There is an experience base out there that knows a lot more than I do on this and I value your opinion on the pros and cons.
Best warranty for a Ford is not to buy a Ford.
When Toyota exists why would anyone buy a Ford.
Every turbo car must have an extended warranty
im not being snarky, but sell it. it sounds like its in good shape so sell it and buy a used Toyota —from the Taliban— just kidding, but a cheap used Toyota or honda...
You’re the second person today to ask me about my extended warranty. That cheery-voiced woman who calls me every morning was the first.
The earlier version Escapes with the hybrid were stellar in NYC taxi service, 400,000 miles no problem, just like a Crown Vic. Not sure about the later versions.
A first world problem - in a soon-to-be third world country. :)
I have an indefinite extended warranty on a 2011 F150. About $45/mo. $100 deductible. Saved me tons on several occasions.
Personally, I’d take my chances unless your budget is such that a major repair would be a backbreaker. In any case, be sure it is an actual Ford warranty and not something the dealer is selling.
Drop over to the Ford dealer you use and go talk to the Service Manager. Ask him what he thinks. Can’t hurt.
Also, if the car is paid for and you plan on keeping it, get the extended warrantee.
I bought a ‘16 F150 with 52K on it and it did come with the Ford Certified extended coverage to 100k.
It is important to note that my truck is my most important tool - if it doesn’t run I am dead in the water and not earning a living.
One of the main things about this is the “peace of mind” from not having to worry about major $$ repair.
If it has turbo, consider it.
I never bought extended warranties in the past but that’s definitely not the case now. Too many electronic gizmos nowadays. I went ahead and bought the Ford plan because I could get the most miles for the best price. You’ll probably have to get one off of the Ford website if you decide to do this.
They sell the extended warranty because they think they can make money on it. That means that they think they will have to pay out less in coverage than they make on premiums.
So it is up to you if you think that your car is better than the average of that car model or worse. And whether you are hard on your cars.
But the law of averages says you won’t make your money back.
That is the same with all insurance.
My only advice would be to NEVER BUY A FORD.
Sorry, but I’m serious.
I’ve bought 2-3 extended warranties for cars and I’ve pretty much broken even on them. It could save you a lot, or not, but I’m glad I bought them for the peace of mind.
Shop attend at different dealerships. When we bought our 2019 F150, we negotiated $1000 off the ESP warranty (price of truck was ahead settled). But it was also a long term/high miles policy. Still, the entire thing was a little over $2500 after the discount, I think.
I did the warranty calculations for a company I worked for. The return on the average warranty is 16/1. The company makes 16 dollars for every dollar paid out in warranty work. The way warranties work is, you (the company) calculate the reliability of each item. The company will have copious data. You (the buyer) only “win” if something really unusual happens. If you read the fine print it probably rules out standard wear replacement items like timing belts and DSG clutches. Those two items on my Jetta ran just north of $3,000. The failure happened just after the warranty ran out and the company stalled me on the repair just long enough so they weren’t covered. At the time the second market warranty didn’t cover them. Again, read the fine print.
In general warranties don’t pay. In the long haul you’d
“win” by not buying them. Then, again, there’s that one time...
I have a Ford Escape I have had for 16 years it is a manual transmission the ONLY thing that has gone wrong with the car is the clutch!! I LOVE my escape I love the room on the inside YET it is compact parking!! It has been GREAT to not have a car payment for all of these years!!
I bought the extended warranty for my used 2014 Ford Expedition. I think it cost $1,900 (the last one I bought a decade earlier was $900). It was a third-party warranty, but I bought it from Ford when we closed the deal.
Shortly before the manufacturer’s warranty expired, the sunroof stopped working. I called up the local Ford dealership and asked to bring it in. They said we are booked for three weeks; I said fine and we booked the appointment.
Between that time I booked the service call with the dealership and the time I got the truck in, the warranty expired. Ford would NOT honor the warranty. I tried calls to the Service Manager, the dealership owner, the Ford service ombudsman, the Ford District Manager, and Ford Corporate. I got nowhere with any of them.
Then the Extended Warranty company shut me down as well!
So I called the dealer where I bought the used vehicle. They sell LOTS of extended warranties and must make great margins on them. They made a quick call to the extended warranty company and in less than ten minutes they agreed to pay the full cost of the repair (which was about $3,500!).
A couple years later the aluminum Air Conditioner lines under the car to the rear cabin AC unit corroded out. Turns out that is a well-known problem with Fords (they probably save an ounce of metal compared to using steel lines). I think the extended warranty company refused to pay that one, too (I may be wrong on that).
On a previous car, the warranty paid off.
It’s always a crap shoot as is any type of insurance. You’d rather your house not burn down and you don’t have to use the insurance you paid for, but it’s good when you need it. For us with Ford products, the warranties have always paid off. They may pay off on a Honda or Toyota, though.
Based on my experience, if you do make a claim, be prepared to FIGHT them to get them to pay you. And it really helps to have a cooperative dealer that sells lots of warranties put pressure on the extended warranty company to pay you. They have far more clout than you will ever have.
I will agree with Gen.Blather that extended warranties are a major profit center. In fact, the extended warranty sales kept a tech company I worked for profitable and allowed them to stay open, several years ago.
Having said that, the general dealer price in the DFW market for the extended warranties for my Chrysler Pacifica were about 15% of the cost of the minivan. I found a dealer in another state that sold me a Crysler Mopar 5 year bumper to bumper warranty, unlimited mileage, for about 5% of the new cost - about $1700 as I recall. I have seldom used it but the idea that I have it provides much peace. We have protection in case of a serious problem (the 2017 9-speed Mercedes transmission has issues), helps in case of a dealer runaround and is good anywhere in the country that I travel to.
There are a few dealers that sell thousands of extended warranties and sell them for about half of other dealers. Find one of those and buy one.