Don't Bother Buying Extended Car Warranties | Consumer Reports

You may be asked to buy one at the dealer, but a Consumer Reports survey found 55 percent of owners who purchased an extended warranty hadn’t used it for repairs.

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[mattvalcarc]

"55% of people never use it..." That means almost HALF of the people who got one used it

[roberturkevich]

Not buying a warranty for bmw is as stupid as sleeping on railroad tracks

[DERRECK]

I bought one and I'm glad I did It's better to have It and don't need It than to need It and don't have It

[zachtravers]

I have a 2011 Hyundai Sonata and paid $1367 for the bumper to bumper extended warranty. It's paid for itself in the year we have had it. Bought the car with 48k miles it now has 67k. It's been all stupid stuff mostly. Sunroof had to be replaced, headliner, parts of the suspension, the electronic power steering module, and a few other odds and ends. The Sonata has pretty good reliability ratings, I'll keep the extended warranty. To me, at least, it's worth the piece of mind.

[joshgoldstein]

I absolutely agree these products generally don't pay for themselves are overpriced high-margin money grabs by dealership F&I departments, if you did purchase one and don't use it, by law in many states you are due a refund for unused time and mileage when you trade or sell the vehicle, be sure to pursue this if you have one already

[victreebel]

Considering things like infotainment and backup cameras are rarely even covered for the full bumper to bumper time period, sorry, this is bad advice. It was $800 to replace my Subaru head unit from '08 (died after 4 years) and it doesn't even have a touchscreen!

[samdavidowicz]

Wait until your A/C compressor dies 1 week after the original warranty
expires. Then you'll be wishing you bought the extended warranty. As
the old saying goes, "better to have and not need then to need and not
have."

[Buc_Stops_Here]

I like how they slightly changed their recommendation about these contracts. For cars that are unreliable, they do recommend them. I have a corollary for that - for cars that are generally reliable but are in their first year of production, they should also be considered. I owned a 2001 Acura TL and a 2003 Honda Accord V6 - both in the first year of their production with a 5 speed transmission. I did not buy a warranty on the Acura, but lost the transmission at 60, 000 miles. I bought it for the Honda Accord, and it needed a new transmission at 40, 000 miles. Both were covered as Honda had a recall on the Acura, but it taught me not to take chances on a first year car - or to get a warranty even on a "reliable" brand.

[oracleofottawa]

Having bought 6 new cars over 30 years I always bought an extended warranty with a high deductible ($250.00 ++) from the manufacturer only. Over the years it paid off awesome. Buy the factory extended warranty with a large deductible... The larger the deductible the cheaper the warranty. It has paid off and or broken even every time.

[davesmith]

Just bought a CHRYSLER hybrid with a CVT transmission with 62, 000 miles. Going to want a service contract for 5 years 😂

[nafisazad]

I own a 2013 BMW 535i xDrive with an extended warranty. If you can negotiate with the warranty company it can be worthwhile. I have a 0 deductible warranty with loaner car reimbursement. Almost has paid for itself within a year of ownership and will likely pay for itself very soon as I am nearing 70k miles

[berndog]

A small but, i believe, important point: one cannot *buy* a warranty. Definition of warranty: _a written guarantee _*_given_*_ to the purchaser of a new appliance, automobile, or other item by the manufacturer or dealer, usually specifying that the manufacturer will make any repairs or replace defective parts free of charge for a stated period of time._
The manufacturer provides a *warranty* with the car but any coverage *bought* for problems that come _after_ the warranty expires is called a *service contract*.
Just because most people call it a warranty doesn't make it one.

[LVang]

One more thing from me: if you do buy their package, your car needs to be maintained by dealer or your package is void. All your service must done by license shop.

[InternetDude]

If you buy a Chrysler Dodge Jeep, get bent over and buy the extra warranty

[Logicsupremacy]

What % of people use their health insurance or car insurance for accidents? 10%? 5%? Then you say consider buying it on less reliable models? You guys should change your misleading title.

[Humaid]

Well, the extended warranty saved my ass on my 2012 Charger RT. The engine failed not once but twice right after the manufacturer warranty expired! Eventually, I got a new engine installed in a 4 year old car at zero cost thanks to the extended warranty.
But then again, Dodge is at the bottom of the reliability ratings...

[thRiflesOCI]

*cough Chrysler, Dodge, Land Rover, Nissan*

[thugangel]

Always buy extended warranty for german. Japanese no need.

[artieartya]

My Lexus dealer was trying to sell me the basic extended warranty which was something around $4700. Brand new Lexus just made no sense to fork over another $4700 and potentially not have any repair bill costing anywhere near that. Not a highbrid or anything out of ordinary to worry about either

[socalmrt]

I believe you can cancel and get refunded on whatever it is left of that insurance at the dealership you bought the vehicle from. Well, I have in the past.