When would you purchase and Extended Warrantee?
 

I just ordered my 08 X5, scheduled for week 41 and hoping it gets pulled into next week!

Next I need to decide on the Extended Warrentee. I have had my last two cars (Honda then Toyota) for 9 years, so will likely keep this one for a while too, Maybe 80K or so. Those cars were very solid and Maintanance was mimimul. I am a bit nervious that this car may need a bit more 'care'

So the questions:
Should I buy Extended Warrantee now or wait until the Factory Warrantee is almost up?
How about and Extended Maintanance for regular service?
Should I get it from the dealer or from an outside company?
Any other things to consider?

Thanks.

:wavey::xoutpost::wavey:

You can purchase the extended warranty at any time during your factory warranty period. Buy now to save money, IT WILL COME IN HANDY.

The Maintenance warranty is absolutely worth it ($1200-$1700 depending on dealer)

If you get the BMW warranty, you'll have less headaches dealing with aftermarket warranties. Use those only if you have no other option, for one reason or another.

This care will need more care
1, because it's a BMW,
and 2, because you'll love it :)

EDIT: http://www.bmwmotorsports.org/pdf/B0...ranty+Plan.pdf

http://www.bmwmotorsports.org/pdf/B0...n+Upgrades.pdf

This is an interesting question, and something I have though about since deciding to buy a '08 before the year ends.

I currently have a low mileage E46 M3 that I did not buy the extended warranty on due to the low mileage on the car, and the way I was using it – basically a weekend toy.

When I test drove the X5 about a month ago, I have to be honest, the level of technology in this car scared the sh!t out of me from the standpoint of long term ownership. The amount of electronics in these cars keeps increasing exponentially, and frankly, and I imagine owing something like this out of warranty or long-term, could get pricy rather quickly.

So, I have not personally decided what to do – basically because this will be another toy, a low mileage weekend / trip car. But if this were a daily driver for me or my wife, something we planned to drive with the frequency you are talking about, I would personally buy the extended warranty, it would only take a few sensor failures for it to pay for itself.

Good Luck
KEF

I'd wait...you have 4 years to spend on your oem warr., and
things and your needs can change over that time. The BMW
ext warr. is only 2 years longer, (effectively, if you do more than
keep it parked), and while pricing maybe less expensive "today"
than in 4 yrs, 11 months, I'd take the risk and wait.

As for non-BMW warranties, several of us here have it through
Warranty Direct, and those of us that have used it have had
good experiences. The Stlr will dissuade you; that's his job.

Ext Maintenance, covering things like brakes & fluids can also
be held off for same reasons as Warranty decision, imo.

Putting your dough into any ext warr./ext maint. at this point
is really betting against the house, imo.

Do a search, using the Search Tab at top of site, plug in
Extended Warranty and you have pages of threads/opins
on this topic.
GL,mD

You mean 4 years don't you?

Yes, meant 4 years; typo and was thinking the 50k mile
angle. Thanks.

I rolled the dice on my 540I M/sport that I had and spend the cash for the extended warranty. I did very well because the issues that I had were pretty expensive.... Radiator, Cluster go out, lock actuators fail, Bushings wear out..... all covered... Remeber the more technology the cars get the more prone to failure they have..... plus they are very expensive to fix

I just checked the prices with my dealer:
$1995 for 2 year Maintenance
$3875 for the warranty with a $50 copay each occurrence.
Is this the going rate?

$3875 seems a little high. I bought my current X5 new in '01 and bought a 10yr/150K bumper-to-bumper $0 deduct warranty a year later for $2,300. Unless warranty prices have doubled since then I say keep shopping. I went through autoadvantage.com.

Get the extended maintenance and warranty around 40-45K miles. Don't buy them now unless you want to wrap them into the loan. They aren't all that expensive and the money is better off in your wallet then the dealers.

You never know, your car could be a lemon and then you have to go through the hassle of getting your money refunded.

I think you also may find a better deal shopping at some on line BMW dealers listed here and on other owner sites. I bought my X5 in April and am waiting 3 years. I too tend to hang on to cars but figure any price raise, if any, I can offset plus buy finding a better price away from the dealer I bought the car from. If not at least I know it is a fair price.

Have a look at Twin Kidney Grill - BMW dealer in ATL.

http://www.twinkidneygrill.com/Home.html


They seem to consistently have the best prices for OEM extended maintenance warranty

Will all BMW dealers honor BMW's Extended warranty and maintenance packages purchased from another dealer? I'm sure I could ask my dealer this, but I have a feeling they will just pursuade me to purchase it NOW from THEM.

I'm picking up my '08 X5, this Saturday, and have been debating whether to purchase the extended warranty and maintenance now or later. If I am able to shop around for the best price and all BMW dealers will honor the extended plans, then I would definitely want to opt and wait 2-3 years before deciding to purchase the extra protection.

I am, however, planning to purchase the Wheel/Tire insurance, which I think is a smart purchase at only $600. I purchased the wheel/tire insurance on my current Audi and, after having the tires/wheels serviced twice, it has paid for itself.

Any and all knowledgable feedback would be greatly appreciated.

I haven't read the small print in the tire/wheel insurance so don't know what kind of exclusions/small print is there but I agree that with the replacement cost of runflats it makes more sense now than before. Don't pay sticker for it - everything is negotiable.

Yes, all dealers will honor OEM extended warranty/maintenance plan.

You are crazy paying out for extended maintenance/warrnty plans now IMHO. You have 4 yrs/50 with your new '08 - why give BMW more money now. You can add it anytime before OEM warranty expires. Who knows, after 4 years/50 you may want something different anyway.

Thanks for the heads up on the extended plans. If that's the case, then I certainly agree, the extended plan may be a better option later down the road.

The only thing is, I am not able to determine how much cheaper the extended warranty and service is at time of car purchase vs. at a later time. I've asked the finance manager for cost difference, but he gave me the run around stating it's substantially cheaper now... blah blah. Just to give you an idea, I was quoted $3700 for the extended warranty and $1800 for the service.

As for the tire\wheel combo, I negotiated the price down from 699 to 599. I know there's more room to wiggle, so I'll have to haggle a little more on Saturday.

Thanks again!!!

Don't forget to take into account your lost ROI on that money over 4 yrs

:iagree: Keep your money now and decide on extended warranty before the original warranty runs out. The price difference is not that great anyway. A $3K investment into a conservative 5% savings account can earn you roughly $600 in 4 years. You can decide before the warranty expires if you want to keep the car or not, then you're not screwed with cost of the warranty. A lot can happen in 4 years that could make you change your mind in keeping or getting a new X5. For me, lease for 36 months and get a new X5 in 2010. New warranty, new car smell.

There are too many factors in deciding on whether to get an extended warranty. For those who keep cars 5 or 6 years it's probably not worth it. If you plan on keeping it over 100K miles then look into it. And most extended warranties (I have one for 150K) are pro-rated and transferrable to the new owner so you don't "lose money" on it. If you have to worry about saving $600 by putting the money in a savings account now and getting the warranty later then you shouldn't be driving a BMW.

Still doesn't give a good reason to pony up the extended warranty money now when you have full coverage on a new car ;)

No one is disputing the value of an extended warranty if you are keeping the car.

Thank you to everyone for their valuable comments.

I agree with the general consensus, that I don't know where I'll be w/regards to keeping the car in 4-5 years, which reassures me with my original inkling to opt on the Extended plans at a later date.

BTW: I'm picking up an '08 space gray 3.0si, this Saturday 10/20, which I'll be sure to post pics of asap (espcially shots of the new chrome tailpipes that I believe everyone has been anticipating.)

Thanks again fellas!!!

Congrats and enjoy :thumbup:

Just because people drive BMW's doesn't mean they're stupid about money management, weather it's 1 dollar or 1 million dollars, they all add up. Just a thought.

No I agree it's just sometimes people get fixated on the small things (such as gas mileage, insurance amount) when that's a small fraction of paying $60K-$70K (if you are buying) for the vehicle.

I just picked up my X5 2 weeks ago and my tire/rim insurance was only 499.00 for the insurance. I agree on getting this option. The GREAT thing about this insurance is tied to the vehicle and not the tire/wheel it self. So if you have two different setups like myself (20's for summer, 19's for winter) any set on the car at the time of the incident will be covered. Considering my rubber is in the $300 range it is way worth it

One more thing..... If you ever get a flat w/ a runflat you will have to search very very hard for a tire place that will actually repair it I called about a dozen looking to get a runflat which had a little nail in the middle of the tread rixed and nobody would touch it..... only would replace it.

I wasn't planning on purchasing this tire/rim insurance but now I think I will. I will also have two setups. My dealer did not mention it to me...
Question for you about the flat with a runflat. Won't the BMW dealer repair/replace it (if you've purchased both sets of tires/rims from BMW)?

I am sorry If I confused and realized that I was not clear. I was making the point about the runflat repair to support the insurance. My dads 650 sport had a nail in it and I called all around for him. This flat set him back 399 bucks.

The insurance does not care who you purchased the rims or tires from. If they are on the car they are covered. Hell if you had a friend with an X5 and he got a nail in his tire you could swap the wheel on onto your car w/ coverate, get the new tire, and then swap back after you got the tire replaced for free.... :2thumbs:

I'm still kicking the dealer tire warranty, the thing is, the Michelin's come with a three year Road Hazard Warranty that should cover any repairs or replacements.

After three years I'm guessing I'll probably need new tires and I wouldn't replace them with run flats.

I have never been a fan of run flats but I do understand that you don't get a spare with the third row seating option but if you don't opt for the third row you would think BMW would give you the tire choice?