealer there would be no deductible. Had the electric water pump covered under the warranty which made it about a break even situation.

I have another extended warranty situation if anyone cares for me to elaborate on. It's not on cars but it's an automatic perk that comes with using my AMEX card on a very expensive printer I purchased with my AMEX card.

[2heeldrive]

It may not be a "good" story, but it's the only one I have, since I have only purchased one extended warranty.

I bought a new 2000 Honda Odyssey with an extended warranty. What? Why would you do that? It's a Honda! Well, I had been hanging out on the forums and transmission problems were beginning to surface, so I paid $600.00 for the 75,000 mile warranty. Sure enough, around 60,000 miles the transmission died. But, Honda, being the great company they are, realizing those transmissions were a problem, had already extended the warranty to 100,000 miles. When they replaced the transmission, they found a worn out motor mount that was covered under the warranty, cost for that? About $60.00. So, in that case, the extended warranty was a waste of money. I have not bought another one, and probably never will.

I think an extended warranty is like betting against the house... and the house usually wins. It is better to do your homework and avoid potentially unreliable vehicles that cost big $$ to fix.

[dradernh]

In 56 years of ownership, I've owned 24 cars for a total of 103 years. Some have been high-end models (M6, V12 XKE, Rover 100), and many more have been econoboxes. With a couple of exceptions, the econo units have generally been very reliable, and remarkably so starting in the late-80s. The high-end units not so much. Had one been available, I would have benefited from a warranty on a 530i I owned. Any car with an engine that reliably warps its head at 60K ticks that box. After tiring of putting money into that car, I replaced it with an M6. Naturally.

I self-warranty the BMWs and buy Japanese for rides that are going to see a lot of use. Based on experience, I expect the BMWs to have costly issues, if only because...German engineering, along with the marque's impressive flat rate book.

I daily the wife's 2015 Mazda 3 with 90K on the clock, and it just keeps on ticking over. I had a 2007 Tundra, a model of which Toyota chose to warranty frame rust in certain parts of the country long after the standard warranty had expired. As a result, the frame was replaced at no cost in 2019. The dealership said it was a $15K job. No German company would dream of doing such a thing without being forced to. It's nice we have the choices in motor vehicles that we do.

[RickFLM4]

We bought a Fidelity extended warranty for my wife’s Audi Q5 for just under $2,500 from Troy at FD-Warranty. We put in, and Fidelity paid, over $10K in claims during the warranty period. A/C, multiple oil leaks, timing belt, sun roof shade and other issues. They always sent an inspector out to see for himself but they always paid without a hassle. We traded that car in right before the warranty ended.

We bought policies for my M4 and my wife’s newer Volvo when we bought those out of the lease. Neither has had a claim so far, which is fine by me. We buy the warranties for peace of mind and to avoid big outlays for major repairs that can happen in succession.

This is why we buy any form of insurance. It’s not about each policyholder coming out ahead all the time, which would be impossible. Peace of mind to avoid the risk of major outlays, potentially in succession, is worth it to us, at least for cars.

[vbb]

Originally Posted by RickFLM4

This is why we buy any form of insurance. It’s not about each policyholder coming out ahead all the time, which would be impossible. Peace of mind to avoid the risk of major outlays, potentially in succession, is worth it to us, at least for cars.

This is just it... I would be happy (well, maybe happy isn't the best word, but at least content) to purchase a warranty for the peace of mind even if I don't have to make any claims. The problem is when you purchase the warranty, make a claim, and then have to fight with the warranty company to actually cover the repair. Same with any insurance situation. The "fine print" of exclusions is what makes most people upset with warranty companies and what caused CarShield to get fined by the FTC.

The good warranty companies that pay out when a claim is made are worthwhile. The ones that act as if you are the enemy when you make a claim are to be avoided. Figuring out which is which is hard for the average consumer that doesn't have access to data, so hopefully word of mouth on the internet works.

[zx10guy]

Originally Posted by vbb

This is just it... I would be happy (well, maybe happy isn't the best word, but at least content) to purchase a warranty for the peace of mind even if I don't have to make any claims. The problem is when you purchase the warranty, make a claim, and then have to fight with the warranty company to actually cover the repair. Same with any insurance situation. The "fine print" of exclusions is what makes most people upset with warranty companies and what caused CarShield to get fined by the FTC.

The good warranty companies that pay out when a claim is made are worthwhile. The ones that act as if you are the enemy when you make a claim are to be avoided. Figuring out which is which is hard for the average consumer that doesn't have access to data, so hopefully word of mouth on the internet works.

If you're concerned about exclusions and claims, just buy an actual extended warranty from the manufacturer. From what I've seen, all covered items are clearly listed and the claims process is no different than what a dealer would do under a standard new car warranty. The flip side of this is you're paying much more than a third party.

My experience with an actual Ford extended warranty was very good. The only thing the dealer asked me for was proof of oil changes since I didn't have the dealer do any of them outside of the first complimentary one. I provided most of the receipts. I couldn't find a couple of them corresponding to the oil changes they were for. That was good enough for the claim to go through. The service writer just wanted to see that the car has been maintained. With the receipts, I didn't even write down the mileage on them. Can't get easier than that. And you can see how extensive the repair was from my post above. Heck, Ford paid for the harmonic balancer repair which did nothing to address the issue I had brought the car in for initially.

[xander_g]

Originally Posted by 2000cs

Years ago I learned that insurance companies are in the business of getting paid for risks they don’t take. A car warranty is a form of insurance.
I like to think of all the money I’ve saved over 50 years of owning and driving cars without paying for extended/extra warranties.

Looking out for the shareholder, not the policyholder.
Deny, delay, defend.

[DocL]

I got a 3rd party exrtended warranty from the vendor here who sells them for my 2018 M3. It's already paid for a new gas tank and valve cover. Total expense covered was close to $7500 at the dealer. I paid $3200 for the warranty so I'm ahead by a lot already.

[3.0L]

BMW replaced the fuel pump in my 10 year old M235i at no charge. BMW
discovered a plating flaw in the pump and did the honorable thing. The
technician/s got it right the 1st time - no leaks, no damage.

On the down side, the front side of BMW dealer/servicer I went to are still a$$holes.

[DocL]

Originally Posted by 3.0L

BMW replaced the fuel pump in my 10 year old M235i at no charge...

And BMWNA wouldn't cover a new gas tank in my my car which is half the age of yours. SMH.

[DrVenture]

Originally Posted by DocL

And BMWNA wouldn't cover a new gas tank in my my car which is half the age of yours. SMH.

May I ask what was wrong with the tank? Seems like an odd failure.

[Samurai of 2day]

Originally Posted by kscarrol

I did buy an extended warranty through USAA (forget which company) on my 2011 M3. The only issue I ever had was, not surprisingly, the throttle actuators. One failed and the second had thrown codes but was still working. My indy shop convinced the warranty adjuster to do both at the same time to save the labor on the second that would surely fail. That job alone was more than the cost of the warranty though not by a huge amount. I basically consider it break-even... That was the first and last extended warranty I have ever purchased.

I didn't realize USAA offended extended warranty support. I'll most likely explore this ad my primary option, because just like cmyx6go I'm about the buy out my lease but I still have a year to go on my manufacturers warranty and still currently under 14k miles. Thanks for sharing.

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by vbb

This is just it... I would be happy (well, maybe happy isn't the best word, but at least content) to purchase a warranty for the peace of mind even if I don't have to make any claims. The problem is when you purchase the warranty, make a claim, and then have to fight with the warranty company to actually cover the repair. Same with any insurance situation. The "fine print" of exclusions is what makes most people upset with warranty companies and what caused CarShield to get fined by the FTC.

The good warranty companies that pay out when a claim is made are worthwhile. The ones that act as if you are the enemy when you make a claim are to be avoided. Figuring out which is which is hard for the average consumer that doesn't have access to data, so hopefully word of mouth on the internet works.

Fidelity and most other warranty companies have different levels of policies. We buy the Platinum level, which is an exclusionary policy. That means everything is covered bumper to bumper except for a short list of excluded items (such as wear and tear components, like brakes). These are clearly listed in the contract and I got the contract and read it thoroughly before purchasing. When I needed new warranties I went back to the same company because they handled claims properly on the Audi.

I’m not suggesting everyone should buy a warranty. Just sharing that it does work out well for some, especially if you go in knowing exactly what you are buying and have experience or know someone with experience with the company.

[DocL]

Originally Posted by DrVenture

May I ask what was wrong with the tank? Seems like an odd failure.

It cracked on the top, and my house stunk of gasoline from the fumes. There was a TSB for the 2015 I think, but not covered for a 2018.

[DocL]

Originally Posted by Samurai of 2day

I didn't realize USAA offended extended warranty support. I'll most likely explore this ad my primary option, because just like cmyx6go I'm about the buy out my lease but I still have a year to go on my manufacturers warranty and still currently under 14k miles. Thanks for sharing.

They stopped selling them a while ago. I used to get mine through them. They were through Mercury I believe. It covered a ton of stuff on my CLS500 back in the day.