I have a 2009 BMW 335i Coupe with CPO to 10/25/14 (or 100,000 miles), premium and sport packages, automatic transmission, and 43,000 miles on the clock. The new vehicle warranty - and with it the free maintenance program - expires on 10/25 this year and will cost me $2,095 to extend to the end of the CPO period/mileage. Apart from two or three more oil changes ($125 + tax at my local dealer), I'm told that'd also cover two major services at 60,000 and 90,000 miles (about $650 + tax) plus other potentially expensive maintenance such as for brake pad replacement ($800 or more + tax?), as well as wiper inserts and engine drive belts. I've been driving about 14,500 miles/year, so unless that increases dramatically I won't reach the 90k miles service interval before the 12/2014 expiration date. And my brake linings are currently about 8mm both front wheels and 7mm both rears. Is that $2,095 worth it? The math seems to indicate it'll be a close call either way, so I'd really appreciate any advice and counsel before I consider calling the dealer with credit card in hand. Thanks much.
I was faced with a similar choice when the warranty expired on my CPO roadster. Extending it would have cost about $2,000, but I knew I would probably not get to Service II mileage in time to cover that. The various bits and bobs when I finally got around to the equivalent of Service II came to less than a thousand, I believe. Of course, if anything had failed catastrophically during that time period, I would have had to jump off a bridge, but I lucked out! If brake pads cost $800, you're doing it wrong.
Somebody gets paid to figure out what the break even point is on the average extended service plan cost of usage. Then they figure out how much they need to add to make it profitable. There is no such thing as a free lunch for most of us. Do you buy the extended warranties on TVs & Computers?
I have a question regarding same issue - may be you can help with advice. My factory/warranty plan expires June 2013. I was just offered an extended Platinum "New vehicle" warranty until Feb 20, 2018 (100K). I have 39.8K now. I do not have a full package yet. Warranty is offered by Enterprise Financial Group. I was told that it does not cover the routine maintenance such as oil change, fluids, breakpads and tires. Warranty covers 24x7 assistance, towing, rental car and trip interruption plan when you are offered 200$ per day, if your car breaks at a distance over 300 miles from your home. I pay $50 deductible when I use the plan first and then no deductible. The total cost comes to 3,210$. Downpayment 162$ and $127 monthly payments for 24 months - no interest and late fees. The warranty is fully transferrable. Compared to your costs it sounds a lot and I am not sure if this is a good deal or not and if there are alternative companies on the market which I can do an estimate with. Any advice appreciated.
My last extended warranty on our 2003 Mini was around $3000. Used it once for a fuel pump. They way I see it, it was a $3000 fuel pump. No longer have an extended warranty and I needed to replace the power steering pump. Replaced washer jet for my headlight. 103,000 miles. What year and model is your car? Personally I think you are better off putting the money aside and draw on it as needed. Aftermarket warranty is a gamble and the insurance company is favored for a reason.
The decision is different for each of us. How you drive & care for your car is the best way to decide. If you drive it like you stole it, you might need an extended warranty no matter what the cost. A lot of the road service benefits are available for a nominal fee through your auto insurance co. Read the fine print, make sure you know what you're getting.
I am visiting the dealership this morning to try and get out of the extended maintenance we bought for our CPO just a few days ago as I think my local BMW certified mechanic can do it alot less expensively. I appreciate your feed on the overrevs MGarrison but would not the car, being the ultimate driving machine, has built in measures that would stop overrevs, like the limiter, or is it very hard to make a performance car and also restrict it from things like high rev without essentially castrating the machine?
Depends whether you have a manual transmission or not - a mechanical over-rev can happen with a manual. I couldn't say definitively, but I would be exceedingly surprised if, in any non-manual BMW transmission (operating properly with no malfunction), it were somehow possible to suffer an overrev or engine damage. So to your point, yes, I'd expect all factors programmed and designed to be working together to prevent any such damage!
