Extended warranty recommendations

[Josh (PA)]

Hi Guys,

I'm curious from those who have extended warranties what company you went with, how much you paid and what your experience was like.

I'd prefer to not get into the extended warranty companies are out to make money and you're better off banking the money debate. I get it, and I know the risk/reward. I've owned BMWs out of warranty and had great experiences (believe it or not my best was with an e39 M5) and had extended warranties on others that saved me thousands (I paid $2200 for one on my 535xit and it paid out about $7000).

I just bought a 2013 X5 with an n55. It has 44,000 miles and the BMW new car warranty is valid through August. I'll get anything worked out with that before it expires... is it wrong that I'm hoping my water pump dies in the next month?

I did some quotes on extended warranties when i was shopping. USAA (my insurance company) quoted $6,xxx for comprehensive coverage to 100k with no deductible. Allstate was about $4400 for comprehensive at 2yrs/ to 100k (we'll max out miles first). I did some online shopping and saw coss in the $2000 range from places I've never heard of. I may quote BMW extended service as well, but I have a good indy mechanic and would prefer not to be tied to a dealer.

So who has thoughts on who/how much, etc? I am willing to pay a little more to not have to fight to get things paid for.

Thanks

[bmwx5er]

Route 66 is one of the best and they cost under$3k, but they stopped covering x5s since early last year. Contact forum member PAX5 - he mentioned something about a plan called CNA, which he bought and it apparently already paid for itself.

[bimmerNovice]

I have route 66 on x5m. It cost around 3500 as I recall. I went with them because Carmax wanted 7k! No doubt Carmax is the better service, but i didn't want to shell out that much. Ive already had to use route 66 a couple of times. They are ok... they have covered what they were supposed to, although they only will pay out a certain dollar amount for any given repair, which is so ridiculous seeing as I got the work done at the dealer. They covered all on one service, but the windshield washer pump was $550 plus labor and they would only pay $450 or something. I think i was on the hook for about $250 :-/

[bmwx5er]

Originally Posted by bimmerNovice

I have route 66 on x5m. It cost around 3500 as I recall. I went with them because Carmax wanted 7k! No doubt Carmax is the better service, but i didn't want to shell out that much. Ive already had to use route 66 a couple of times. They are ok... they have covered what they were supposed to, although they only will pay out a certain dollar amount for any given repair, which is so ridiculous seeing as I got the work done at the dealer. They covered all on one service, but the windshield washer pump was $550 plus labor and they would only pay $450 or something. I think i was on the hook for about $250 :-/

My experience with Route 66 was stellar - they've paid over $3K already for my valve cover gaskets and turbo cooling hose replacement, both done at the dealer, zero out of pocket cost (I paid $2850 for the plan, so it has already paid for itself).

Sometimes, dealers charge ridiculous prices, which I've heard several 3rd party warranty companies refuse to pay (e.g. one dealer wanted over $12K to do a N63 valve stem seal replacement, when you could have it done for under $8K) - have you checked what the cost would've been if you had done it with an indy, just for comparison? Not trying to dispute your account or defend Route 66, I'm curious to document such cases for better understanding of how 3rd party warranties operate. I'm seeing that the MSRP on the windshield washer pump is $68 for an E70 X5M (https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...h/67126934160/) , so if the dealer wanted $550 for the same part they were ripping you off.

[Suge206]

I had Motorist Assitant Plan and it cost me $1200 on my old X5 4.8i sport and it covered over $14k in repairs.

I have a new company on my 13 50i but the paperwork is in the car. Haven't used it yet.

[bimmerNovice]

Originally Posted by bmwx5er

My experience with Route 66 was stellar - they've paid over $3K already for my valve cover gaskets and turbo cooling hose replacement, both done at the dealer, zero out of pocket cost (I paid $2850 for the plan, so it has already paid for itself).

Sometimes, dealers charge ridiculous prices, which I've heard several 3rd party warranty companies refuse to pay (e.g. one dealer wanted over $12K to do a N63 valve stem seal replacement, when you could have it done for under $8K) - have you checked what the cost would've been if you had done it with an indy, just for comparison? Not trying to dispute your account or defend Route 66, I'm curious to document such cases for better understanding of how 3rd party warranties operate. I'm seeing that the MSRP on the windshield washer pump is $68 for an E70 X5M (https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...h/67126934160/) , so if the dealer wanted $550 for the same part they were ripping you off.

Yeah, we have an import mechanic that we have used for the last few years, and he told me at the beginning that route 66 was very hard to deal with and always try to cheap out on the parts to use. We ended up having to take the car to the dealer because it was throwing a code he couldn't figure out. I ended up liking the dealer experience better because they were faster and supply a free loaner car, which is huge...

[335dye]

Anymore suggestions? Looking at getting an extended warranty right now as well.

[Poppyboy]

This has been discussed in previous posts, but it bears repeating. Be very, very careful when purchasing any extended warranty. These companies have done extensive research to improve their odds of coming out ahead. What you want is an exclusionary warranty. That means, the company will explicitly list all of the items that are NOT covered. Most warranties are inclusionary, where they only list what IS covered, in BROAD terms so that they have an out when you have a claim. Then, you find out that your repair doesn't exactly match what the warranty company spelled out in the policy. You often won't find out that your repair is not covered until you have your claim, which by then is too late. Warranty companies will either not cover the repair since they have an "out" in the policy language, or not cover the full labor charges. Then, after anger, reality sets in that you wasted your money on the warranty. Depending on your car, you are often better off just banking the money for future repairs.

[Tailwinds]

I bought BMW. Route 66 wasn't offering coverage on my M. I've been happy with it. $50 deductible per visit. Seems the BMW dealer happy I bought the extension. Note they won't cover "trim" items.

[-c-]

Lol yea I remember I had one, the bank said they where a great company so I got it added to my purchase and a week later the transfer case blew, well in the "what's covered" the transfer case was clearly visible, so I didn't think anything of it. Dealer called the next day and they said they had denied the claim and when asked why they said they only covered the transfer case "case" the housing not the internals! I was gobsmacked !!! They would have covered it if the transfer case had craked and leaked fluid.

Needless to say I immediately called my bank and canceled their sorry asses and got a full refund.

Used that money to fix my transfer case and never had in issue since, that was 30k miles ago. Knocking on wood.

[Poppyboy]

This is EXACTLY what I'm saying regarding the screw jobs warranty companies put people through.