BMW extended warranty - yay or nay?

[yemski]

As the title says what are everyones opinions on BMW's extended warranties on the 1M? Kind of on the fence right now as to whether or not I should get one.

Thinking about getting Gold 6/100K

[IEDEI]

watching this thread. have to decide soon.

[EldRick]

I was told price ~$5000 for Gold level. Seems like quite a lot.

[yemski]

Originally Posted by EldRick

I was told price ~$5000 for Gold level. Seems like quite a lot.

exactly, trying to get some info on whether it is worth it given that it is a bit of a crap shoot, since it's also possible nothing will go wrong.

[godzilla-1]

It would be helpful to know how many engine and transmission failures have occurred. My opinion is its very very Unlikely for a major failure to occur as long as the basic rules have been followed regarding warming up and oil level not going too low!!! My 1m barely uses any oil unlike previous M cars which drank upto 1 litre in only 2000miles which is enough to kill the engine if not topped up regularly between service intervals. The 1m gearbox appears to require an additional gearbox oil change I between the BMW scheduled one to retain optimum shifting but being a getrag it will definitely be virtually bulletproof. I'm 80% convinced on letting the warranty expire!!!

[MJockey]

I'm at the same crossroad. I think the power train will be fine. It's all the electronics / computers that worry me. Has anybody tried calling around to see what dealer offers the best price?

[CP 1///M]

Anybody at 100K miles? or even past 80K miles?

[smq42]

Is there an "official" BMW extended warranty? I'm getting a lot of phone calls from what seem to be private companies offering to extend my warranty. . . I generally don't like these as they're more insurance rather than warranty.

[IEDEI]

you guys wanna organize some kind of group buy? i am at 45k miles and would like to get one soon i think.....i really don't want to spend a ton of money but i am thinking it may be worth it to reduce anxiety of being out of warranty.

[cmcgonag]

Ya there is an official BMW extended warranty but I am getting the same prices as yall. I want extended warranty and extended maintenance. I am in for a group buy.

[bdaddylo]

The weak points are the turbos, HPFP (which may have a longer warranty period than the 4yr/50k miles), and the A/C. I really don't think these repairs will break anyone's bank if you're already willing to shell out $5k for a warranty.

[p66]

On average, you will pay less for repairs than the warranty.

[Em/1]

Originally Posted by p66

On average, you will pay less for repairs than the warranty.

+1 Unless you think you cannot afford to deal with an unexpected failure/event, almost always the insurer (BMW) will come out ahead or they wouldn't offer the product; could be argued that they are in position to deliver the goods at a better price than you can get, but my experience of costs at non-dealers suggests otherwise. No way I buy any of their insurance products.

[Slats]

Originally Posted by Em/1

+1 Unless you think you cannot afford to deal with an unexpected failure/event, almost always the insurer (BMW) will come out ahead or they wouldn't offer the product; could be argued that they are in position to deliver the goods at a better price than you can get, but my experience of costs at non-dealers suggests otherwise. No way I buy any of their insurance products.

+2 Better to stick $5,000 in a savings account and draw on it for needed repairs, if any. Most extended warranties (a misnomer, by the way - they are service contracts backed by insurance) are marked up to the tune of 50 -100%. And, usually, the large print giveth, but the fine print taketh away. The BMW product is probably not as full of weasel-word as the ones that are pushed via junk mail, but I still wouldn't buy one. The claims paid/premium ratio on service contracts is pretty lop-sided in favor of the provider.

[Reedomn]

Take the $5000 and invest it ....stock market is rocking....

[nevin]

We should get an official thread together for an extended warranty group buy. I remember the M3 guys had one going on a while back on the e92s. I'll try to find the dealer that was involved. I am 100% going to get one. Peace of mind and not having to waste time on all the BS is worth it for me.

[IEDEI]

Originally Posted by nevin

We should get an official thread together for an extended warranty group buy. I remember the M3 guys had one going on a while back on the e92s. I'll try to find the dealer that was involved. I am 100% going to get one. Peace of mind and not having to waste time on all the BS is worth it for me.

keep us updated! I agree that I just don't want to have to deal with ordering parts myself and finding the best deals on repairs....at least for a couple of years while it is my DD

[Les Grossman]

I recently just bought an extra year from BMW. I don't recall the exact cost, but I think it was less than £300. My 1M is very high specification, completely standard, with very low miles, and I personally feel that a fully comprehensive BMW warranty can only help it to remain a very desirable example.

I do have quite a high excess amount, but smallish bills I can handle. Big ones I'd prefer to be insured against. In my opinion, a car as special as the 1M deserves tip-top treatment by every measure, and £300 is a small price to pay for both peace of mind, and making the car more attractive to any potential buyers. Not that I'm ever selling it, mind you

[moram3]

From own experience I would highly recommend a warranty as my engine went pop a few months back which resulted in a circa. £8,000 repair bill. Typically, the failure occurred about 1 month after the manufacturers 3 year warranty had expired, but thankfully I'd taken out the BMW extended warranty (Fully comprehensive and £0 excess). The issue was that the crankshaft bearing shell had spun round causing all sorts of damage and required a complete rebuild with new crankshaft, bearings, ancillaries. The dealer was unsure of the cause but believe it was down to oil starvation but there's never an issue with oil loss under my ownership (12 months / 6-7,000 miles) when it's only required me to put in the one 1 litre top-up.

The company behind BMW's extended warranty insisted on a rebuild as a new engine install would be in the region of £12,000. Also, the mileage on mine at the time of the incident was fairly low at just under 16,000

Thankfully, it's all running sweet again.

PS Also, just to make it clear before anyone asks, I'm not on commission for warranty sales.

[bdaddylo]

Originally Posted by moram3

From own experience I would highly recommend a warranty as my engine went pop a few months back which resulted in a circa. £8,000 repair bill. Typically, the failure occurred about 1 month after the manufacturers 3 year warranty had expired, but thankfully I'd taken out the BMW extended warranty (Fully comprehensive and £0 excess). The issue was that the crankshaft bearing shell had spun round causing all sorts of damage and required a complete rebuild with new crankshaft, bearings, ancillaries. The dealer was unsure of the cause but believe it was down to oil starvation but there's never an issue with oil loss under my ownership (12 months / 6-7,000 miles) when it's only required me to put in the one 1 litre top-up.

The company behind BMW's extended warranty insisted on a rebuild as a new engine install would be in the region of £12,000. Also, the mileage on mine at the time of the incident was fairly low at just under 16,000

Thankfully, it's all running sweet again.

PS Also, just to make it clear before anyone asks, I'm not on commission for warranty sales.

So was your 1M heavily tracked? Spun main or rod bearings aren't very common for the N54 unless oil starvation occurs which can rarely happen during normal street driving.

[moram3]

Originally Posted by bdaddylo

So was your 1M heavily tracked? Spun main or rod bearings aren't very common for the N54 unless oil starvation occurs which can rarely happen during normal street driving.

The car has never been tracked under my ownership and the failure occurred when I was driving fairly hard up a steep hill road in the Cairngorms. Also, there are no mods on the car other than an N55 mid-pipe.

[bparker007]

After two 325i's, two M3's and a 335i I would say I'm ahead for what I paid for the extended warranties throughout the years. My 335i just went over the 4 year mark and what a Zoo it is trying to find a good 3rd party warranty company with a good reputation. Back when BMW use to sell the 3rd party API warranty for really cheap when you purchased the car paid off big time. Now days they are much more expensive and BMW will only offer at the most the extra 3yr/100K max.

I'm looking at Alpha Warranty Services for around 3.1K which is a 6yr/100K $0 deductible new car extended warranty. They asked me to get the 335i checked with a long check list if I want the warranty to start without the 30 day / 1000 mile grace period. BMW did the check for free when I had the turbo recall service completed at the dealer a few days ago. Assurant Solutions wants 6K for the same warranty as Alpha through USAA which is way too high. Alpha, Assurant Solutions and BMW all use the same insurance company American Bankers of Assurant Solutions which is A rated.

When I sold one 325i and M3 they both were still under a 5yr/100K extended warranty and I never had problems getting the top retail price with the warranty attached.

If you plan to keep the car and rack up the miles it may be worth it with the BMW or a third party. For the short term I would bank the money as my warranty and hope for the best...