Extended Warranty Ques.

21 months and 41K miles, it's never been in for any work. I have only done routine preventive maintenance plus new wiper blades and a transaxle fluid change. The car runs like a top.

My only complaint is the numerous interior rattles that I have tried to fix myself. Service departments, with a few exceptions, are not to good at finding rattles.

The extended warranties on these vehicles are mostly good for peace of mind or if you have a lot of expensive to fix options, i.e. ATP. If you decide to buy one be sure to get it through Troy on this site, he has the best deal around.

 

Aloha
2006 with 37000 miles. Changed tires, changed wiper blades, changed oil. Thankfully, NO problems.

Patrick

 

51k with no problems. Got my warranty for piece of mind. Regardless of the naysayers, every now and then you read here where somebody has to shell out big bucks for something that the extended warranty would have covered. So you have to ask the question.....Do you feel lucky...LOL

 

I just bought my new 2011 Prius last week. At the time of purchase it was explained to me that Toyota is now offering the extended warranties with a guarantee that if you do not use the warranty during the warranty period you will get back the entire amount that you purchased the warranty for. So if I do not use it at all, because the car is that awesome, I can either put the $1200 towards a new Toyota, or they will just give me a check for the full amount. The only catch is that you have to buy it at the time of purchase. You don't get up to the 3 years or 36,000 miles to decide. I couldn't pass it up since it will never feel like a waste of money to me.

 

What did you pay? Also is this a Toyota extended warranty? My dealer was offering a 5 year or 60,000 that is bumper to bumper and all required maint for $1300. It was through a company called MPP (Mechanical Protection Plan) and is good at any Toyota dealer or authorized AES Certified Repair facility. However, there was no refund if you did not use it.

 

Read the fine print (of course, it's too late if it isn't what you think it was), but every extended "warranty" (it's really a service contract) I've ever seen that gives refunds are pro-rated based on mileage or age, whichever is greater... not a full refund.

 

So, just for kicks, is that language in the extended warranty contract your received? Not that any car dealer would mislead...

 

my daughters 04 with 85000 miles went in under the 3/36 warranty for a defective headlite leveling sensor and a software update for the supposed 'car just dies on the highway" problem. which is probably free even after warranty. she has not spent a penny yet on anything besides oil, filters and tires. all the best!

 

So I did come home and immediately read the fine print of the contract guarantee. There are no restrictions other than the following:

1. It's not transferable, can only be claimed by me
2. Dealer must provide written proof that no contract claims have been paid up to the expiration date (6 years)
3. Copies of the current registration, proof of insurance, sales contract and original service contract must be submitted with the claim for reimbursement
4. Claim must be submitted no later than 60 days after the expiration date
5. Dealer has 45 days to verify the info and make payment
6. No claim can be submitted prior to the expiration date, even if it is expired by reason of miles driven (which in my case is 100,000 miles)

There is nothing else, no mention of pro rating for miles driven, nothing. I get the full amount of my service contract, which is $1295 for the Platinum Toyota coverage.

 

I got the Platinum level Toyota Extra Care Vehicle Service Agreement through Toyota Financial Services, no deductible, for 6 years or 100,000 miles, for $1295. I can use it at any Toyota dealer.

 

I'd like to hear what Troy has to say about this.

 

I have 62,000 miles and zero repairs on my 2010. The extended warrenty is a waste of money.

Here are a list of items not covered by Platinum protection.

"List of Excluded Components

• Accessory Drive Belts
• Batteries
• Body Panels
• Brake Linings, Pads and Shoes
• Bumpers
• Carpet
• Chrome
• Clutch Friction Disk and Pressure Plate
• Dash Cover and Pad
• Door Trim, Handles and Fabric
• Filters
• Fluids
• Glass (including Windshield)
• Headliner
• Heating Hoses, Lines and Tubes
• Hinges
• Hybrid System Main Relays
• Hybrid Vehicle Battery
• Hybrid Vehicle Battery Module/Pack
• Hoses
• Interior and Exterior Trim Moldings, including but not limited to, Cup Holders, Ashtrays, Covers, and Vents
• Lamps
• Light Bulbs
• Nuts, Bolts, Clips, Retainers and Fasteners
• Paint
• Rotors and Drums
• Rust and Corrosion Damage
• Seat Covers
• Service Plug
• Shiny Metals
• Spark Plugs
• Structural Framework and Wells
• Tires
• Vacuum Hoses, Lines and Tubes
• Weather Stripping
• Wheels and Rims
• Windshield Wiper Blades (Rubber Component)"

Plus any user errors. If you hit a huge pot hole and bend a rim, break a strut, take the car out of alignment, and any body damage you have to pay 100% out of pocket.

 

^Most of those items not covered are cosmetic, not mechanical in nature. Others (like fluids, filters, spark plugs, tires, brakes) are typical maintenance items that an owner would generally expect to be liable for.

 

Most dealers try to sell the extended warranty claiming there might be issues with the battery. The battery is excluded from the coverage. It is covered by the factory warranty that comes free with the car.

The only person that makes money on an extended warranty is the dealer and Toyota. Do no waste your money.

 

Ditto that. Almost as silly as an extended warranty is a prepaid maintenance contract: you're giving the dealer a free loan, tying up money now that you would otherwise have not spent for years to come.

Asking for anecdotes is a terrible way to get to a conclusion. You're likely to hear from the one person who is happy that he won the lottery and came out ahead on his extended warranty, and not from the ten people who are embarrassed because they lost money, or from the fifty who came out ahead because they didn't buy one in the first place and don't bother to read the thread :_>

 

I know, you guys have an established history of rallying against the idea of purchasing an extended warranty. No reason to hack it out for the umpteenth time. One can make the choice of saving for a rainy day (i.e. component breakdown) or they can roll the dice and "invest" in an EW. I will admit (assuming the dollar doesn't dive, the likelihood of which increases by the day) that saving cash monthly in an interest-bearing account for future repairs (post-warranty) is generally a better investment than buying an EW.

 

orrrrr...you could try asking about the plan that I just got from my local Toyota dealer just last week when I bought my new 2011 Prius that guarantees that I will get my money back IN FULL if I do not use this warranty in the next 6 years. Really, there is no catch, the guarantee literally contains the 6 things that I listed above as the only criteria for submitting a claim for the entire cost of my Toyota Extra Care contract.

 

What are you going to do if you have a $200 repair?

Do you pay out of pocket hoping you will not see more repairs?

Do let the $1250 extended warranty cover it and lose the ability to ever get your money back?

You might get a $100 repair a week after that. Do you keep paying out of pocket?