shyu0001

I just bought a 2003 GX with 43K miles on it, consider the bumper to bumper extended warranty, when I read the report from consumer reports, their data showed that Lexus is average loss USD 600 per contract, it is the top one, they do not recommend to purchase that, what experience you can share from your cost vs. actual warranty paid ?

Nice to ahve your inputs.

Thanks,
Sherlock

g0tham

It was for me, I purchased the extended warranty about 2 months prior to the original expiring and Lexus has since replaced the door lock actuator twice and the sunroof system.

Wronglane

I would definitlley buy it. It does not take much to run up a $2000 bill if something goes wrong.

kalvano

It's worth it, IF you buy a Lexus one. That entitles you to all the same benefits as a new warranty (loaner cars, etc.).

Buying one from an aftermarket company is a waste of money.

kutsyy

Any insurance (financially, warranty is just an insurance) on average should make a money for an issuer, or there is no point for the issuer to sell an insurance.

Question is, if financial stability of the warranty would make you happy

Salvator

When we bought our GX, the dealer suggested purchasing a warranty... specifically he pointed out that the electronics are expensive... not so much worries from "hard parts" (engine, trans, etc.) ... he mentioned that the Nav system alone was $3k or so to replace... Are the electronics as big a concern as this dealer indicated?

hoonami

So Has anyone in this CL bought NON-LEXUS extended warranty? and how much was it? and what was the coverage? bumper to bumper or powertrain? I just got a quote from 2 companies that offered decent bumper to bumper warranty both were similar 48months/48000miles bumper to bumper with $100 co-pay per occurance with no limit on repair cost(unless it's more than KBB value) and they want $2500. Anyone have any experiences with any of these companies? problems? success? anything??

thanks,
Tae

CdeFabio

Stay away from any non-Lexus warranty - they are not worth the hassle. You always have to fight any claims with them and then they do not cover anything. Sometimes you have to pay the dealer the full price of the repair then submit it to the warranty company and hope they repay you. Stay away from them!

WSU LEXUS

recommend to get the lexus warranty not a non lexus warranty
the extendend warranty is just like the factory one

The G Man

hoonami, does your GX have more than 4 years or 48000 miles? If not, you can buy a lexus extenaded warranty 7 yrs / 100000 miles on the internet for about $2100.

hoonami

mine has 58000 miles on it... with my abs/vsc trac/vsc off light on i had lexus diagnose it and they said they need to replace Brake System ECU which cost $2000. and extended warranty is about $2300 for 48months/100000miles on the odometer and they are telling me that they are covering everything except maintance items with $100 deductible per visit. They are saying they never had any problems paying lexus dealers for any types of repair. but that's what they said.... i need to make a decision by tomorrow. i don't know what to do...

Wronglane

Why don't you call a few Lexus dealerships and ask them about the warranties offered? I understand that prices will vary,so you may want to shop around a bit.

BurgBoxstr

I'm gonna suggest you pass w/ this one. Do your homework before you plunk down a big clip of cash on an extended warranty. Most non-dealer (and even some dealer) extended warranties are huge commi$$ion generators. Very little actually goes into covering you when it comes down to it. Plus, the majority of them go belly up after a few years leaving where you were to begin with....just w/ less cash, of course

Even if they don't go belly up, they usually have lots of "out" clauses which leave you holding the bag on repairs anyhow. I've seen this countless times on the Porsche boards. Except in those cases, you're talking about $10-20K repairs including motor replacements. In some cases, they've had policy owners pay $2-3K to have a motor torn down and then denied the claim.

To paraphrase someone on another board I frequent...

"Extended warranties are like a casino, some who play will win, a very very few will win very big, most by far will lose and the casino will make a lot of money. Only the casino odds are so much better. There the house take is less than 10% as opposed to warranties where it approaches 70-80%.

And like a casino, you hear the stories of the people who won big and that persuades you to play. You mostly don't hear about all the people who lose.

Is the warranty cost worth the 70% to 80% premium to the risk?"

Since you took it to the Lexus dealer for diagnosis, I presume if there were other faults they would have told you, right? As such, I say spend the $2K to get it fixed and put the other $300 in a savings acct. Push like he!! to get reimbursed by selling dealer. Then just put away some extra $ in a GX maintenance budget/acct. MY '04 (CPO) has 65K on the clock and I've only had 2 warranty related items. Most recent was ride height actuator (failed) and previously it was the rear door clip. Other than that [knock on wood] it's been rock solid.

If you still insist on an extended warranty, I've heard decent things about warranty direct. I've also heard some not so good things about them but they seem to have been around the longest. You might also want to check in w/ you local AAA office and Lexus dealer and see who they suggest.

Good luck

kalvano

I highly doubt Lexus is going belly-up anytime soon.

And if you buy a Lexus warranty, you get a nice brochure that explictly states what is covered and what isn't.

I am amazed when people don't buy extended warranties. Why would you not spend $1500 or so on your several thousand dollar purchase to protect it?

hoonami

i doubt lexus has any extented warranty available for me, but i will call them up tomorrow. do i call local Lexus dealers? or 1-800 number?