Extended Warranty? anyone?

[soeharyo]

Hello there Zpost members i am new here and have been reading your posts and I'm glad to be a part of this community.

I have a 03 Z4 3.0i SMG whose warranty will expire at the end of the year. Right now, it has 36,000 miles on it.

I guess the best deal I have been offered would be from Warranty Direct, for

$2000
60,000 miles or 2011
$100 deductible

$2250
60,000 miles or 2011
$0 deductible


What do you guys think? Do you guys have any experience with warranty direct?

thanks in advance.

[Caddyshk]

Originally Posted by soeharyo

Hello there Zpost members i am new here and have been reading your posts and I'm glad to be a part of this community.

I have a 03 Z4 3.0i SMG whose warranty will expire at the end of the year. Right now, it has 36,000 miles on it.

I guess the best deal I have been offered would be from Warranty Direct, for

$2000
60,000 miles or 2011
$100 deductible

$2250
60,000 miles or 2011
$0 deductible


What do you guys think? Do you guys have any experience with warranty direct?

thanks in advance.

Can't speak for the US of A, but here in Canada aftermarket warranties are a joke - may stories from friends fighting with the providers to cover repair costs...

[ZEEFOUR]

Warranty Direct is one of the more popular extended warranties around. Make sure you read the fine print carefully, also the 60K is from your current mileage not an additional 60K miles. Personally if your Z4 has been reliable, I'd put that $2K in a short term investment account

[561design]

I've never used a 3rd party for warranties, but here's some info on an extended warranty through BMW.

Price: $2,375.00

Availability: in stock
Prod. Code: 3Z2OP

Program backing by BMW of North America
2 year/50,000-mile peace of mind protection (takes affect at expiration of BMW New Vehicle Limited Warranty)
Scope of coverage like the Certified Pre-Owned BMW Vehicle Program
Includes BMW Roadside Assistance
Use of original BMW new or authorized remanufactured parts
No vehicle inspection required

http://www.twinkidneygrill.com/catal...46/4290868.htm

[soeharyo]

561design...

it seems like a rip-off don't you think?

I don't know.. the price seem very steep at $2375 for 2 years.

Warranty Direct claims that they work just like BMW's warranty.... I wonder if that's true. They also claim that they have very few complaints as shown in their BBB (better business beureau) that they only have 2 complaints so far.

[takedown8]

The BMW extended warranty doesn't cover a lot of things that is covered by the current 4-year warranty. This includes the soft top. Make sure you know everything that's covered and not before you sign.

Caddyshk, do we even have third party warranties available in Canada? Or are you talking about the extended warranties from the stealer?

[soeharyo]

Yeah... the soft top... I heard that the soft top would only last about 10 years if we use it 3 times a day.

and I also heard that it costs $4000 to replace the soft top... man.

[takedown8]

Originally Posted by soeharyo

Yeah... the soft top... I heard that the soft top would only last about 10 years if we use it 3 times a day.

I'm sure those numbers are reproducible and tested.

[soeharyo]

I think the number stands around 10,000 cycles of up and down

that makes it 1000 reps a year (if we assume 10 years)

83.3 a month

and 2.7 cycles a day

Of course we have to take note of weather damage on the ragtop and motor.

[ward]

you'd have to have some SERIOUS problems down the road to make that warranty worth it

warranty's in general are a bad financial choice

[soeharyo]

Have any of you guys run out of factory warranty....

ward, I know that warranties in general are a bad financial choice, but it can be troublesome if it so happens that I need my transmission changed... I guess somewhat they can be seen as extra insurance.

[takedown8]

Originally Posted by soeharyo

Have any of you guys run out of factory warranty....

ward, I know that warranties in general are a bad financial choice, but it can be troublesome if it so happens that I need my transmission changed... I guess somewhat they can be seen as extra insurance.

What're the chances that's gonna happen in a 5-6 year old BMW? Ask yourself that.

[561design]

Originally Posted by takedown8

What're the chances that's gonna happen in a 5-6 year old BMW? Ask yourself that.

It doesn't matter that you don't think it'll happen. But the fact that it can happen to you. I've had to replace a tranny on a 3 year old VW out of pocket. Along with a few other things and I ended up having to fork out $2400 just to get it running again.

[soeharyo]

takedown,

i'll throw that question right back at you....

what do you think of the chances of that happening? have you owned any old bmws? anyone?

[561design]

Originally Posted by soeharyo

561design...

it seems like a rip-off don't you think?

I don't know.. the price seem very steep at $2375 for 2 years.

Warranty Direct claims that they work just like BMW's warranty.... I wonder if that's true. They also claim that they have very few complaints as shown in their BBB (better business beureau) that they only have 2 complaints so far.

Yes I agree, it was just another option in case you wished to have a warranty from the manufactor. At the very least you can use it as a comparision.

[soeharyo]

thanks for the comparison then

[ward]

take your 2 grand and put it away somewhere for use on future repairs

I've seen plenty of transmission failures in BMW's, it's usually the auto's that fail around 80K miles due to the lack of maintenance

SMG.... who knows what the reliability is on those, so few were made

but I'd bet you'll still be better off just stashing your money somewhere, that way if you don't need a repair you still have your money!

[zednik]

I've had direct experience with three extended warranties over the past 20 years. One was an expensive joke as they went tango uniform two years after I bought the policy. The second one was a gem that paid me twice the cost of the policy over a two year period, it saved my ass. The third was a very costly Ford factory deal that I never needed as I sold the truck with 50k miles on it.

Automobile repair costs are astoundingly high with modern vehicles. After quite a few body blows to the wallet I simply won't own a late model vehicle without a comprehensive warranty of some sort ever again.

It's a crap shoot.

[Bluesharp]

Originally Posted by zednik

It's a crap shoot.

That sums it up real well, I think.

THEY are betting that your premium will be more than your repair bills. YOU are betting your repair bills will be higher than your premium.

I figure that since their whole business is based on winning that bet, chances are it's not a good wager. But still, I can sure see the advantages of peace of mind in case of disaster.

[takedown8]

Originally Posted by soeharyo

takedown,

i'll throw that question right back at you....

what do you think of the chances of that happening? have you owned any old bmws? anyone?

This is my first BMW, but I've had one Acura, one Chrysler, and my family has had a Cadillac, a Nissan, a Toyta, a MB.....none of which have ever had $2400 worth of repairs (mechanical, not body) needed at the 5 or 6 year mark. Even the repairs that have been needed may not have been covered under an extended warranty.

If BMWs were prone to transmission failures at 80,000 miles, I would never have bought one. Can anyone confirm this?

[FloridaBoy]

I would NEVER own this car without a warranty.
Too many gizmos to break.
Check with your local Credit Union; ours offers an EW that paid for itself several times over on our last vehicle.

[rosierobins2003]

I normally pass up warranty offers. But this one for repairs and warranty I took because I plan on keeping the car a while, and i've heard horror stories about the prices charged to fix things on bmw's.

Glad i bought it.

Rosie