Do I Buy an Extended Warranty ?

I think it's unlikely to increase significantly in the next 3 years. In the past 4 years I believe there has only been a single 6.6% price increase of the discounted price offered here on PriusChat.

For the longest time (3-4 years), Toyota's Platinum Plan 7 yrs/100,000 miles/$0 deductible cost $990 here on PriusChat through WarrantyShack.com. In October 2008, that price went up for the first time to $1055.

IMO, it's better to wait until the last minute (35 months or 35,000 miles) to decide whether to buy the Toyota extended warranty and/or which Toyota extended warranty to get in terms of maximum years/miles.

 

Not sure i understand this. If i buy a used Corolla for $5000, aren't my car repairs still going to cost the same as repairs on a new Corolla, or Prius, except i'll need them sooner and there'll be more of them?

If i am not able to afford a more expensive new car, the money i save between paying $5000 and $25,000 for a new one is just theoretical. I'm not going to have that money in the first place, to put aside and use for repairs on my 1999 Corolla with 70,000 or 80,000 miles on it.

Your statement, 'anyone that doesn't have an emergency fund to handle these kinds of situations is simply tempting fate,' is apt for some people, but for other people it may not be that cut and dried. Sometimes very conservative careful people still don't have enough money for their emergencies, and the reasons vary from situation to situation.

At any rate, someone who doesn't have enough cash for car repair emergencies but who does have enough to buy the extended warranty on the car, if they buy the extended warranty, then they aren't tempting fate with respect to car repairs, right? They may be tempting fate in other areas but at least their car will be covered.

 

In that case, I'd going to wait. Let's hope WarrantyShack.com continues to stay in business and offers this deal.

 

Since the warranty costs the same for every Prius, you get much better potential coverage value on a Prius V with A/T than on a I, II or III with no options.

 

The big expenses for new cars are not repairs. Instead people pay a huge amount in depreciation and financing costs. The average new car drops 20% in value as soon as you drive off the lot.

Here is a comparison of someone that buys a $5,000 car with cash instead of putting that $5000 down on a new $25,000 car. They budget $150 a month for repairs and maintenance instead of $20 a month for the new car buyer. Over 5 years the used car saves $6500 dollars. ($150 a month is incredibly high for repairs, that is $9,000 over the 5 years.)

Bank of America | Financial Education and Tools

 

If I was worried about buying extended warranties, I would have ordered the TDI Jetta, not the Prius.

 

However you don't get the full value of that extended warranty for the whole 7 years 100K miles.

• For 3 years / 36K miles the car is covered by Toyota's bumper to bumper warranty.
• For 5 years / 60K miles the car is coved by Toyota's powertrain warranty.
• For 8 years / 100K miles the car is covered by Toyota's hybrid warranty.

So with a Prius you never are getting the full value of an extended warranty because the some vehicle components under the standard Toyota warranty for 100K miles. The funny thing is some people buy the extended warranty specifically because they are worried about the hybrid components even though the warranty offers no additional protection over the standard warranty for the hybrid components.

Also the basic argument remains. The average buyer will pay more for the warranty than the will receive in payments from it. This must be true for Toyota to make money on the warranty. However profit margins on extended warranties are huge. Most articles report them to be 50 to 70% and that is after the company gives the salesman a hefty bonus for selling you the warranty.

Extended Warranties: Should You Take The Bait?
Are extended warranties warranted? Consumer Reports says no; others say yes - Cleveland Society News & Social Calendar - PDQ - cleveland.com

The problem with attitude that extended warranties are cheap insurance is that over time all those costs paid in warranties add up. Most people that are buying extended warranties on their cars also buy them on TV's, computers, appliances, etc. (Now I will now get a flurry of posts from people that have only bought a warranty for their Prius)

Yes, the deprecation value of any new car over 7 years is bad. However, a car doesn't deprecate uniformly over those 7 years. The bulk of the depreciation takes place in the first 3 years.

Compare Edmund's true cost to own for a new 2009 Prius vs a used 2006 Prius.

Edmunds estimates a new 2009 Prius will depreciate $11,773 over 5 years. However, 71% of that depreciation takes place in the first 3 years. Edmunds estimates it will cost $0.49 per mile to drive a new 2009 Prius for 5 years.

2009 Toyota Prius True Cost to Own ratings at Edmunds

Edmunds estimates a used 2006 Prius will depreciate $8,026 over 5 years. The estimate it will cost $0.42 per mile to drive a used 2006 Prius for 5 years.

http://www.edmunds.com/used/2006/toyota/prius/100668257/cto.html

That is a savings of: $5,250 over the 5 years, $1150 per year, $96 per month, $0.07 per mile. It doesn't sound like much until you add in time and compounding interest. If you save that extra $96 a month in an account getting at 8% per year that is $506,355 over 45 years. So with just that change a 20 year old could have an extra half million dollars in the bank when they retire at 65.

 

Toyota Extra Care Platinum Warranty via WarrantyShack

Hey folks, Is this company reputable? Can anyone vouch for them that this is not a scam? Have they been in business a long time? How to check their references?

I'm a naive new owner and love my Prius! THANKS.

Lucymama

Toyota Extra Care Platinum Warranty Price - $1055!
Please request more information using the quote request form at WarrantyShack.com from now on. The same price as always is available to PriusChat members, just be sure you include your PriusChat Username in the form for the special PriusChat pricing.

 

Re: Toyota Extra Care Platinum Warranty via WarrantyShack

Good as gold!

This is a Toyota dealer in Massachusetts from whom I bought my first warranty in 2005. He's probably sold hundreds of them to Priuschat members. You're getting a genuine Toyota product which will be honored at any Toyota dealer with no problems.

IMHO, the only place to buy the product, if you are so inclined.

Enjoy your new Prius.