Need Input!! Extended warranty or waste of $$?

Yep. Moreover, the standard warranty for the battery is 80k miles, so OP is spending $1000+ for 40k miles of battery warranty and a couple other items that I do not know if *any* failures before 125k miles have ever been reported.

 

The warranty saved me $2300 for a new brake actuator.

 

Yes, only two affected members out of however many Gen III owners on here. This is out of an extremely skewed population who tends to come here with problems, meaning the likelihood of needing a new brake actuator is even lower in the general population.

Take your chance, but the odd is overwhelming against you.

Except the extended warranty specifically excludes the hybrid battery!

 

In your thread you say the repair was covered under the standard warranty, since the problem occurred before 36k miles.

Here is another very rare brake actuator failure story. Interesting that he paid about $1300, or about the price of an extended warranty.

So if a person is really unlucky, the extended warranty might break even; everybody else saves money by avoiding its purchase.

 

I paid nearly 2K for one. I think it was mistake (unless, of course, I blow up a transaxle).

 

Couple reasons steered me towards buying the extended warranty from the dealership:
If you buy it from the dealership you will get ripped off. The one sold here is the same Toyota warranty for alot less.

1. given a hybrid is highly complex, not a lot of non-dealership mechanics are qualified to diagnose and fix things, I am likely to stay with the dealership shop for repair.
It is not complex. 90% of the car is just like any other. Any corner mechanic can diagnose most issues. It is also proven technology that does not have a history of failing.

2. some of the hybrid replacement parts are not cheap
The extended warranty does not cover many of the Hybride devices. Here is a list. http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...-extra-care-platinum-gold-31.html#post1555418 Included on that list is:
- Hybrid System Main Relays
- Hybrid Vehicle Battery
- Hybrid Vehicle Battery Module/Pack

3. given the high mpg of the car, I am likely to drive my Prius a lot more than the other car I own.
That is relative. There are many people that have over 125,000 miles on their 2010 with zero repairs. That is the most miles you can buy on an extended warranty.

4. I am likely to keep this car for a long time
I keep my last Toyota 10 years and 305,000 miles. Nothing broke that would be covered by an extended warranty until I was at 170,000 miles. Total cost of repairs over the life of the car was sub $1,000 including new brakes.

5. most importantly, my trusted mechanic also recommended buying extended warranty from the dealership for any hybrid for #1 & 2.
That is because he works for the dealer!!! Agian 90% of the Prius is just like any other car. Same rims, struts, gas engine, spark plugs, electrical interior wiring. The list goes on and on.

My opion is an extended warranty on a Toyota is a waste of money. I now have 83,000 miles on my 2010 with zero repairs.

 

Actually I say in that threat that I was told it would be covered, which turned out not to be the case.

 

I've said it before and I'll repeat it. Components either fail early (due to factory defects) or they last a long time. The standard warranty is intended to catch those more common early failures. Eoin's brakes were probably never quite right from the beginning, needing to be bled twice before concluding a new actuator was needed. I have one such early failure already. A split seal in the LED headlight to the tune of $900, covered under standard warranty. It was obviously a factory defect and not indicative of what is normal (otherwise, we'd see many more LED headlights replaced out of warranty).

 

So it was covered under the extended warranty because you had one, but given you reported the problem before 36,000 miles it would've been covered under the standard warranty.

 

I would have gone ballistic if I had it in twice for brake issues and then it failed after the standard warranty and they would not cover it. It was a documented issue with the car and I would go to extremes to make them cover it.

 

Been there, done that. I had a 2004 Mustang and I reported some problem with the engine right before the warranty expired. It ultimately failed (due to a major leakage that they didn't detect). They replaced it with a whole new engine while technically out of warranty, all because I did document the problem before it expired.

 

I would definitely buy it if you think you will not be able to afford repairs outside the warranty.

It's not a gamble - you buy the warranty because you expect mechanical problems and you know you're covered for x amount of time and mileage. MEANING: more than likely besides normal wear and tear items you can drive worry free for x amount of time/mileage.

There are a couple of fanatics on this web site that will tell you it's a waste of money and that the Prius is proven, it's a Toyota and there are only so many "x" number of documented repairs. I think for the most part this is true.

However...

The Gen 3 Prius has more new patents filed on this one car than both previous generations combined. It IS a very electronic car and its (Gen 3) reliability is not yet proven long term.

On the flip side, if you're in a financial situation where you can afford $$$ repairs and would rather pay later IF you have a repair situation then by no means spend your money on the warranty. Toyotas are generally well made vehicles and the odds are against extended warranty use.

I chose to purchase the warranty as I am back in school and do not want to worry about a costly repair for a pre determined amount of time/miles. I also drive my car in harsh and demanding conditions - it's worked harder than most on this site.

 

False. See http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...ut-extended-warranty-waste-2.html#post1558923 The Gen III is hardly more electronic/complicated than the Gen II and we know about the long term reliability of the Gen II.

If you're concerned about specific problems with the new design, you have 3 years/36,000 miles to purchase the extended warranty.

 

I'm sorry, what part of that statement is "faulty"?

I said - more patents filed for this gen than the previous 2 combined. This generation car IS neither the first or second.

Again, show me false.

Just out of curiosity, how many miles do you drive a week/year?

36k miles is just shy of a year for me. I drive min 600 miles per week for work and school not including road trips or leisure activities. I also drive from 4k elevation to 9k elevation pretty much every day also while driving in high temps or snow. Maybe you can see why in my situation I like the warranty.

 

You have your fact correct. It's your implication that the Gen III is significantly more electronic than the Gen II that is false. The predicted reliability for the Gen III is based on the Gen II and we know about the long term reliability of the latter.

 

My fact is simply the implication that if there are more patents filed on this car than both previous generations combined; there is significant changes in design that imply this car is more technical than the previous designs. Basically enough changes, be it subtle or not, they are still new.

This is one of the factors I considered in purchasing the extended warranty. Also, I choose to purchase now as pricing changes and I'll be hitting my warranty mark soon enough that I'd just rather purchase now at x dollars than a possible jump in cost.

For most, if you're the casual driver and not racking up the miles, money wise it may be prudent to wait until you're closer to your warranty coverage expiring before purchasing an extended warranty.

 

There are many people that drive a lot more then you. There are people that have over 125,000 miles on their 2010 GEN IIIwith zero repairs. I have 83,000 miles on my 2010 with zero repairs. My last Toyota has 180,000 before anything broke that would be covered by and extended warranty.

Does this mean anything to you?

 

Seriously, I know how many miles you've had on your 2 Toyota vehicles - you've posted this a million times! Really, a million times!!

I also know that you drive in Ohio - do you have mountains in Ohio that you drive over each day? I'm assuming you don't, so my measly mileage tromps yours in terms of wear and tear to our cars respectively.

So no, anything you say to me means nothing. In fact, I really dislike your posts.

 

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

 

You are assuming I only drive in Ohio. I travel to Florida a lot. There are plenty of mountains in Virginia and West Virginia.

I think you hate my post because you are starting to realize you wasted money. I hope to change the view of others before they waste their money. I also think you hate facts. The fact that the Gen III has been tested not to fail up to 125,000 miles does not change your views.