hey all--

i got a notice in the mail regarding the warranty on my 4runner ( '01 SR5 )

guy said it expired @ 36,000 -- if you want to renew for a 4 year/100,000 warranty it's ~ $2200 -- must renew before 42,500 miles.

he said it covers everything the original warranty does more or less ( except stuff like battery, brakes & rotores, fan belt...few other things)

do you all renew your warranties? is it worth it?

 

Im interested in opinions on this also. My truck has 32,000 on it.

I was thinking that with the collective knowledge on these boards, would you need a warranty at that price?

 

Mine was purchased with 47,000 miles on it in Dec 2001. It had a Toyota Certified used car warrenty on it.

I used the warrenty two times:
1- Got my timing belt changed, and they said that the water pump was leaking. Saved me ~$200

2- Rear Seal leaking. They replaced both rear seals, inner seals and bearing. I think it saved me $400 (after $50 deductible)


I am out of the Certified warrenty now (6 years is up) and I have 76,000 miles on it.

$2,200 is a lot of money, if I didn't have the warrenty, my repairs would have been $800, which is a lot less than $2,200!

 

If you think theres a possibility of reselling it before 100k then I would. Its a major selling point to buy a used car/truck with a transferable warrenty. Otherwise with the Toyota quality and reputation not to mention the research you can do here to determine your risk of potential problems I would skip it and if you have the disapline to save the extra money you would spend and start your own account (if it will make you feel better) youll come out ahaed in the long run. It can be your 100k mile mod savings account!

 

i got it when i bought my truck at about 47k. it cost me around 1700 bucks (negotiated!), and the main sell for me was that a rental car is provided free of charge on most visits. so far i havent had to use it, but i figure after the 50k mark, things like belts will tend to wear out.

better safe than sorry

 

Answer these questions:

#1 Do you consider yourself for some reason more breakdown prone than the average?
#2 Do you really feel that an out of pocket expense for fixing something would be unbearable?
#3 Will you not sleep well knowing there is no extended warranty?

If you answered yes to any of them, get the warranty.

Warranty = fixed lump sum up front, well-estimated future expenses, that is why businesses favor them.
No warranty = unknown expense, on average repairs cost less than lump sump from above, nobody is in the business of losing money, including the warranty division.

Also do not forget jumping through hoops to get work approved, and more than likely the fine print forbids DIY maintenance.

 

I thought the timing belt was considered a maintenance part, and thus one you had to pay for yourself.

Am I wrong on that? I thought it was sort of like changing your brake pads or tires. It's just something that has to be done and thus isn't covered.

Bill

 

Hindsight is 20/20. I always purchase extended warranties at the initial purchase of the vehicle, so you get a much cheaper rate, usually around $500-$750 for an extension to 6 years/100K miles. $2200...I just can't see paying that for 3 more years, i.e. that is a bit over $700 a year. Spend $2200 on preventitive scheduled maintenance and mods and you will come out ahead.

My pennies!

 

same here, but im hoping youre wrong!

 

I bought one on my Runner and was glad that I did, because I kept my truck up to and past the 100K point. It was well worth the investment and in fact paid for itself many times. Just make sure that it is a Toyota Extended Warranty. Mine was called Toyota Extra Care.

It doesn't cover everything that the Bumper-to-Bumper warranty does just as you state. Things like interior items are not covered. So if the dash cracks, it won't be covered.

 

Since the water pump was bad, they put the labor of the timing belt change on the water pump warrenty. So all I had to do is pay for the belt.

 

That was some silver lining there eh?

I did buy the warranty to my truck when I bought it because it made my wife happy.

It had 65k when I bought it, and the warranty was talked down to $600 I believe as I wasn't real insterested initially.

I've been thinking lately that I won't ever use it though, as in the fine print of the warranty I'm entitled to a refund if it's never used minus a $25 processing fee (I believe it was).

Bill

 

That refund is usually PRORATED, but you do get some back if you sell the vehicle before the warranty you paid for is up, if you choose to do so and not leave it as a selling point for the rig. Certainly a good idea if you just trade it in to a dealer. Makes some positive equity when you trade.

 

It's all a roll of the dice. Do you think that you'll have $2200+ worth of shop bills in the next four years. Toyota is betting that you don't. Just like at Vegas, the house usually wins.

 

I bought y truck new and got the extended warranty. It' come in handy once so far since I'm at 70k miles. I'm a high mileage driver so I consider it a good deal for that reaon alone.

However as was stated earlier it is a roll of the dice. I think it's just a peace of mind situation.

 

Is it for 4 years/100K miles total or another 4 years/100K from where you are now?

Generally you will come out ahead not buying it. That is how they make money selling them. I bet they love selling them on Toyotas!

 

I wouldn't renew a warranty. 1997 4runner (so ~7 yrs old) and i just have had to make the first repair (an axle seal) which was 8$ in parts. But I may have something catastrophic go wrong tomorrow at which point i'll be very sad.

 

Considering the fact below, would you really need the extended warranty?

500,000 miles Toyota Tacoma

-- Andrey

 

hahah.. wow, thats awesome.

i think this sums it up nicely. matter of choice.

 

$2200 seems a bit high.

I bought my 2000 in October with 47K on it. An extended warranty for 5 years from October or 100K miles total cost me just under $1700, plus if I never use any of it I get all of my money back when it expires, kind of like Bill. It covers everything, even towing and rental, better than the factory warranty. It was sold through the dealer, I don't remember who the company was offhand.

I'm not a big fan of extended warranties, at least for a Toyota, but figured that deal was hard to beat. I already could have used it but decided not too since I don't want to prorate my money-back option. I view it as insurance for a major problem.

"must renew before 42.5K" almost sounds suspicious to me. There are plenty of options out there after that, don't feel pressured to buy that one, especially at that price. Look around.