Extended warranty - ever bothered getting one?

MarkN

hi lads - main warranty on my car is up in Jan so just planning ahead.

It has nearly 10,000kms on the clock now so nothing major at all but in the event the clutch went for example it'd be big enough money.

BMW do an extended warranty (as do other independent places which I haven't gotten a quote off yet) but the in house one ranges from 600-1000 quid.

The basic one covers engine, transmission and drive-train.

Going up to comprehensive it's basically the same as when your car is under the two year warranty - you give it to the dealer and say fix my car and ring me when it's done.

Just wondering if it's worth the cash has anyone ever saved a fortune by buying a policy, 600 doesn't seem too bad but it's basic enough.

Nonoperational

One thing I hate about them is the part has to be completely broken for them to cover it. For example if you had a worn synchro cauing a notchy gearbox it most likely wouldnt be covered unless it actualy became undrivabe. They do give piece of mind for certain stuff however.

Padraig Mor

You have the V8 M3 right Mark? €1k sounds like a good price to me for a fully comprehensive warranty for 2 (or is it 3?) years. Imagine shelling out yourself for something major....

Dazzy

If you go with the BMW warranty you must get the car serviced at a BMW dealer.

When I bought my BMW (end of last year) from Maxwell's it came with a Lumley Auto warranty for a year. I paid an extra €500 to extend by another year on recommendation from my mechanic. The cost is based on the engine size or so I was told.

For €500 I think its good value to not have to worry about something going wrong.

Drummerboy08

MarkN wrote: »

It has nearly 10,000kms on the clock now so nothing major at all but in the event the clutch went for example it'd be big enough money.

It would be a good idea, especially with something like an M3. Remember that something like a clutch wouldnt be covered under warranty unless it was proven that it was a part failure. I think it would be worth the few quid, if only for the peace of mind.

Dazzy wrote: »

If you go with the BMW warranty you must get the car serviced at a BMW dealer.

When I bought my BMW (end of last year) from Maxwell's it came with a Lumley Auto warranty for a year. I paid an extra €500 to extend by another year on recommendation from my mechanic. The cost is based on the engine size or so I was told.

For €500 I think its good value to not have to worry about something going wrong.

I've dealt with Lumley beofre, and when it comes to claims, its pure torture getting any money out of them. I'd steer clear if at all possible.

MarkN

With such low mileage you'd surely be able to say hang on, the clutch should last longer than that (touching a lot of wood) if you were under warranty?

Seems like it's worthwhile enough anyway, interesting about the BMW dealer servicing - I think I'd go to Belfast for it to be serviced, possibly use Murphy and Gunn but I wouldn't trust the car with any other main dealer in this country to be honest.

Still another 13,000kms to go until the first service is due - car will be 3 years old at this rate, not sure if I'll leave it that long.

Edit: sorry meant to say, it's per year you pay 600-1000, it's only done year by year I think.

EPM

Should really do it once a year to be honest. Service items degrade over time

Dazzy

[/QUOTE] I've dealt with Lumley beofre, and when it comes to claims, its pure torture getting any money out of them. I'd steer clear if at all possible.[/QUOTE]

On a previous car I had Lumley cover. I left the car with the main dealer (not the dealer I bought from), they dealt with Lumley over what needed to be fixed but I had to pay the dealer. I then got a refund from Lumley. All was very straight forward.

As Maxwell's sold me the policy I would expect them to do all dealing and claiming with Lumley should I need a repair.

The dealer who was doing the work wasn't too happy to have to deal with Lumley's though.

maidhc

Live a little lads!

Put away €100 a month. Before you know it you will have a nice little repair fund.

And if the car doesn't break down you can drink it.

MarkN

You'd want to be saving a hundred quid a month for about 15 months to even service a car like these, the big repair jobs could be very hefty, I think the comments have confirmed what I thought - that's it's a good safety net.

maidhc

MarkN wrote: »

You'd want to be saving a hundred quid a month for about 15 months to even service a car like these, the big repair jobs could be very hefty, I think the comments have confirmed what I thought - that's it's a good safety net.

I think we will agree to differ.

I like to take my chances with most things in life, and I have suffered four figure repair bills in the past, but so what, you pays your money and takes your choice.

unkel

MarkN wrote: »

BMW do an extended warranty (as do other independent places which I haven't gotten a quote off yet) but the in house one ranges from 600-1000 quid.

That's not bad for an M3. And remember, if you have it serviced and warranteed, you can keep buying the warranty. A huge selling point in a few years time when you come to sell it. A grand per year is not all that much compared to the total cost of owning a nearly new M3 - I'd go for it, Mark.

But as others said, you really should have the car serviced every year, no matter how low the mileage is.

Anan1

I got one for my mother's 320d, from memory it cost around €750 for the year. At €1000 for an M3 i'd consider it a bit of a no-brainer, considering the potential cost of any major component failure. At the moment I think the warranty can be extended indefinitely, although only while the car is still covered.

MarkN

I rang Murphy And Gunn today and they are calling me back for a price on a first service (oil was done at 1,500).

I explained the 13,000 kms left until service and they said there's also a time period built into that so it might not wait that long. They said brake fluid will need to be done when it gets to two years and there is a point where they can do the service early and reset the computer but if they do it too far away from when the car says it's due they can't reset it and it will ask for it even though it was done so I'm waiting to hear back about the cost as the guy was unsure about the price of the oil specifically needed for the M3.

Only other option is to go to Belfast I guess.

omega man

MarkN wrote: »

I rang Murphy And Gunn today and they are calling me back for a price on a first service (oil was done at 1,500).

I explained the 13,000 kms left until service and they said there's also a time period built into that so it might not wait that long. They said brake fluid will need to be done when it gets to two years and there is a point where they can do the service early and reset the computer but if they do it too far away from when the car says it's due they can't reset it and it will ask for it even though it was done so I'm waiting to hear back about the cost as the guy was unsure about the price of the oil specifically needed for the M3.

Only other option is to go to Belfast I guess.

I recall been quoted around 900.00 for my 325i so i suspect your M3 may be a tad more. Personally on a car like your own Mark i would pay it no probelm.