Warranty Recommendations

[NANCYSMART 0]

Hi,Any advice on the extended warranty? I am supposed to be getting my car this week and I want to have the info before I go sign the papers...Should I opt for the extra warranty now, or should I wait a year and buy it later? I plan on driving my car 12-14,000 miles a year and I was wondering about reliability...Also, the dealer has an extra plan for "TIRE REPLACEMENT PLAN" covering tires(since there is no spare-didn't know that!).. Should I get it?Any advice is appreciated!Nancy

[MightyMouseTech 0]

The way I look at extended warranties is that the company selling them is always going to make a profit doing so. So more often than not, you are paying more for the warranty than what you get back.

[MikeT 744]

In the USA I would buy all the FACTORY warranty that is available. I would skip the aftermarket death lottery though. I understand the factory warranty extension in the USA is reasonably priced.

[NANCYSMART 0]

I was leaning on buying it..it does seem reasonable.

[dancote 0]

In the USA I would buy all the FACTORY warranty that is available. I would skip the aftermarket death lottery though. I understand the factory warranty extension in the USA is reasonably priced.

There is NO factory extended warranty available on U.S. smart cars. There is a smart-branded extended warranty but it is a third-party warranty. It is not as extensive in its coverage as the basic facotry warranty and you will be charged a $100 deductible every time you use it. I would have liked smart to keep their implied promise to us with regard to warranty extension.

You may want to visit your local library and read what Consumer Reports has to say about automobile extended warranties. In a nutshell: They're not good value for money.

Edited April 3, 2008 by dancote

[Razorback 0]

I personally never will purchase a factory extended warranty from a Dealership but that's just me. I have read alot of information about the warranty from another forum and the basic consensus is that the smart warranty is really not that great. I would shop for a third party warranty. If you would like to see the smart warranty paperwork a person did scan their paperwork and I have a copy of it on my server found ftp://smart:@a.servegame.com/ in the smart pdf files folder and the pics are numbered smart_warr_1.jpg through smart_warr_5.jpg As a comparison I would look at that and then a warranty company like http://www.warrantydirect.com/

Hope this helps.

[Guest nkaz]

I went with warrantydirect.com. Got a great deal - it covers more than the factory extended warranty and, from what I'm reading, in a couple years, we may need one. PM if you want more info.

[Calgary Guy 0]

Here's a thought for you. Take the full price of the warranty and put it in a savings account. Leave it there for "warranty purposes only" and add the deductible to any of your"claims" and you will likely come out ahead. I know a few folks who have done this and not one has lost any money. Most have at least 50% left at the end of their determined timeframe. You need to read the fine print of any rthird party warranty very carefully as they have their own way of determining how much a repair is worth regardless of what the dealer says.Good luck on your choice. CG

[Schmimbo 0]

The way I look at this is:Its a new car with bugs that still need to be worked out.If this thing has a computer that goes out your F'd if you dont have an extended warranty. Dont know if it does or does not. So please forgive.Almost always on all the new cars I have purchased something goes terribly wrong with the car right after the regular warranty is up almost to the day or close to the day. Had I nothad an extended warranty I would have been in big trouble on several occasions (2 American Cars, 1 BMW) For me the extended warranty on this new car and unproven modelis manditory.Heres the warranty card I got at the dealer. It has the information of who is actually carring the warranty for smart."Issued and administered by Automotive Warranty Services, Inc.; in Arizona, Iowa and Wyoming by Consumer Program Administrators, Inc.; in Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Wisconsin by Automotive Warranty Services of Florida, Inc.; in California by Motor Warranty Services of North America; and In Washington by National Product Care Company.

[NANCYSMART 0]

The dealer wanted to sell me a warranty by Warrantytech 6yr 100,000 mile warranty bumper/bumper for $2075... I declined...seemed too expensive. I'll check out warranty direct and see what the price is.

[rawlus 0]

keep in mind, the extended warranty companies are always going out of business, changing names and other hijinks. had an extended on a vehicle years and years ago - was supposed to get back 80%of the investment at the end of term if no claims were made. none were. went to get my money refunded and the company went out of business and wouldn't have covered me if anything happened anyway.i like the idea of putting the $1500 or whatever into a CD or MMA and seeing what happens after the factory warranty expires.

[Guest smarterthistime]

Thanks to all of you for doing the research on the extended warranties. It's been very helpful.smarterthistime

[SmartCard 0]

You may want to visit your local library and read what Consumer Reports has to say about automobile extended warranties. In a nutshell: They're not good value for money.

Of course, Consumer Reports probably factors into their decision that most vehicles come with a minimum of 3/36,000 miles bumper to bumper, plus longer powertrain warranties. Wonder what they would recommend in smart's 2/24,000 US warranty? Edited May 27, 2008 by SmartCard

[SmartieParts 12]

Here's a thought for you. Take the full price of the warranty and put it in a savings account. Leave it there for "warranty purposes only" and add the deductible to any of your"claims" and you will likely come out ahead. I know a few folks who have done this and not one has lost any money. Most have at least 50% left at the end of their determined timeframe. You need to read the fine print of any rthird party warranty very carefully as they have their own way of determining how much a repair is worth regardless of what the dealer says.Good luck on your choice. CG

Bingo! Follow that advice if you have the will power.Extended warranties are like insurance, only with more scams and "gotchas" surrounding them. I personally self-insure just about everything with the only exceptions being my house and my car, and my car only because my province requires it by law.Simple math and risk assessment. Look at the example stated above, let's say the computer dies. Ok, its a $1800 bill (I checked). Now, what are the odds of that happening? I'd say next to nothing, but let's say a relatively high 1% chance it happens in a year. So your premium for that should be sightly higher than $18. Let's be a bit broader. Let's say the odds of any major problem going on within the extended period is an unheard of 5% and the repair is a colossal $5000 (engine). That's still only $250 a year "expected cost". "expected cost" is how insurance and warranty companies make their money. Of course, you're concerned only with actual cost. Your actual cost is going to be either zero (it didn't happen) or $5000 (it did). So are you a gambler or not? If the extended warranty, per year, is over $250 I'd say you're getting ripped off. But, if something does happen you'll be glad you had it. So buy it or not is not really a right or wrong thing.Realistically though, its very very unlikely something major will happen to your car during the extended warranty that will actually be covered. If you have a lemon, you'll find out well before the extended coverage kicks in. Longer term wear items will show up well after your extended warranty period expires. That's why they call it the "sweet spot" - they get your money for the period of time that is least likely to see a failure. Remember that accidents, "damage", abuse, and even wear and tear aren't covered anyway so the only thing you're buying protection from is manufacturer defect.Another way to look at it is "alternative use" of the money. If you spent your last dime on the car, then you can't afford the warranty anyway. If you have just enough to afford the warranty, then you should probably be spending that on food. If you can comfortably afford the warranty, but not the car, then get the warranty. If you can comfortably afford the car, then you can probably afford to take the risk and use the money for something tangible. - Steven

[MikeT 744]

Not to scare anyone, but a cdi long block is over 10 Grand. I still wouldn't get extended warranty.

[Guest kwaldron]

Not to scare anyone, but a cdi long block is over 10 Grand. I still wouldn't get extended warranty.

Perhaps so, but it is possible to get a wrecked smart for less than that and then you also have all those parts available.

[SmartieParts 12]

Plus for that kind of money you can do the Smartzuki mod and take on a Ferrari on the strip

[Bigrick 0]

Dealer was trying to push the aftermarket extended at me several times - hard! Given the mileage I plan on stacking up over the next few years, the only one that fit within the parametres was a 7-year, 200,000 km option...that was something like $3200 plus tax! (or about 15% of the cost of the vehicle new). From everything I can determine, about the worst thing that regularly happens is have a turbo go south. Even at the ridiculous dealer rack rate, this isn't going to cost you that much. So, I'll take my chances and hope for the best.Now, for my Honda Ridgeline, I extended my factory warranty from 4 to 5 years, so I at least have the payment period covered, and it was only a couple of hundred bucks...which I rationalized was well worth it. (4wd ain't cheap to fix.)Rick

[a2jack 1]

I agree with all. There is no factory extended warranty sold in the US. All the dealers are selling "third party" service contracts, and as others have said, "The house always wins" A2Jack

[dpollo 8]

A very balanced and informative discussion. We bought an extended warrantee on our PT Cruiser back in '03 To this day, No claims, no warrantee work whatsoever. Better to have banked the $1800 as there was no refund despite what the dealer promised. I have since purchased three new Chrysler products from other dealers but declined extra warrantees and have had no problems. As for tires, I have not priced replacements for the Smart (two sizes) but before I would pay extra for a tire warrantee, I would buy a new tire(s) Or simply keep the best two when tires are eventually replaced.It is very true that Insurance schemes are to make money, not friends.