Extended Warranty - Worth It?

[ay1820]

I normally avoided extended warranties and "self insure" but I am thinking that our cars have so many complex systems, that maybe I should consider it. Since my mileage is likely to be low (probably less than 5,000 miles per year), a Premium Plan from Granger isn't too expensive and would probably pay for itself if any one major electronics system (like an instrument cluster) were to go bad.

Anybody have any good/bad experience with this?

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[Zooks527]

Well, these plans are a financial loser for the customer (otherwise, the company wouldn't sell them).

That said, I did get one for my 19 GT with the full-on glass dash and just about all the goodies, mostly because various bits were fairly new and I didn't want to play with the cost of replacing some of the tech pieces if they went toes-up.

 

[IM Stoner II]

Waste of money

 

[wynand32]

I think they're like all insurance – a waste of money until you need it.

 

[monte87]

I normally avoided extended warranties and "self insure" but I am thinking that our cars have so many complex systems, that maybe I should consider it. Since my mileage is likely to be low (probably less than 5,000 miles per year), a Premium Plan from Granger isn't too expensive and would probably pay for itself if any one major electronics system (like an instrument cluster) were to go bad.

Anybody have any good/bad experience with this?

im in the same boat, undecided............. 2021 w 13k miles
Anthony

 

[Qcman17]

I bought one last year as I plan to keep the car for a good many years yet. I drive about the same miles per year as the OP so I bought a 8 year 50k mile one since mileage isn't the issue as much as time. Car has about 20k miles on it currently.

I don't normally buy them either but with knowing I'll keep the car a long time and some concern over Ford's lack of quality in many regards I decided to take the chance on it.

I feel more comfortable having it.

 

[Cobra Jet]

Depends on the situation and what is (or more importantly, is NOT being covered).

Extended warranties are worth it IF the owner is expecting to keep the vehicle longer than 5 years.

The concerns with an extended Warranty one should analyze for themselves is:
- Does the Extended Warranty run concurrently with the existing new car 3/36 and/or Powertrain 5/60? Meaning, is it retroactive as of the date the car went into service? If the answer is yes, then get the term that is the longest interval.

- Will you kill the extended warranty by years or miles first? Sure ok, you won't be putting more than 5k on it per year BUT the "year" term will most likely run out first. Same is true with a daily driver - will you kill the warranty with annual miles quicker than the years?

- Check to see what is NOT covered. This is THE most important aspect of ANY aftermarket Warranty for ANYTHING. The warranty won't mean diddly if day the electrical system has a problem and the extended warranty excludes all OR certain electrical components. Always read all the fine print, see what is NOT covered. Otherwise it's throwing $$$ away.

- If the warranty starts or goes into affect AFTER the new car 3/36 or Powertrain 5/60, make sure to verify the exact terms and conditions.

----

Now most don't ever read their Owner's Manuals at all, and don't even know what's in them. So I will make this one recommendation:
- Go into your Owner's Manual to the pages about the Vehicle Warranty. Read what IS COVERED under the new car 3/36, Powertrain 5/60 and Emissions 8/80. You will be totally surprised at what IS covered by the Ford factory warranty, it's very comprehensive and extensive..

Much of what is covered by the Ford factory warranties often gets overlapped in Extended Warranties - so know what you're buying when buying an extended warranty.

 

[Captain Greg]

I purchased a full 5 year or 100 000km all in maintenance plan ..I recently had all the brakes done and the battery replaced ..brakes included rotors and pads the cost of this exceeded the plan costs

 

[dsiggi]

So Far I've bought one on 4 cars, 2018 Raptor, still have lots left and I'm ahead of Ford. 2012 SuperDuty, was well ahead of Ford on that one, 2015 Mustang GT, sold it early and got prorated money back, don't think I'd do it again for a non bespoke mustang. 2019 GT350R. Even if I never use it its worth the piece of mind for me with the bespoke motor.

 

[skinnyb]

I personally like the peace of mind. I just got a 6/72K mile Premium coverage with 100 dollar deductible for mine for $800 (2022 with 6k miles at the time). It's worth it to me to know it will be covered the entire time it's finananced. I do plan on paying off much earlier than that but knowing it is covered just in case is very nice.

 

[lepak91]

I ended up buying one for my '18 Mustang just because I got burned on my '13 Taurus SHO. I dumped so much money into repairs that would have more than paid for the cost of the extended warranty.

 

[Blwnsmoke]

I've always bought Premium ESPs on every single vehicle from Ford. It helps getting them at cost (Granger is $50 over cost).

2007 F350 (over $8,000 covered from the ESP)
2011 Explorer (over $5,200 covered from the ESP)
2015 F350 (over $12,000 covered by the ESP)
2020 Explorer (so far over $2,000 covered by the ESP)

The figures above include rental car coverage that I would have had to pay for as well.

So yes, it could be a waste of money but I rather pay some up front now then worry about unexpected costs later. Especially with their 24 month payment plan.

My b2b runs out at the end of this month on my gt350 and I'll be getting one on that too. $25k motors scare me lol.

 

[dsiggi]

I've always bought Premium ESPs on every single vehicle from Ford. It helps getting them at cost (Granger is $50 over cost).

2007 F350 (over $8,000 covered from the ESP)
2011 Explorer (over $5,200 covered from the ESP)
2015 F350 (over $12,000 covered by the ESP)
2020 Explorer (so far over $2,000 covered by the ESP)

The figures above include rental car coverage that I would have had to pay for as well.

So yes, it could be a waste of money but I rather pay some up front now then worry about unexpected costs later. Especially with their 24 month payment plan.

My b2b runs out at the end of this month on my gt350 and I'll be getting one on that too. $25k motors scare me lol.

How did you figure those numbers? They used to print cost for warranty work but no longer do. Or are they estimates? Good call on the rental. yea my rental puts my number ahead of Ford much higher.

 

[ay1820]

So the Granger deal is $1,265 for a 10 year / 60,000 miles Premium Care plan (including an extra $35 to cover all interior/exterior lighting). The deductible for this option is only $50.

It looks like most all mechanical and electrical is covered. The electrical in particular is a concern to me, since there are so many components that could fail. The big exclusions are "fixed" body parts, paint, rust, glass, water leaks, weather stripping, wheels, convertible top fabric.

I only put 70,000 miles on my last "fun" car over a 15 year period, so I am pretty comfortable with the mileage limit. As I understand it, the 10 years is from the date the car was first sold as new, which for my car (which I bought used in Feb of 2022) was April of 2021.

I have never owned a car for less than 8 years and I have kept most for 10 - 15. I also have been thinking about doing some light mods to the car (wheels and tires, maybe drop it an inch, some cosmetic stuff), and I don't want to put cash into the car unless I do plan to hang onto it for a while.

I have always had the attitude that most here expressed of it not being worth it since they would only sell it if they were likely to make money. BUT, I just don't trust Ford quality these days. If I was going to dump it in 5 years, then I agree that it would never be worth it, but if I am planning to hang on to it for the next 8 years or so, it becomes tempting.

Sorry for the long post, just trying to work this out in my own head with you all (who are much smarter than me) as a sounding board.

 

[Blwnsmoke]

How did you figure those numbers? They used to print cost for warranty work but no longer do. Or are they estimates? Good call on the rental. yea my rental puts my number ahead of Ford much higher.

A few different ways. When I get the work orders, I used to write down the part numbers and google each one to look up the MSRP of each part. The W/Os also show the labor hours so I'd calculate what they were allowed to charge @ their labor rate. And then I'd calculate the $50 per day rental coverage every time my vehicle went in. Although it's not to the penny, those numbers are pretty darn close to the actual covered repairs.

Example, my F350 had two repairs done this past winter.. one was the trans pan replacement and the other had to do with something in the hub that they couldn't get out. A lot of the underneath was rusted and they had one hell of a time getting everything apart. That repair alone was almost 20 hours of labor.. they had to get two approvals from Ford for the additional labor lol.

So although I may be the exception to the rule... and I get that if Ford lost out overall, they wouldn't sell them.. I have always won and will continue to buy them.

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