Is a warranty worth it?

henrik1971

Hi there


I've put just a deposit on a 2014 Mazda 6 (2.2d auto) costing £8k with 110k miles on the clock and will be collecting in a few days. They say I get a three month warranty but I'm not completely clear what that covers. However, they have offered me a WarrantyWise 12 month silver warranty + aircon and airbag cover for £350.


I can't fault the dealer in terms of his reputation and the sorts of cars he sells and this car is in excellent condition, good on test drive, one owner, full mazda service record upto 102k miles.



Should I pay extra for the warranty - is it really worth it? My instinct says no as I have a local good value mechanic that I use. The only thing is if something big lets go - but I suppose that can happen with almost any car at any time.



I don't buy cars very often - had my current one for eight years, so am slightly out of my comfort zone here and interested to hear informed opinions.


Thanks

Mr.Generous

Its worth it if you value peace of mind more than the premium. Its worth it if you have an expensive successful claim. If nothing goes wrong (that's claimable) and you resent the premium then its not worth it.



Modern cars are complex and can cost a load to fix. Its something I've considered taking myself, but never gone ahead. I take a view on insurance now that if I don't have to have it by law, and the costs of sorting something wouldn't be a massive burden then I take the chance.



Insurance companies take more money in than they pay out, they pay loads of staff, premises, taxes, advertising, all the usual costs, plus they pay claims. They insure a risk by charging more in premiums than they expect to ever pay out AFTER all other costs. I think even if something went bang on my car and cost me £3k tomorrow I've saved more than that over the years anyway.

henrik1971

Thanks for that.

I understand what you're saying. The insurers have run the numbers and think the likelhood of claim payout is relatively low, or that any claim that does come, would be low value.



I'm currently driving an old car with very high miles and am not worried about breakdowns because I have always looked after it. With the new car, it is the unknown .... my simplistic thinking is that people tend to sell cars on when they think repair bills are imminent - but equally some people just fancy a change. The guy at the dealers said a lot of people change cars every year or two. That's lost on me completely. I buy something after a lot thought and care. I don't have the time, headspace, energy or high enough stress threshold to go through a car buying process every year.



However, I think this car is relatively good value for what it is (the highest trim level with lots of extras) and so perhaps the money I'm saving compared with buying from someone like Arnold Clark, is a hypothetical fund I can put aside for repairs if needed.

forgotmyname

Manufacturer's warranty I would say yes.

Other = I would say No.

loskie

what does the warranty give you that your consumer rights don't? The 3m warranty IMHO is a bit of a smokescreen.

daveyjp

Will the warranty cover you if the sump fills with diesel during DPF regenerations and blows the engine up?

Google Mazda 6 diesel problems for more info.

Warranty won't cover DPF issues either and at 100,000+ the DPF may be close to needing work, so have a budget set aside.

Arklight

I got a 6 month RAC once with my car. It pays for up to £1000 per repair, more than that and I'd be trying to exercise my statutory rights against the dealer.

I think it's definitely worth haggling for one to be included when you get a used car. I don't know if I would actually pay for one myself considering the above.

When I've looked at things like warranty direct before, there are so many escape clauses for the warranty provider, and so many opportunities for them to claim that your car wasn't maintained properly that it didn't seem worth it.

If you think the warranty scheme is what, £500 a year or so and won't pay out for anything that is considered wear and tear. Probably better to just put that in a piggy bank each year.

Stoke

I've recently bought a car (3 weeks ago) that came with a 12 month warranty provided by RAC.

First issue, and they've immediately rejected as wear and tear, despite the fact the car is only 3 weeks old and the issue involves a non-serviceable item.

Brilliant

Arklight

What was it?

Stoke

Arklight wrote: »

What was it?

It's a 3-series and the 'VANOS' system was blocked. I don't exactly know what the VANOS system does, but it's some kind of variable valve timing system that BMW use.

Now, having seen what he did, I could have easily done the work myself, but it's about that initial knowledge and also not voiding the warranty. As it is, they refused to pay saying it was 'wear and tear'. I will phone them today and ask why they refused, as the car is only 3 weeks old.

Arklight

Stoke wrote: »

It's a 3-series and the 'VANOS' system was blocked. I don't exactly know what the VANOS system does, but it's some kind of variable valve timing system that BMW use.

Now, having seen what he did, I could have easily done the work myself, but it's about that initial knowledge and also not voiding the warranty. As it is, they refused to pay saying it was 'wear and tear'. I will phone them today and ask why they refused, as the car is only 3 weeks old.

It's wear and tear for the life of the vehicle. As far as I can see if the clutch goes when you're driving home from the dealership, that's wear and tear. It's just you get the tear, the previous owner got the wear, and the RAC aren't interested either way.