Question on warranty...

[jcz]

I bought an extended warranty (stupid or not -- at this point I have
it) on my 2002 OBW. At this point I have close to 60,000 miles on the
car. I have done all the required maintenance up until now --
expensive stuff at times....$500 here, $600 there as required by the
dealership.

It is now at the 60,000 mile mark for maintenance, and this one is
close to $700. Good freaking God I don't have that money right
now......and I am so tempted to just forego the danged thing. I'm
torn. If I do that, I think the extended warranty becomes voided -- at
least that is what the dealership implies. Yet, for the amount I have
paid over the past few years to keep the warranty, I probably could've
paid to have repairs done as they come up. So at this point, I'm
seriously thinking of NOT doing the $700 maintenance. Right now, the
money is tight -- real tight.

I know asking this question on Usenet might not be real bright, but
how stupid would it be not to do the maintenance? It seems to me kind
of a rip-off anyway -- paying all that money to keep a warranty
intact.

 

[bigjim]

What do you get for $700. My dealer charges ~$450 for the 30k and 60k
service. I know its high but the spark plugs are a pain to do and they
replace the coolant and tranny and axel fluid. They replace the fuel
filter. I have a K&n air filter but that is something you can do
yourself as is the oil changes. Add up what they do vs. cost elsewhere
and decide. The $400 is a pain but its worth the convenience.

 

[jcz]

As I recall....he showed me, but I didn't keep the list...a bunch of
fluid changes, belt checks. It didn't seem like much for $700....but
the point is, I can't afford it RIGHT NOW. I could save some money for
it, but it won't happen at 60,000. And I refuse to go into debt, so I
guess this is a decision I will just make based on reason and my
current situation.

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

As I recall....he showed me, but I didn't keep the list...a bunch of
fluid changes, belt checks. It didn't seem like much for $700....but
the point is, I can't afford it RIGHT NOW. I could save some money for
it, but it won't happen at 60,000. And I refuse to go into debt, so I
guess this is a decision I will just make based on reason and my
current situation.

Doing plus or minus 10% shouldn't be an issue for a warranty claim later
on. They might grumble if you needed a new tranny and it looked like you
didn't get it seviced until 65,000 , but they would really need to PROVE
that the service 'tardiness' caused the problem. Don't wait much more
than that - but I doubt many people make all those service points precisely.
Have you considered doing just 2-3 of the major services yourself or at
an independent shop? It would be cheaper.
If it's an automatic transmission - I would defineitely have that done
without much delay - the other stuff, could more easily slide.just my
thoughts

Carl

 

[mulder]

I bought an extended warranty (stupid or not -- at this point I have
it) on my 2002 OBW. At this point I have close to 60,000 miles on the
car. I have done all the required maintenance up until now --
expensive stuff at times....$500 here, $600 there as required by the
dealership.

It is now at the 60,000 mile mark for maintenance, and this one is
close to $700. Good freaking God I don't have that money right
now......and I am so tempted to just forego the danged thing. I'm
torn. If I do that, I think the extended warranty becomes voided -- at
least that is what the dealership implies. Yet, for the amount I have
paid over the past few years to keep the warranty, I probably could've
paid to have repairs done as they come up. So at this point, I'm
seriously thinking of NOT doing the $700 maintenance. Right now, the
money is tight -- real tight.

I know asking this question on Usenet might not be real bright, but
how stupid would it be not to do the maintenance? It seems to me kind
of a rip-off anyway -- paying all that money to keep a warranty
intact.

Your warranty cannot be voided in its entirety in any case, that is
the law. If a failure occurs the dealer has to prove that it was
caused by your negligence in not maintaining the vehicle, or by
aftermarket modifications etc. They can't just send you out the door.
As long as you perform the maintenance specified by the Subaru
schedules in your manual at the proper mileage/time intervals, using
the recommended materials and keeping full documentation, it should
not affect any warranty claims you may make. The work can be done at a
dealer, at an independent shop, or on your own, it doesn't matter.
The dealers frequently inflate the list of "scheduled" services with
their own added menu of extras that inflate the cost (and their
profit) but aren't needed or specified by the manufacturer. If you go
to them with the official schedule in hand and insist that they only
perform the items on that list, the cost will be less. If they refuse
then go elsewhere.

 

[jcz]

Thanks Carl. I was thinking of doing the necessities somewhere else.

June

 

[jcz]

Thanks. I appreciate the information.

Your warranty cannot be voided in its entirety in any case, that is
the law. If a failure occurs the dealer has to prove that it was
caused by your negligence in not maintaining the vehicle, or by
aftermarket modifications etc. They can't just send you out the
door.
As long as you perform the maintenance specified by the Subaru
schedules in your manual at the proper mileage/time intervals, using
the recommended materials and keeping full documentation, it should
not affect any warranty claims you may make. The work can be done at
a
dealer, at an independent shop, or on your own, it doesn't matter.
The dealers frequently inflate the list of "scheduled" services with
their own added menu of extras that inflate the cost (and their
profit) but aren't needed or specified by the manufacturer. If you
go
to them with the official schedule in hand and insist that they only
perform the items on that list, the cost will be less. If they
refuse
then go elsewhere.

 

[ibuildthings]

I would read the fine print in the warranty. Your dealer could be lying to
you about him having to do the work. I had an extended warranty on another
car, and it only said that the work had to be done by a competent pro, not
the dealer. The competent pro around here for that car charges a lot less,
and guesses right more often on repairs.