Service Contracts & Extended Warranties

[atomsplitter]

New member, first post, just got a 2013 Pilot Touring last week...
Unfortunately, despite my best efforts, I let the finance manager talk us into a service agreement ($1135 for 4 years or 48,000 mi.) and an extended warranty through CNA ($2850 for 10 years or 120,000 mi.). So my obvious question- is there any reason I should not cancel both of these items and just get my money back. There is a 60 day cancel period and I have the paperwork in hand. Just need to sign and give to the dealership.

Yes, ouch... $4,000 of stuff that I never even considered with prior vehicles.

Some details
Vehicle service agreement is new product through Honda Care - it covers all Maintenance Minder services (oil & filter, air filter, cabin filter, tire rotations, ATF service, transfer case fluid, brake fluid, differential fluid) for the term of the contract - 4 years or 48 months. The dealer stated it covered all items in their recommended maintenance - that made the deal a no-brainer. Most of the dealer recommended services are on a more frequent basis. It looks like the service intervals are actually far enough apart that I will end up leaving several hundred on the table even if using the dealer prices for covered services.

Extended Warranty through CNA. Enough said. Everything I read says that these things are an unnecessary insurance policy that can be easily voided if your maintenance records are not pristine when it comes time to exercise a claim. And, what is the likelihood of having a claim big enough to justify nearly $3K initial outlay?

Appreciate your input. Thanks.

[dale512]

We have a 2011 EX-L with Navigation and this is the first time we bought an extended warranty (Honda Care)...mainly for peace of mind due to the amount of electronics in our car. I would be wary of third party warranties. Besides the pitfalls you point out, who knows if they'll be in business when you need them.

The upside with your service agreement is you paid with today's dollars for service in the future...and who knows what dealership cost will be to conduct their service. I'm not sure what you mean by four years/48 months though. Do you mean 4 years/48 thousand miles? I'm not sure this is such a good deal if you mean 48 thousand miles.

[DMG]

I bought a Honda Care warranty a week after taking delivery of my EX-L, the dealer wanted $3000.00 for a non-Honda warranty. After some searching I bought my Honda 8 year/120,000 mile warranty from Saccucci Honda for $1295.00. Everything was done over the phone in about 5 min., it very easy and no extra pressure to buy this or that.

I received two years (no mileage limit) free Honda Maintenance when I bought the Pilot.

Honda Care Vehicle Service Contract from Saccucci Honda

[Brolan]

When I bought my 2012 EX 4WD they tried selling me a 100K 10 year warranty for $2500. The price magically dropped to $1500 when I mentioned the Saccucci Honda warranty. You should use that leverage too.

[atomsplitter]

Thanks all. As I said, I have the cancellation paperwork in my hand and, after seeing what Saccucci Honda can offer, I am going to give my dealer a chance to match it and then will be ditching it if they won't. Of course, they will say they can't.

I'm just pissed that I did not do my homework on these add-ons prior to signing on the dotted line. I was focused on getting the best price on the vehicle and didn't even think about the extras. Things have certainly changed since I bought my last new vehicle in 2003. You couldn't get a decent price on any of these items over the net.

[Brolan]

Add ons are how dealers make their money now. With price pressure on vehicle prices from the internet they don't have much room to maneuver. But they can charge anything they like for their add on junk. I make it policy to just say no to any add on (except the floor mats, those are expensive but usually pretty well made).

My biggest pet peeve is rustproofing. Manufactures do an excellent job, so you don't need the dealer adding extra weight to the car for their crap. And a bad job can actually clog up the drain holes in the body, so it actually causes rust by having water pool up.

[dj5]

I would cancel and get my money back. You can always by Hondacare from Saccucci Honda at a much better price.

[pvpilotex]

I bought an extended warranty from the dealer for my 2012 Pilot EX for $1916.00. The price was, I thought, reasonable compared to prices I've seen for extended warranties in the past. I've had extended warranties on new cars before and both times they more than paid for themselves.

One twist with the one for my Pilot. The warranty is for 8 years or 100,000 miles. However, on the brochure they gave us the finance manager (She handles all the paperwork, even when one pays cash as we did.) wrote "in addition to 3yrs/36,000" (The factory warranty.). When we went back the next day to finalize the deal, the actual contract was the normal one, meaning the extended warranty runs concurrent with the OEM warranty, so this would only be good five years after the factory warranty expired. I told her that she told us it was in addition to the factory warranty. So, she modified the warranty contract to explicitly state it took effect when the factory warranty expired.

I won't know how well that will work until and unless I have a claim covered by it after I've had my Pilot for 8 years. However, as it is in writing, I do believe it will stand up.

The reason I bought it is I expect to keep the Pilot for 10 or more years and this warranty is the top level of the four levels of coverage available. It covers the standard stuff plus: anti-lock brake system; power window motors & power regulators; power door lock actuators; all on board computers; AIRB; DVD/TV/VCR systems; radio/tape/CD player; anti-theft system; and much more (it says).

Knowing how expensive computer or other electrical and/or power equipment repairs can be, I figured it was a good investment.

Consumer Reports magazine usually recommends against extended warranties. However, my experience has told me they are worth the money. I bought one for my Piaggio BV 500 motor scooter as well as a wheel and tire warranty. I had to have a rear tire replaced due to a piece of metal in it. The cost of the warranty was less than I would have paid if I would have had to pay for the tire replacement (tire + labor). So, I'm already ahead on it.

[rocky]

Originally Posted by dj5

I would cancel and get my money back. You can always by Hondacare from Saccucci Honda at a much better price.

X2
http://www.saccuccihondacare.com/


Sent from AutoGuide.com App

[jl_ss]

Originally Posted by atomsplitter

Thanks all. As I said, I have the cancellation paperwork in my hand and, after seeing what Saccucci Honda can offer, I am going to give my dealer a chance to match it and then will be ditching it if they won't. Of course, they will say they can't.

I'm just pissed that I did not do my homework on these add-ons prior to signing on the dotted line. I was focused on getting the best price on the vehicle and didn't even think about the extras. Things have certainly changed since I bought my last new vehicle in 2003. You couldn't get a decent price on any of these items over the net.

Did you finance these into an auto loan? If so, the money will go to the finance company not to you upon cancellation. If not, then the money gets returned to you.

[Strate L O S S]

It would be deducted from the balance on the loan like the poster above me mentioned. No big deal since every month you're also saving interest on that $4,000 that's bundled into the loan.


Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App

[jl_ss]

Originally Posted by Strate L O S S

It would be deducted from the balance on the loan like the poster above me mentioned. No big deal since every month you're also saving interest on that $4,000 that's bundled into the loan.


Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App

A lot of people do not realize this and they plan to use the returned monies to repurchase the discounted HondaCare. They are then surprised when they find they do not get the money.