Extended warranty on used 05 WRX worth it?

[bv.usenet]

Hi,

I'm buying a used MY05 WRX wagon with 7k miles from a local Subaru
dealer. The car was a trade in and had a problem with the transmission
slipping out of reverse. A brand new transmission was put in (under
warranty) after it was taken in. It's actually a little more than 1
year old so has about 2 years left on the bumper-to-bumper and about 4
years on the powertrain warranties. The dealer offers an extended 5/60
b-to-b warranty for $1800 (car is $20k before tax). This would be 5
years total, not 5 years in addition to the remaining 1.5.

Do folks think getting this extended warranty is a good idea?

Thanks for any help,
-Brett.

 

[Edward Hayes]

As my rule I do not purchase extended warranties. However; it depends
on how long or how many miles you drive per year. If you use up the
miles in a year then the warranty is good for one year. In addition;
the cost is usually the big decider for me versa the quality of the
vehicle. In your case the vehicle could be compromised by the original
owner i.e. kid racer or no maintance. I think you can do much better
than 1800 dollars as some have said on this NG. Maybe someone with
buying experience will chime-in here.

 

[j]

I too would be inclined to pass on the (Dealer's at least) extended
warranty. If you want, you can send me $1800, and I'll stand behind
your tranny* for 5/60. You've got factory drivetrain coverage for
another 53k, right? I would think that if anything were to happen, as
a result of the neglect or abuse, it would probably happen within that
period. Extended warranties, offered by the dealer, are typically
over-priced fluff and should be avoided. Buy the car from the dealer,
do the rest on your own. The only reason to buy these,or any, add-ons
at the dealer is to: preserve your warranty, or to bundle into
financing.

Honestly, if you're that worried about it, you're probably better off
passing on this car. Keep looking.

 

[Brett Viren]

I too would be inclined to pass on the (Dealer's at least) extended
warranty. If you want, you can send me $1800, and I'll stand behind your
tranny* for 5/60. You've got factory drivetrain coverage for another 53k,
right?

Yes, correct.

I would think that if anything were to happen, as a result of the
neglect or abuse, it would probably happen within that period. Extended
warranties, offered by the dealer, are typically over-priced fluff and
should be avoided.

This is sort of what I suspected, thanks for the input.

Honestly, if you're that worried about it, you're probably better off
passing on this car. Keep looking.

No, way, I've already bought it! I wasn't worried, just wanted to go
in as informed as possible. Now that I've driven it for a day and after
driving my previous car (Toyota Echo) this car makes me smile like the guy
in the "male firmness pill" commercial.

Weee,
-Brett.

 

[dg]

Well, when I bought an almost new car a few years back I opted for the
extended warranty seeing as it only added a small amount of money to my
monthly payment. However, after I settled into the car and really read the
warranty it didn't really cover anything that is likely to fail. All of the
things listed were things like pistons, that practically never fail. The
things specifically excluded were all the things most likely to go wrong. I
actually had a barometric pressure sensor fail a couple years in, it WAS
covered but it was only a $400 job/part so I am still not getting anything
out of the warranty.

You should read the warranty details and decide for yourself.

--Dan