Did I pay too much for the extended warranty for my 2014 Prius Two

And that's all it boils down to. Some of us are willing to pay for the peace of mind while getting ridiculed for it and others are fine with taking the chance that nothing will go wrong. I just saw where someone paid $410 for the 60,000 mile checkup while someone else paid less than $100. Please note that different work was done in each case because there is an asterisk in the maintenance guide that talks about 'special conditions'. Most people don't pay much attention to that, especially the DIY crowd, so they only do the minimum maintenance. I'm sure some will say that's just another ruse by the manufacturer to make more money, and maybe it is, but that argument could then be applied to everything the manufacture recommends. I know people who never change their oil, the car uses/leaks so much that they just keep filling it. Dumb? It is to me, but it works for them.

 

Well done!

I am not sure about the following, but I am under the impression that a car loan is a simple interest type of loan, paid back using a system called 'invoice type.' This would mean that while your nominal monthly payments stays the same, you are actually paying ahead of schedule and would not be in default if in the future you made a payment less the amount you have paid ahead. In a few weeks you can call and ask when your next payment is due. If I am right, it will be some 5 months from now.

 

I gain much more peace of mind by having my money in my bank account rather than the dealer's pocket.

 

Good luck, the odds are on your side. I don't now if you plan on keeping track of any repairs that would have been covered. I intended too, but then I only had the one repair bill that would have been covered for any of the vehicles I've bought over the years. Not sure why I bought one this time, I guess all the tech stuff that can be expensive.

Don't know if this will help with the console covers. I know nothing about the company or site.
CrazyCoversUSAcom on Etsy

 

I was going to say that. If you financed the vehicle you won't likely get the cash back unless you wrote a separate check specifically for the extended warranty. But at least when you trade the vehicle you will have that much more equity!

 

See my earlier comment.

 

You're welcome. I'm thinking of picking one up myself for our trip, but might just throw a hand towel over it.

I guess that means an extended warranty might still be in your future. That sounds like a decent strategy.

 

I think you are allowed to delay until the bumper-to-bumper expires, so anytime before the earlier of 36k miles/36 months.

 

There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to warranties. It comes down how long are you planning to keep the car after the original warranty expires? The $1500 can go really fast when something goes wrong and it does happen. If you can afford it and planning to keep the car, I would say go for it.

 

never mind

 

Like many others, I think it's a waste of money, but I still paid for one. It's an individual decision and as long as you know what you're getting and why you're buying, do whatever feels right for you. Just don't let the dealer scare you into it with wild claims of repair costs, etc. Odds are seriously in their favor that you'll never use it. I didn't buy one for the 6 news cars I had before the Prius and it was a net $3,700 mistake only once, still ahead in the long run.

 

And who's going to own up to living beyond their means and who's going to define what that means? I'd be a "No" because while I'm not wealthy by any means, I have no debt and more than enough to cover any repairs (even a new car) and the stupid towing fees if I were to get stuck out in the middle of Montana. I simply don't want to have to deal with any headaches while traveling for the next 7 years. I could drop dead tomorrow and the EW would be a complete waste, but the cost is not taking food off the table, it's not impacting my life style (except some peace of mind) and it's not hurting anyone. I don't understand why so many care what others do with their money. I think it's stupid to take a brand new car and swap out the front-end or wheels or whatever just to be different or cool. But I respect that it's their money and they are free to do what they want. West Coast Customs just took a brand new 2014 Corvette Stingray and covered it like Line-X. Stupid and a waste of money? It sure is to me, but I also understand why they did it, so who am I to criticize?

 

The car that needed a repair was not a mistaken decision. Repairs *do* happen, and they car be more than the cost of the warranty.

It would be akin to saying that an unfairly weighted coin occasionally fell 'by mistake' on the wrong side.

 

Come on, enough with the semantics. I don't regret not buying the EW, the term "mistake" was just to show it ended up costing that much more that the EW would have cost at the time. The engine could have just as easily lasted through the EW period before it blew, it simply didn't. If all things were the same today, I wouldn't have bought the EW this time either, but I'm not going to explain my decision yet again. The only one who should care is my wife and she doesn't. If I die tomorrow, she'll be able to just call Toyota for the next 7 years, after that, she's on her own.

 

^^ I thought it was an interesting choice of words, since it hints at part of the motivation for buying the warranty: it is viewed as a good or bad choice based on that car's repairs during the warranty period rather than the long view.

 

Well, I suppose it was easy enough to read it that way. I didn't give a lot of thought to the choice of words though, just wanted to say the other decision would have turned out cheaper. I rarely regret any decision because I don't believe in Monday-morning quarterbacking. I make a decision based on the facts as I see them at the time. After only 2 weeks with the Prius, I could easily second-guess the decision to even buy it, but that kind of thinking can drive one crazy.

 

Turned out cheaper that time.

Perhaps more far-fetched, your wording leads me to wonder if warranty purchasers as a group are psychologically risk averse.

Disclaimer: I do not normally engage in psycho-babble. I'm really tired.

 

immediately after my free two year warantee expired i started getting calls to extend my warantee (thanks toyota). they would speak in a harsh tone as if i was doing something horribly wrong that needed to be corrected immediately. last week i was getting 2 to 3 calls every day. i would tell them things like dont call me anymore, i don't own the car anymore, the car's been sold, it was demolished, i accidentally drove it off a cliff, yet they persistently kept calling. finally i just blocked the numbers they were calling from.

 

Hey, no problem, just poking fun. Anyway, I'm normally not risk adverse and I've already mentioned I'm still ahead on EW costs. If I were only gone for a 2-week vacation each year, I wouldn't have bought this time either. But age, health, and travel plans all played a role in my decision this time. Mind you, I think it's wasted money, but so was lunch on Monday, from a financial pov. Spending time with an old friend though was priceless. And, yes, I know it's not quite the same.

Oh, and I could probably get into the cost of your bicycle(s), riding gear, etc., but those are individual decisions that we'd all make differently based on personal priorities, likes/dislikes, etc. And I have no delusions about the profit margin on EWs, they're very high. But then again, I have no delusions about the profit margins on the Prius in general, they make a bundle even when selling below dealer cost. Nor do I have any delusions about any paperwork they put in front of me or on the window. The car business is a PIA for all involved. How much simpler would it be if we all just paid the same price for the same car? Saturn tried and it's too bad that didn't get far. The goal should be to build a better cars, not to snooker the buyers.