After Market Warranty?

[88bimmer]

i am seriously considering buying a warranty from a company like gaurdian to take the risk out of blowing up my tranny and A/C or what have you...

the cost is worth it for good peace of mind no matter what happens... especially with the drive train.

that being said - what does everyone recommend? ;)

tia - jerry

[JRL]

Do your research first

[88bimmer]

i have done research and found that every company - there have been customers with traumatic experiences, doesnt matter which one... unless there is one i have not heard of that people on this forum would be so nice to reccommend.

also, with all the issues with these cars i find it hard to believe there are not more threads dedicated to aftermarket warranties - as this seem to be the equalizer with a car that has inherit design flaws...


i wouldn't mind if people chimed in with their opinion, i guess that is all i'm saying...

[JRL]

I would call each one that you're interested in and present scenarios to them and ask how they would handle it, such as transmissions, do they replace it as VIP does or will they try to give you a used one or rebuild it, etc.
Ask about all the electronics and what their position is one those, etc.
For a long time we've been using Wynn's warranty, in general a very good one and ALMOST mirrors VIP.
However now they have stopped replacing transmissions and are rebuilding AW-55s and I don't know the results yet. [sly]

Around here the cars go to a Cottman Transmission shop (thankfully a good one) apparently since they've now done a few, seemingly they can do it.
I'll let you know how this works out, my daughter's C70 (5 speed auto) is starting to go and her car is going there next week.
I wonder if one lives in the boonies with no transmission shops around, what they will do?

[MoeB]

Find out what repair estimate books the warranty company uses and see what your repair shop of choice thinks about them. I bought a 3/36 warranty through CNA. It covered everything, even stuff I didn't think it would cover, but the problem I ran into was with some of their repair time estimates. CNA apparently uses several automotive estimate books and from what I could tell, if one book had lower estimates than the others they would use it to their advantage. When my tranny went, both my Volvo dealer and my indie shop said that the repair times given in CNA's estimate were way low. It forced me to haggle big-time.

[boon4376]

do a BBB search. I found that warranty direct had one of the best ratings. I was considering going with them, but instead will probably go the CPO route, as the really cover a lot more systems, and there isn't too bad of a price premium. CPO covers electronics, buttons, everything. They cover so much they only list what they exclude...

A lot of aftermarket warranties look like they include a lot, until you really start looking into it, and there are a lot of holes.

I'm not sure if it varies by dealers, but i've been looking and comparing the contracts of a lot of aftermarket warranties, and the CPO at Portland Volvo in Maine, is pretty complete.

[Forkster]

If you are easy on your XC, any biz analyst will tell you that any warranty you buy after the manufacture's expires, especially any 2003-2007 XC70, is a waste of money. Not just a little, a complete. Why would you spend $3-5k on a warranty you 'may' need? Besides, all you're doing is giving the sales agent a nice dinner out when you could take your family to DisneyWorld.

If you drive with a heavy foot, get the warranty. :)

[MoeB]

Normally I would agree with Forkster, but in my opinion a good aftermarket warranty is a pretty good bet on an XC with some miles on it. Our $1800 3/36 warranty paid for itself several times over. Transmission alone was almost $4k, not counting suspension bushings, turbo seal repairs, engine seal repairs, bevel gear seals, and a few other things covered by the warranty. This car was not abused, either. Previous owner was a soccer mom who averaged about 9000 miles/yr and had all service done at the selling dealer. My wife is primary driver of the car and she's easy on the car.

[88bimmer]

so what warranty did you buy?



Normally I would agree with Forkster, but in my opinion a good aftermarket warranty is a pretty good bet on an XC with some miles on it. Our $1800 3/36 warranty paid for itself several times over. Transmission alone was almost $4k, not counting suspension bushings, turbo seal repairs, engine seal repairs, bevel gear seals, and a few other things covered by the warranty. This car was not abused, either. Previous owner was a soccer mom who averaged about 9000 miles/yr and had all service done at the selling dealer. My wife is primary driver of the car and she's easy on the car.

[88bimmer]

i hear what you are saying but unfortunately i just bought my '01 with 100k and think the previous owner beat the crap out of it, its not worth the risk unless i get the warranty. plain and simple, i only keep cars for 24-36 months anyways - just need to cover the powertrain basically...



If you are easy on your XC, any biz analyst will tell you that any warranty you buy after the manufacture's expires, especially any 2003-2007 XC70, is a waste of money. Not just a little, a complete. Why would you spend $3-5k on a warranty you 'may' need? Besides, all you're doing is giving the sales agent a nice dinner out when you could take your family to DisneyWorld.

If you drive with a heavy foot, get the warranty. :)

[88bimmer]

CPO = certified pre-owned? if so, is there a way for me to get this type of warranty?



do a BBB search. I found that warranty direct had one of the best ratings. I was considering going with them, but instead will probably go the CPO route, as the really cover a lot more systems, and there isn't too bad of a price premium. CPO covers electronics, buttons, everything. They cover so much they only list what they exclude...

A lot of aftermarket warranties look like they include a lot, until you really start looking into it, and there are a lot of holes.

I'm not sure if it varies by dealers, but i've been looking and comparing the contracts of a lot of aftermarket warranties, and the CPO at Portland Volvo in Maine, is pretty complete.

[88bimmer]

so which warranty does your daughter have? ill look into wynn's and VIP, thanks!




I would call each one that you're interested in and present scenarios to them and ask how they would handle it, such as transmissions, do they replace it as VIP does or will they try to give you a used one or rebuild it, etc.
Ask about all the electronics and what their position is one those, etc.
For a long time we've been using Wynn's warranty, in general a very good one and ALMOST mirrors VIP.
However now they have stopped replacing transmissions and are rebuilding AW-55s and I don't know the results yet. [sly]

Around here the cars go to a Cottman Transmission shop (thankfully a good one) apparently since they've now done a few, seemingly they can do it.
I'll let you know how this works out, my daughter's C70 (5 speed auto) is starting to go and her car is going there next week.
I wonder if one lives in the boonies with no transmission shops around, what they will do?

[MoeB]

so what warranty did you buy?

CNA Preferred V-series.

[JRL]

I can get you either a VIP or a Wynn's at a decent price