Is Prius extended warranty ever worth it?

What is spent on service is irrelevant as you bought a warranty. Can a part fail after the manufacturer warranty expires so that the extended warranty pays? Sure but the probability is low. If Toyota believed the car (in general) would need anything close to $2000 worth of repairs spanning the time between the original warranty and year 7 up to 100000 miles they wouldn't sell the plan.

Look through the list of exclusions. How much of the car are they actually covering?

Get a refund while you can and invest it. You'll be way better off when it is time to put some money in the car.

 

nah. congrats and welcome! all the best with your new wheels.

 

Asked and answered.

The overwhelming reason -- the real reason, not some flimsy rationalization -- for people to buy an extended warranty is because their finances are over extended, their credit is trashed, and any "unexpected" expense that exceeds their cumulative monthly payments puts the car at risk of being repossessed. Further insult to injury, they typically lack the discipline to put into a savings account the money they would otherwise spend on the warranty.

The prudent answer for these people is to not spend even more money they do not have on an extended warranty, but to spend less on transport. <<shrug>>

Ask yourself this question, OP: can you weather the very unlikely but non-zero possibility of a $2000 repair ?

• Yes ? then save the money
• No ? then buy the warranty, and be smarter with next car purchase

 

As I'm in my second prius, and the first needed front wheel bearings at 40,000 and a steering wrack at 50,000 neither of which was covered by toyota, nor are brake pads, tires, anything that moves (drive train is covered) and now my third just got front wheel bearings at 40,000... no an extended is just money that would power you along the road, instead of sending your dealer to Tijuana for some "fishing"
Struts, brakes, tires, bearings.. things that wear are your dime.

 

That is part of the analysis. The other part is to consider how much of possible expensive repairs are not covered by one of the other warranties bundled with every new car.

Then realize that just about any expensive repair can be dealt with much cheaper by buying a lightly used part.

The arithmetic is a no-brainer: the extended warranty is a fool's errand.

 

Tell that to the guy who cancelled his $1,300 extended warranty on the advice of others and then had to replace an engine at 42,000 miles to the tune of $5,400. That guy happened to be me, but I still don't "advocate" buying an EW. I just think it's a personal decision based on any number of factors.

That said, I did buy one for our Prius, but for far less than $2,000 and for reasons I've already shared here. I don't expect to ever have to use it, but it had value to me and that's all that matters. If that makes me a fool in someone's eyes here, so be it, I'm not about to lose any sleep over it. I'm quite sure everyone here has done something that someone else thinks is foolish.

 

I imagine you have told that story before but I cannot remember the details. Would a standard drivetrain warranty from Toyota have covered that repair; or was it in the realm of warranty exclusions ? In any case, lets count the number of engine failures in Prius that have been reported to this forum over the past 10 years not due to owner error.

I know most people do not like arithmetic but consider:
$2000 repairs not covered by a standard Toyota warranty before 100k miles are I bet (way) below 1%. That would set the extended warranty cost break-even cost at no more than $20. If someone will sell OP an extended warranty for $20 I say why not.

$100 ? Bad choice
$2000 ?? You have to be kidding

 

I got the extended warranty thru Toyota when I bought my 2010 Prius. Naturally if you have not had any problems you don't think its worth the cost. I just had to have the left front drive axle and bearing replaced because the clamp came of the boot ,leaked all the oil out and bearing failed. cost about $1800. Covered by extended warranty. My warranty is bumper to bumper coverage except for tires, breaks, lights. I got it because I was afraid I might have to replace some of the expensive electronics down the road. Peace of mind is a great thing when you travel a lot.

 

Blanket statements like "The arithmetic is a no-brainer: the extended warranty is a fool's errand." are both judgmental and condescending. The same can be said about the arithmetic in buying a Prius. To keep it fair let's compare two Toyotas comparably equipped with comparable reliability. A 2015 Corolla LE base with CVT and same basic ICE @33 mpg and $20,000 OTD to a 2015 Prius Two @50 mpg and $25,000 OTD. The average owner/buyer in the US now keeps their cars 10 years and drives 13,500 miles a year...both cars having the same basic "minimum suggested" maintenance schedule. At $3 a gallon the arithmetic shows you paid $1,000 more buying a Prius at the end of this period. Would you then call buying a Prius an fool's errand? Prius doesn't even make the top ten cheapest cars to own list (TCO), although Corolla did.

Everyone has different reasons and logic they use to buy or not buy extended warranties...and vehicles. That does not make one opinion or the other any smarter or wiser. Do what you feel comfortable with...for what ever reason.

 

You are neglecting the higher resale value. If both cars e.g. depreciate 70% over 10 years then the Corolla residual value will be $1500 less than the Prius. You are also neglecting the time-value of the money saved in fuel. You are also ignoring the value of having a car that has a built-in hedge against future jumps in fuel prices. And of course you have ignored the huge social benefits that accrue from polluting less and sending less money out of the country and to OPEC. So to answer your question -- no, the Prius is not more expensive than a Corolla.

Zombie errand does not refer to paying +/- 5%, it refers to paying 20x what the thing is worth to a rational actor.

 

...and for those that actually used it?...those that needed it and didn't have it? Worth and value is relative and personal.

 

And if you knew any of that ahead of time you would have a point. Well... almost a point, since your argument assumes the inability to save the warranty money for a future repair.

 

My statements assume nothing of anyone.

 

Fine, let's go from there. You see "value" in 99 people who do not have money, taking on another $2000 of debt they get no return on, because one person saves $2000 ?

I'm done here. Zombies will be zombies.

 

...and if that's your interpretation of my words, so be it.

 

On the subject of TCO, vincentrics has an updated study out for Canada:

2015 Best Value in Canada Winner's List


The Prius reigns supreme across any even somewhat similar car class. It even beats out the Korean sardine cans.

 

Nice to hear...considering I just bought another one.