Extended Warranty on my new to me Burb?

[SaabLover]

I only just purchased my 99 3/4 ton 2500 Burb on the 2nd of October. I have made my first trip with it and my AS last week 1300 miles. I can't say enough praises about it. I will post later all about my trip to FL. Well to get to the point I have had several companies trying to sell me extended warrantees. I am wondering if it is worth it. Some offer road side assistances. In particular one company that is working with Carfax and now I can't find their name. But is this worth the money $1200 for 3 years coverage on a Burb with 136k on it? If so, what services are you using? Do they really pay out for repairs? Any thoughts would help.

[Mike Lewis]

Saablover---I retired from the auto service industry and have had lots of experience with these "warrantys". Here is some of what i know and seen happen.
Ist they are not warrantys a manufacture defines it but are an insurance policy with a lot of "fine print" that must be followed to the letter if any payment can be expected. Examples of this are the procedures to make a claim. In most cases if a mechanic puts a wench on your vechicle to diagnois it before calling the plan administrator warranty is denied. These folks may or may not be available 24-7 leaving you standed until such time you can reach them. In most cases large repairs are delayed while waiting for an adjuster to come and inspect the vehicle. At such time they are not likely to agree with those doing the repair as to how it should be done or if it's a "warrantable" repair. High mileage vehicle repairs seldom have repairs done properly. At 136 miles if the engine blows only the failed parts will be relaced and often they will send the repair center a used engine the warranty administrators selected and had shipped in. You must have available reciepts for all required maintenance during the time you own the vehicle. Doing your own maintenance "ALWAYS" throws up a red flag and causes delays. Finally repair center or garages are not obligated to handle the paper work or do the work at the price the warranty company wants to pay. I have had warrantys aproved over the phone, did the repair , then after the customer was gone had the claim denyed or the amount approved was changed to a lower amount leaving no way to collect for the repairs. Having experienced this we always required payment in full before releasing a vehicle. Not all repair centers handly extended warrantys this way but depending on the nature of the repairs needed nd where you are when a breakdown occurs you may not have the option of shopping for one that accepts your policy. Obviously not all experiences are as i've discribed but mine have been such peronally i wouldnt concider purchasing one but would put that money aside for reapirs should they be needed.---my 2 cents----
pieman

[Goin camping]

Read the really fine print. Having seen countless cases in Court where the vehicle owner is suing the "warranty" (really insurance) carrier. It is written so narrowly that the usual causes of breakdown are not covered. i.e. Only internal engine parts that fail are covered and if an external part causes the internal part to fail. No payment.

Now if your burb has a 350Ci engine and it grenades into a million pieces a brand new warrantied engine from GM is less that $2,000 plus installation at the shop of your choice. Not a bad deal really.

I've owned two burbs and niether of them ever had a mechanical failure. Cheap trim pieces on the other hand...

[SaabLover]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I am not one to jump on these types of warrantees and feel for the most part the only guarantee you have is that you will have to pay for it in the end.

[nunya001]

Hey - On on my second 3/4 burb - (first one was stolen). The sort version is that if the truck has been well maintained and you continue this it will treat you right over a long period. If you want to do yourself a favor, get a new thermostat, water pump and radiator whether it shows signs of needing it or not. The leading cause of death for these vehicles is poor heat management. Other than that check the brakes, decent preventative maintenance goes a long way here too. Outside of that you should be good to go. Cheers.

[SaabLover]

Originally Posted by nunya001

Hey - On on my second 3/4 burb - (first one was stolen). The sort version is that if the truck has been well maintained and you continue this it will treat you right over a long period. If you want to do yourself a favor, get a new thermostat, water pump and radiator whether it shows signs of needing it or not. The leading cause of death for these vehicles is poor heat management. Other than that check the brakes, decent preventative maintenance goes a long way here too. Outside of that you should be good to go. Cheers.

That is just what I have been doing with all my vehicles. I had this one gone over from top to bottom before I left NYC. Only the AC needed fixing. I didn't have a lick of trouble with it on my trip down to FL.

[Phil Gobie]

I have bought warranties that have worked for me but I talked to my mechanic first and had him recommend ones he has had good experience with. In general though I agree with the others with put the money aside and use it when something breaks. I think it also depends on the vehicle, how long you keep it and the warranty cost.

[RIstream'n]

There are two types of coverages. "Item specific" and "Exclusionary". Item specific warranties look good on paper but leave huge gaps in coverage and lots of that fine print you're all talking about. On paper they show a long list of covered parts. It's a long list and looks impressive but it has huge gaps. An exclusionary warranty says that all systems are covered, the entire vehicle except what is on the short list of exclusions. The exclusions are in a short paragraph and are things like, normal maintenence, tires, fluids, bulbs, belts, hoses, acts of god..... So instead of worrying about looking at a list of covered components and hope it's eveything, you have everything you'd expect to be covered, covered. The other issue is the company providing the coverage. There's alot of fly by night companies out there. Find a dealer who has a long history with a company. Internet companies are scary