Do I Buy an Extended Warranty ?

No need to rush the decision. I waited until I had about 30,000 miles on my 2004 before I bought Toyota Platinum Extended Warranty through the Priuschat associated dealer selling them (i.e. not my local dealer).

Last month, during my 75,000 service, my dealer discovered that the water pump had gone bad. Without prompting from me, he checked to see if I had the extended warranty. He saw that I did and went ahead with the replacement, charging it to Toyota. While Toyota is still ahead on my warranty, the difference is substantially closer.

 

The "Warranty Shack" warranty is from a Toyota dealer (Toyota of Greenfield, MA). So, you'll get the paperwork from them, followed by the "official" Toyota warranty certificate from Toyota USA. This is the exact process that would happen if you bought it from your local dealer. Then, if your car needs warranty work, your local Toyota dealer can just look your car up in the computer system and see that it's covered under the extended warranty.

 

Thanks Betelgeuse. I will look into warranty shack more but I'm going to give my dealer an opportunity to try to match the price.

 

I drove home my '10 III today. I was all ready for the usual sales shpeel for warranty, lojack, and service agreements. The guy they hand you off to is very clever with the, "...oh, really, you don't want to get the extended warranty?" Like it's an automatic no-brainer that everybody else takes. And I'm a dope to miss out.

Anyhow, it was low key and no pressure. But a smooth tactic. He priced it at $1,800 and, if financed, would "only add $35/mo to my payment."

So beware and be strong, fellow Prius buyers!

 

i bought my 07 Prius in January of this year with 28,000 miles on it. When it got up into the 34,000's I called Troy at Greenfield Toyota. He explained it to me, the price and the procedure, simple, so i paid with debit card and sent him the document he needed in the mail. In a couple of days i talked to him on the phone, after he got what i mailed him (proof of ownership) and he explained that i'd receive a receipt from Greenfield and some paperwork from Toyota, the application form, and then later, in a couple of weeks I'd get the actual policy from Toyota. I got the policy today, at 35,550 miles, just under the 36,000 wire. I feel good about it. I appreciated reading pros and cons on PriusChat. I decided that for me, part of what i'm paying for is peace of mind, $150 a year to have the mindset that my car is covered, along with rental car expenses, very important. I feel happy to have the warranty.

 

The warranty is in a Toyota database that dealers can see when you bring the car in, i think.

When i bought mine, i didn't go through Warranty Shack. I just called Troy at Greefield Toyota.

 

I have an early production 04 and I NEVER buy extended warranties. Since I paid cost for the warranty (close to a grand), I felt it was a worthwhile investment. I haven't had to use it yet and it expires Nov 2010. I only have 65,000 miles and I am conflicted. Do I really want to have a $1,000 plus repair? Hmmmmm.. Would really suck if something happened on Nov 4th 2010!!!!

 

I purchased my 2009 Prius in March and have the extended Platinum Warranty included in my financing. When I purchased the car it had just over 100 miles on the odometer and I thought it was a good option for me as new things cost more to repair than old things...generally speaking. I also had the same plan on the car I traded in (a 2005 4runner). When I traded in the 4runner I received back the portion of the warranty I didn't use (about 23% of the cost I paid for the warranty based on mileage at trade in vs. total miles covered for under the warranty). I just rolled the refund into the down payment on my new Prius.

I was not a part of priuschat before I bought my Prius...found this site shortly after when researching things about my new car. One question I did not see answered on this thread is what if you decide you no longer want the warranty...can you cancel it and receive back the money for the miles not used for a refund (or back out the unused miles/cost from your monthly payment? If this is possible, can you then turn around and purchase the less expensive extended Platinum warranty mentioned in this thread (essentially saving approx. $800)...or is the bull already out of the barn on this one?

 

I think the rules for the Toyota extended warranties are:

1. Within 30 days of putting the car in service, you can cancel and get a full refund minus a small administrative fee.

2. After 30 days, you can cancel and get a pro-rated refund (I don't remember if the pro-ration is based on time and/or miles) minus a small administrative fee.

3. If you financed the car and extended warranty, I think that your monthly payments will remain the same and the refund will be effected by reducing your outstanding loan balance by the refund amount, with the net result being that you will pay off the loan a little quicker (your last payments will be eliminated or reduced as appropriate).

 

Just picked up my IIIBlueII two days ago. Dealer first offered Ext. Warranty @ $1940 and quickly lowered that to around $1800. Of course I declined knowing about the WarrantyShack.com offer. Would their plan be transferable to a new owner if one would sell the car? Seems like a good selling point for a private party sale.

 

It's transferrable between private parties, one time i believe. The original owner just signs on the warranty booklet, there's a place in the paperwork for the signature where they can sign it over to the new owner.

Big congratulations!

 

Why do you feel you need to keep your business a secret?

 

How likely is the extended warranty price to increase in cost in the next three years? If, in the past, it has been rising significantly, say 10% or more per year, I personally would buy before the next price increase.

 

This is misleading. I think someone should edit this information to clarify it. As said in the preceding item, you can buy the Toyota Extended Platinum Warranty as long the car is still under the manufacturer's warranty, within 3 years or 36,000 miles--your car qualifies whether you bought it new or used, if it's within those limits. The only exceptions to the 3 year/36K limit would be if something happened to your car to void the warranty, such as certain damage from accidents or certain modifications. But this would void the warranty whether you bought the car used or were the original owner. If you buy used while still under warranty, you can first have the car checked thoroughly by a Toyota dealer for condition. They will document that the car is in original condition for about $90.

 

BS. Extended warranties are insurance only. Do you feel the same about auto insurance, health insurance etc...perhaps you think we all need to put $30k away should lets say a gall bladder needs to be removed.

 

I believe I covered that in post #19. Yes, extended warranties are insurance. They are very expensive insurance with very limited coverage.

Medical insurance is very different from an extended warranty. We all have to live so medical insurance is absolutely necessary. We don't all have to drive expensive new cars.

 

I have to disagree with this general statement. I think you're confusing medical treatment with insurance. Haved you faced a $4K/month premium? That's what we're being quoted. Don't want to go into details in public. But we've done an exhaustive search for alternatives in the past 4 months. And the results have been extremely frustrating. Sometimes being self-insured is the most reasonable alternative for one's personal circumstance.