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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / RVs / October 2005Warranties
We just bought a used (1995) Holiday Rambler "Endeavor." It is the first diesel we have owned. I am interested in purchasing a two or three-year warranty. I would be interested to hear opinions about these "after-market" warranties, to know about sources and prices, and to read a discussion about the merits of buying one from an on-line marketer as contrasted with buying one from the dealer. Please, no diatribes, but all relevant information will be sorely appreciated. Ken H > opinions about these "after-market" warranties Having never bought such a warranty, I can't comment for comparison purposes. However, after YEARS of reading Trailer Life and Motorhome magazines, I have learned the MOST important thing AFTER buying coverage is to get the underwriter's permission BEFORE starting ANY work that you believe should be covered. TL's "Action Line" regularly has one or two submissions from folks in dispute with their after-market warranty company. Congratulations on the new rig! Good luck! :) JR > We just bought a used (1995) Holiday Rambler "Endeavor." It is the first > diesel we have owned. I am interested in purchasing a two or three-year [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Ken H We bought a 96 Newmar a couple of years ago. A year and two days later, it dropped a tranny. 950 miles later, it coughed another. Both times, we collected for the towing, and didn't pay a dime for the tranny R&R. In our case, it paid for itself. Steve You should check out Agape for RV warranties...located in AZ...very reasonable and complete coverage. I had great initial experience where the owner actually paid out of his pocket for an AC repair that was very close to the 30 day wait period just for me to avoid a hassel!! Cant beat that!!!!! http://www.agapeautowarranties.com/ > > We just bought a used (1995) Holiday Rambler "Endeavor." It is the first > > diesel we have owned. I am interested in purchasing a two or three-year [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Steve > You should check out Agape for RV warranties...located in AZ...very > reasonable and complete coverage. I had great initial experience where the > owner actually paid out of his pocket for an AC repair that was very close > to the 30 day wait period just for me to avoid a hassel!! Cant beat > that!!!!! > http://www.agapeautowarranties.com/ Thank you and others for these responses. In the process of researching Agape (and others, but Agape certainly seemed to be the best choice), I discovered that in California only dealers can sell warranties. I learned that from Agape, which informed me that it sells policies in all other states. The California Department of Insurance Web page recites that for a company to sell directly a policy in California is a felony. California law is constructed in such a way as to make the dealer the obligor for the performance of repairs under the warranty. This is a consumer protection issue, intended to defend California residents from companies which would default on their warranty responsibilities or, in the most extreme of cases, go "belly-up." As a point of interest, the coach we purchased is a 1995 Holiday Rambler Endeavor LE with 69K+ miles. Warranty Experts quoted me a price of $3318 for a four year/48K mile policy. Agape would not quote me a price (see above), but the messages posted here suggest it would be materially less. The dealer told me he could only get a one-year, 10K mile policy, for nearly $3000. At $3 a mile, I abjured. My alternative, of course, is to register the coach out of state at a relative's or friend's address, something I might do even though I have already paid the California sales tax. I would still like to have a policy (as long as it covers seals and gaskets), but $3 per miles is more than it costs my next door neighbor to drive her old Mercedes 450. Again, thanks for the input. Ken H Oh Dear God, I have increased my vocabulary by one more high level word. Thanks.I abjure to ever use the more common word "decline" ever again. "abjure verb To disavow (something previously written or said) irrevocably and usually formally: recall, recant, retract, take back, withdraw. See accept/reject."  SignatureQuickSilver - Visit my world Searching for a Class A Coach in SoCal http://AustinMini.OsiTech.Net I abjured. Since others have commented about claims and pre-authorization. I will comment on the price of the warranty. You can expect to pay 10-30% of the cost of the RV for the warranty. Example: I paid $24,000 for my 1997 Tioga Montara purchased in April of 2005, the dealer quoted me $2278 for a four year or 48,000 mile extended warranty from Star RV. The dealer explained to me that the older model year it is the more expensive the warranty and diesel RV's were even more expensive. There is a "Seals and Gaskets" disclaimer which states "less then 60K miles and current model year plus 7 years back". Which mine nor yours would be eligible. This disclaimer was the absolute major reason I did not purchase the warranty. I figured and was told by a friend who is a mechanic (not RV, but auto) that they could simply deny any claim based on the failure of a gasket/seal. Ed > We just bought a used (1995) Holiday Rambler "Endeavor." It is the first > diesel we have owned. I am interested in purchasing a two or three-year [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Ken H Obviously NOT all warranties are created equal!!!! > Since others have commented about claims and pre-authorization. I will > comment on the price of the warranty. [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > > > > Ken H No they are not. I called AGAPE for a quote $1450 for 3yrs/36,000. This is about $500 less then RVStar for the same term. However RvStar includes delaminating/roof systems AGAPE doesn't. Gaskets and seals not included in quote from RVStar included with AGAPE. My cost per month would be $40 and change for 3 yrs with the AGAPE plan. Based upon my mileage It would last 3yrs. I'm not against extended warranties. For some items they are well worth the cost. I have faith that a MH with 16K miles even though it is older and I drive about 1500-3000miles per year will cost less then $1450 over three years nothing which is covered will break. There are three items which concern me, the transmission, the A/C and the refrigerator. If one of these fail I will have lost my "educated guess/ bet" that the extended warranty will not be worth having. If all three fail then I'm really wrong. Ed > Obviously NOT all warranties are created equal!!!! >> Since others have commented about claims and pre-authorization. I will [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] >> > >> > Ken H the way I figger.... got a 03 DP with LOTS of expensive things/electronics that CAN break! I paid $2300 for a 7 year 100,000 mile warranty with a $50 PER TRIP deductible that covers about EVERYTHING (dont know about the roof) including gaskets and ALL electronic stuff. So IF I keep the rig for 7 yrs, that comes out to $328 per year...about the cost of a complete oil change and a BUNCH of piece of mind. Remember, the most common time to NEED insurance is when you dont have it!!!! This way I have a very reasonable controlled cost of ownership with no horrible surprises, like a valve poking out of my tailpipe, or a big black puddle of oil on the ground, or a transmission that lies when I put it in D !!! > No they are not. > I called AGAPE for a quote $1450 for 3yrs/36,000. [quoted text clipped - 57 lines] > >> > > >> > Ken H Have you used the warranty yet? If so, was it readily accepted at the RV dealer which it was repaired at? When I read your previous post, you stated that the previous owner had paid for an AC repair prior to the 30day wait period. Thanks, I'm still trying to decide if I want to go with AGAPE. Ed > the way I figger.... > got a 03 DP with LOTS of expensive things/electronics that CAN break! I [quoted text clipped - 82 lines] >> >> > >> >> > Ken H > Have you used the warranty yet? If so, was it readily accepted at the RV > dealer which it was repaired at? [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Ed snipped We've got a 4 year policy from Star and they have paid twice. First time was for a bad convertor and second time was for a fridge repair. We still have a year and a half left on the policy and are about $300 behind. I plan on getting the slide seals replaced next year and know they are covered. Our rig is a 2000 Holiday Rambler Alumascape trailer and we're glad we bought the policy. I wouldn't buy a used motorhome without checking on a policy first. One major breakdown can get the cost of it back. I especially wouldn't skip the policy if the unit is bought with payments. Hugh >HD in NY <error@error.com> wrote: >I wouldn't buy a used motorhome without checking on a policy >first. One major breakdown can get the cost of it back. I >especially wouldn't skip the policy if the unit is bought >with payments. >Hugh I don't follow that last point. Why would a service contract make more sense on a financed unit than on one you own outright? SignatureDD >>>>>>>I don't follow that last point. Why would a service contract make >>>>>>>more sense on a financed unit than on one you own outright?<<<<<<<<< If you owned the RV outright and something happened that was expensive to fix, you could either fix it, trade it in on another RV or junk it and but another one. If you still owe a bunch of money on it, you have no choice but to fix it. And what if you don't have enough money to fix it ? You will be paying on a dead horse and won't be able to afford another RV until that one is paid for. SignatureJerryD(upstateNY) >I wouldn't buy a used motorhome without checking on a policy >first. One major breakdown can get the cost of it back. I >especially wouldn't skip the policy if the unit is bought >with payments. >Hugh SignatureDD snipped > I don't follow that last point. Why would a service contract make more > sense on a financed unit than on one you own outright? If financed, it usually means one doesn't have the cash to pay upfront. If it's a cash purchase, the buyer should have sufficient funds to cover pending repairs. Hugh >HD in NY <error@error.com> wrote: >snipped >> I don't follow that last point. Why would a service contract make more [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >sufficient funds to cover pending repairs. >Hugh I see. I agree that a service contract, like any insurance, is worth buying if the cost of a relatively improbable event would be a significant economic burden. I think the same logic applies to buying "replacement cost" insurance on an RV. If it would be very painful financially to recover from a loss, then one should insure against it. Some of us, though, financed our rigs, cheerfully prepared to go upside down on them at some point in the future, because the cost of the borrowed money was significantly less than what we could safely earn on it. If we had paid cash for it, we would have even less money to cover pending repairs. SignatureDD, trying to make his nest egg last > >HD in NY <error@error.com> wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > it. If we had paid cash for it, we would have even less money to cover > pending repairs. Not only what you earn, but what you can avoid paying in taxes if you withdraw from an IRA/401K slowly rather than a lump sum distribution. SignatureFigment We need more imagination and less reality I agree, I was quoted 6.8% finanaced, I got 4.99 and tax deductable. SWM,= High tax bracket. Ed > >HD in NY <error@error.com> wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > it. If we had paid cash for it, we would have even less money to cover > pending repairs. I did use the warranty and it was NOT the previous owner, but the owner or agent of AGAPE himself who paid for my $102 repair, less my $50 deductible, even tho it was truly after the 30 day wait and would have been covered. He told me the company would likely do an authorization/inspection to determine if it was pre existing and that would delay the repair. Since I live in South Alabama, that wouldnt be too good, so he expedited it. I paid out of pocket and he really did send me a reimbursement check that DID NOT bounce!!! My repair shop would have done the work under warranty, but I was so new to the system that my name didnt come up in their computer. Thus, in this case I paid out of pocket and was fully reimbursed in a very timely manner.. > Have you used the warranty yet? If so, was it readily accepted at the RV > dealer which it was repaired at? [quoted text clipped - 91 lines] > >> >> > > >> >> > Ken H Thank you for clarifying. Fantastic agent! Ed >I did use the warranty and it was NOT the previous owner, but the owner or > agent of AGAPE himself who paid for my $102 repair, less my $50 [quoted text clipped - 129 lines] >> >> >> > >> >> >> > Ken H |
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