Should I cancel my extended warranty?

[rc50cal]

Hello everyone,

I can use your advice regarding my current predicament. I bought my 2008 Mazdaspeed 3 in November (my first new car). I researched the hell out of the car before buying it, but I didn't think to check into extended warranties. I ended up purchasing a Mazda Extended Protection Plan (Total Care), which includes roadside assistance, $30 daily rental car provision, and road hazard. The woman who sold me the plan told me that it doubled the warranty on the vehicle and allowed me to negotiate the price "down" to $1695.

I received the warranty information in the mail a few days ago and discovered a few things:

1. The extended warranty covers only the first 60 months or 60,000 miles, not quite the "doubling" that I remember being offered. Since the basic warranty for the car is 3 years or 36,000 miles and the powertrain is covered for 5 years or 50,000 miles I don't feel there is much value in the extended warranty that i purchased.

2. There is a $100 deductible on the policy. She may or may not have told me, but I don't remember hearing anything about a deductible and wasn't knowledgeable or smart enough to ask.

3. I have 60 days to cancel the warranty and receive a full refund.

Can any of you knowledgeable folks think of any good reasons not to cancel? The roadside assistance, road hazard, and rental coverage are nice since I don't have those coverages from AAA or my auto insurance, but I don't think they are worth $850 per year.

 

[peterdaniel]

you should have been given the exact details before you signed and you should have know the miles it would cover.

I would absolutely cancel but for different reasons.

1) 1695 dollars is a JOKE! its pure gravy for the dealer, usually those warranties are marked up 100%

2) You can always wait until the original warranty is just about up, Then, assuming you still have the vehicle, you can purchase the same warranty from Mazda. Just make sure the 3/36 isn't expired.

You can then get a better feel for how the car is going to last and if you want it for a lot longer

Cancel it.

 

[Sacrilicious]

ya, extended warranties are one of the hidden ways they dealership makes money. they ALWAYS pull HUGE profits off of these things, so they never fail to push them in your face. there may be some useful things to it, but the bottom line is that it's NOT worth $1700...=/

 

[Olestra]

Hmm, I was going to suggest buying extended warranty directly from a company but now realize you're in California.

http://www.carbuyingtips.com/warranty.htm in case you're not familiar with what I'm talking about.

 

[yashart_mp3]

the dealer offered me a 5 year, 100,000 mile extended warranty for $1,300. Probably not a bad deal (since I drive around 30k miles a year) but since it is all highway miles, I can't see it putting "wear and tear" on the car.

 

[SwampAss]

I remember watching a Simpsons episode where Homer discovers he has a crayon lodged in his brain. When it was removed, he became very intelligent. During the course of the show he decided he'd rather be stupid again so he had the crayon re-inserted into his brain. Each time the crayon was pushed a little further into his brain, he audibly became more stupid. On the second tap he yells "Extended warranty? How can I lose?". That's pretty much summed up extended warranties on my part. They make money off my fear of the unknown.

Cancel it, get your money back, and sock that money in the bank.

 

[Sacrilicious]

Cancel it, get your money back, and sock that money in the bank.

+1

the reason they push extended warranties so viciously is because you will almost always lose more money from it than they will. quite honestly, if you have a reliable car like a mazda, you will likely never go in for major warranty work in the first 5 years of ownership. based on this fact, they hit you with a bill that seems reasonable if you assume you DO have to go in for major work, and that is how they get you good!

 

[Je5ter]

I work for a Mercedes dealership and to be honest with you we don't make "HUGE" profits from our extended warranties like you may think. If I was you I would cancel the warranty you bought and wait till the warranty on the car is about to expire to decide if you need a warranty or not. Also, I myself would never buy an extended warranty for a vehicle. If you are worrired about the car just put that 1700 in the bank for sort of a slush fund for your vehicle if something does go wrong after your basic warranty expires. Chances are it won't be more than 1700.. And if it is anything big you still have 2 years left of your powertrain warranty.

 

[Powerslave]

extended warrenties are a RIPP OFF!!! pay me 2,000 and i'll fix your car if it breaks , if you didn't cuase it witch will be debatable...lol

 

[Darksun280]

well i got the 6 year 72,000 mile on my car cause 1 its financed and 2 with my cobalt ss/sc after beating on it i had 22K in warranty work. TRUST me i got my moneys worth outta GM and i plan on getting the same out of mazda. 1700 is nothing in the long run.......

 

[chacon101]

I got the 6 year one too and have already used it. I got a flat and they replaced the tire (or is it tyre) for free.

Yeah, I know, the cost hasn't balanced out yet but hell, you never know. It's insurance that I am happy I have.

If you need the money for something else, cancel it, if you don't...then I vote to keep it.

 

[clos561]

i got it, i think its worth it. now every one is like RIP OFF and this and that but in the long run you do not know what will happen to the car and the engine. especially with the driving style that most of us have.

 

[chacon101]

Oh, and so you know, the tire replacement was like $300. Whew!!

 

[Maxx Mazda]

I remember watching a Simpsons episode where Homer discovers he has a crayon lodged in his brain. When it was removed, he became very intelligent. During the course of the show he decided he'd rather be stupid again so he had the crayon re-inserted into his brain. Each time the crayon was pushed a little further into his brain, he audibly became more stupid. On the second tap he yells "Extended warranty? How can I lose?". That's pretty much summed up extended warranties on my part. They make money off my fear of the unknown.

Cancel it, get your money back, and sock that money in the bank.

 

[mrlilguy157]

what's a warranty????

 

[Rotus8]

I work for a Mercedes dealership and to be honest with you we don't make "HUGE" profits from our extended warranties like you may think.

That's because Mercedes quality is crap and repairs/parts are sky high. I have bought one Mercedes, and one extended warranty in my life, and Mercedes certainly didn't make any money on that one. Replaced supercharger, ignition system twice, entire sunroof, plus many sunroof repairs, and a bunch of other crap. When the extended was about to end, the car was gone. Never again. Mazda reliability and repair cost makes the extended warranty, especially for that price, silly.

 

[peajay]

whatever you do, if you get or keep the extended warranty always always! go with the dealer, aftermarket warranties are crap.
example, we have a guy in the shop now 2001 bmw 330i that needs lower control arms with bushings, evap canister and thermostat..almost a $2k bill, his aftermarket warranty is covering $800 of it..and thats with his $100 deductable.
not worth a cent if you ask me.

 

[peterdaniel]

I remember watching a Simpsons episode where Homer discovers he has a crayon lodged in his brain. When it was removed, he became very intelligent. During the course of the show he decided he'd rather be stupid again so he had the crayon re-inserted into his brain. Each time the crayon was pushed a little further into his brain, he audibly became more stupid. On the second tap he yells "Extended warranty? How can I lose?". .
.

(rlaugh)(rlaugh)(rlaugh)(rlaugh)

That is some seriously funny stuff..


Any link to that episode?

 

[cosmic_spd3]

why would u buy an extended warranty tho,when u first purchase a car..the 3yrs /36000 miles coverage is standard..when it gets closer to that ending,then u consider getting an extended warranty based on how the car is still running or if ur really gonna keep the car for much longer after the standard warranty runs out..wouldnt u say???
they asked me if i wanted it and i said no..dont over charge me..

 

[HAVOC]

I bought the extended warranty on a vw jetta I bought in 2000, it turned out that vw does not offer an extended warranty and this was though a national warranty company. either way I made out like a bandit. The warranty was $1400 for a 100,000 mile with a $50 deductible. I think when I reached 100,000 miles the warranty company paid close to $10,000 in repairs.
I know that Mazda's are more reliable than VW's but I needed that comfort after all the vw problems, plus the warranty was from Mazda. I drive 25,000+ miles a year and not all of it is highway,a lot of it is stop and go. I all ready have 12,500 after 6 months and will happy if after 100,000 miles I never had to use the extended warranty. Rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.