Extended warranties

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James H Thessin - 20 Jun 2005 01:06 GMT

I just purchased a new Prius, with package 6 options. At the end of the
my discussions with the dealer, I received the typical pitch for an
extended warranty.

Does it make sense to purchase an extended warranty for a car with
complex and expensive technology? The prices I have been quoted for the
warranty are around $1650 for 7 years/70,000 miles and around $1950 for
7 years/100,000 miles. Supposedly it covers everything but hoses, belts,
brakes and other items that wear out predictably with use or age. I
have not yet tried to negotiate price.

Thanks for any advice.

Jim

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JJ - 20 Jun 2005 04:58 GMT

Hi James,

Congratulations! And Welcome to a group of very satisfied hybrid owners!

I too got the same pitch. From the cost of it, it sounds like you are
quoting the price on the Toyota Platinum Extended service contract. Because
that is the price I agreed to pay for it when I bought my Package 6 in Feb.
Shortly after that I found this www site and others. Mostly Prius Chat
http://www.priuschat.com/forums/portal.php Here I found a Toyota dealer in
the N.E. that sold me the same product for a SUBSTANTIAL discount.

I suggest that you join this free group, and contact Danny and see if he can
assist you too!

http://www.priuschat.com/forums/discounted-toyota-prius-extended-warranty-servic
e-contracts-vt3130.html

Good Luck!

-John

>I just purchased a new Prius, with package 6 options. At the end of the
> my discussions with the dealer, I received the typical pitch for an
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>
> Jim

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Jay Hennigan - 20 Jun 2005 16:05 GMT

> I just purchased a new Prius, with package 6 options. At the end of the
> my discussions with the dealer, I received the typical pitch for an
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> brakes and other items that wear out predictably with use or age. I
> have not yet tried to negotiate price.

First, beware that there are Toyota-backed extended warranties (honored at
any Toyota dealer) and independent extended warranties that may not be
honored or be more of a hassle to deal with. As a rule, extended
warranties are a huge profit center for the dealers and are often a bad
deal for the customer. Many dealers will sell the non-Toyota warranties
because they make more profit. I would HIGHLY recommend that you don't
even consider any of the non-Toyota warranties and get only the real deal
from Toyota.

If you decide to get the Toyota extended warranty, keep in mind:

* There is no pressure to buy it. You can purchase it any time up until
the 3-year, 36,000 mile warranty expires.

* You can buy it from any dealer, not just the one who sold you the car.

* There is at least one dealer who is selling the 7/100,000/0-deductible
genuine Toyota warranty online for around $900. Search Google for Prius
Extended Warranty. Mentioned often in the Yahoo groups, also here.

* Armed with this information, you can either wait and buy it online or
use it as leverage to get a better deal from the selling dealer.

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mrv@kluge.net - 20 Jun 2005 22:32 GMT

Common question, so here's my brain dump on it, including what's
covered, how to cancel/transfer, and Prius-friendly dealers and their
discounted prices.

http://www.vfaq.net/docs/ExtendedWarranty.html

Note that the MSRP on the Toyota Extra Care Platinum Plan (only version
available from Toyota for the Prius) is only $1300 for the 7
year/70,000 mile/$0 deductible version, and $1650 for the 7
year/100,000 mile/$0 deductible, so already your dealer is trying to
overcharge you. Considering that you can get the 7/100/$0 from several
places for $985, I wouldn't use your dealer unless they can meet that
price. If you're in the southeast or gulf states Toyota regions, I'd
also make sure that it's the genuine Toyota document, and not one just
from that region...

As someone else already mentioned, you have any time up until the end
of your basic new car warranty (3 years/36,000 miles) to decide to buy
the extended warranty, so you have time to think and to shop around.

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toyotrever - 24 Jun 2005 18:01 GMT

As a Toyota dealer, i would not pay that much for that warranty. The
985 is about right. It lets the dealer make a small profit and gets you
covered just in case. You should probablly wait till near 36,000 miles
and see if the cost of the coverage goes down some. Never finance the
warrant!!! Just makes you upside down faster(on a normal car that
is)!!!

Trever
Toyota West
Statesville NC

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Teknojunkie - 24 Jun 2005 20:52 GMT

I wholeheartedly agree. Here in Florida, dealers are not allowed to
discount the warranty. I am going for the $985 warranty from Troy
Dietrich at Toyota of Greenfield. It will add a smaller amount to my
loan than the amount the dealer here is wanting to charge me, but to
me, it's worth the peace of mind. Being that it's a Toyota, the
depreciation will be lower than most other cars. I originally purchased
an extended warranty through my credit union, but I cancelled it as
soon as I found out I could get the real Toyota Warranty elsewhere for
less. In addition, the warranty here is not through Toyota, it's
through some other company. However, the dealer swears up and down
that it's a 'Toyota Warranty' even though it has another company's name
on it. I said no thanks, I'll get the real deal.

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