Perma plate offered by dealer

[XC70 Pilot]

Having just purchased a 2004 XC70, my dealer wants to sell us both Perma Plate (protection for paint, leather, and fabric) and an extended warranty. Are either of these a good idea?

My wife and I will use our Volvo to commute to work. We anticipate putting nearly 20,000 miles a year on our XC70. That means we'll reach our new car warranty limit (50K miles) in less than three years of driving. We're leaning towards purchasing the 5 year-100,000 mile extended warranty (service contract) from the dealer.

Protecting our new XC70's finish and interior with Perma Plate also sounds attrative since we have a 9-month-old son. He will grow up with the Volvo and we'd like to minimize the impact of spills, etc on the car.

What do you think? Anyone else take advantage of these options?

Thanks, Mike

[GeorgeXC70]

You dont have to buy the extended warranty NOW.  you can wait as long as there is atleast one month or 1000 miles left on your original warranty.

Personally I would get the "perk-plating"  just sounds like another one of those dealer cash grabs.

I assume you have leather seats?  If its a dark interior, you'ld be throwing away your money.

Just vacum it often and take care of spills when they happen. Alse take it in to a detailing shop once a year of so and they will shampoo the carpets etc.

My wife used to drive a Saab 93 and it had a cream leather interior with matching carpeting.  Well one day I get a panicked call from here saying that some of the Indian curry she had brought for a party we having catered spilled in the rear.  

She had the back seat folded down so curry and the oil got in between all the back of the seats. Needless to say it was a mess and it was pretty strong smelling!  I wiped as much of it as we could and then used a carpet stain remover on whatever got intot he carpet. It was okay the next day my wife took it into to be detailed and it came back and the left over stain that I couldnt get out completely and the smelll were gone (atleast IMHO). Two years later when we returned the car, when the lease ended, they never noticed anything either.

So no dont spend extra money for armout plating or whatever, just be diligent and take care of your car.  I doubt your son coudl do worse than hot Indian curry with lots of spicy oil!  

Good luck,

GXC70

[Raynald]

My opinion is that you don't need any of these.

1- Paint and clear coat already on are sufficient. Regular hand wash with plenty of water and good wax twice a year is all it takes to keep the shine.
2- To my knowledge, there is no "permanent" leather protectant. Leather is skin, it's (almost) like living tissue. Threat it as such. There is good cleaning/treatment products on the market. Search this site for good advice (I did ).
3- Extended warranty are expensive and sometimes they don't cover the essentials, things that needs replacement anyway in the long run (exhaust, timing belt, etc.). Better put your money in the bank and collect interests

As for spills, do what I did: food (except grocery) is prohibited inside the car !