Hondacare Extended Warranty
 

My standard warranty coverage is coming up in a few months and I am thinking of purchasing extended coverage. Who has it? Used it? Where did you buy it from? Any info and help is appreciated. Should i even bother to look at 3rd party warranty?

Thanks.

You can fix a lot of stuff for the cost of a warranty. I've never purchased one and have never spent anywhere near the cost of one repairing a car. My most expensive repair has been $500 for something that would be considered normal wear and not covered by a warranty. Even if I end up with a costly repair to the S, I figure it's covered by the $6000+ that I didn't spend on extended warranties on the 5 new vehicles my wife and I have owned over the years.

Just food for thought. It seems to be expensive insurance to me.

It really is a gamble. I know Doug is in the same situation. He got his in spring of 2002 and now it's approaching spring 2005. I think for Doug though, he is going to go with a Honda extended warranty. Nothin' is too good for his Spa... :D Ask him when he gets back from Toronto.

I got the 7/100,000 warranty on mine, haven't used it yet. Well, actually I haven't had the car long enough to go past the standard warranty. Anyway, I did have a door lock cylinder replaced under warranty but the standard warranty would have covered that. If I had to do it over again I would not get the extended, I'm with Conedodger on this one. I never buy extended warranties on anything else, I'm not sure what possessed me to buy one on a Honda of all things! :confused: :banghead:

A slight counterpoint here:

My '01 is well past warranty (46k miles, if nothing else - some of us actually like to drive the car :stick: ). I've had a small variety of things go wrong that have mostly been covered by either warranty or dealer goodwill. Most of them have involved TSBs so I wasn't sweating them. However, since warranty expired, I've had the driver's door lock assembly replaced (wouldn't reliably lock/unlock using either the fob or the key) and a rear wheel bearing replaced (once per rev squeak - retorquing the axle nut helped for a couple of weeks but returned). In the process of replacing the wheel bearing, the ABS sensor on that wheel got damaged.

Dick Ide (I still love that name - almost as good as the Kodak VP who reigned over my division at one time - Dick Burnes) replaced the lock without charging me for the part. I don't recall the price for sure but it was going to be a ~$500 repair before they ate the part cost.

Holtz Acura was the one who replaced the wheel bearing and damaged the ABS sensor. I was miffed that they didn't catch the ABS light glaring at them but it was 5:45 PM on a Friday night when I picked it up so everyone, including myself, was in a hurry to leave. I took it back in and they told me it would be an additional $250 (I think) to replace it. I spoke to the service manager, explaining how I'd been a customer for years (he knew that as well as how I'm sponsored by them for autocrossing) and how recently I'd noted a slip in service performance. Nobody got mad, no harsh words were said, I told them I understood how parts can be damaged unintentionally and they replaced the part for free.

These events were enough for me to trigger a search for aftermarket waranties. They would have cost about the same as a Honda warranty but would have allowed me to get coverage after the fact where Honda wouldn't. I went around and around on it, especially with my impending loss of income due to retirement, and decided to not buy. I'll take my chances - it IS a Honda, after all, although a special one that not everyone can or should work on. Mileage pile up will decrease with lack of driving to work daily. I'll just need to put aside a small "warranty repair" fund to cover the eventualities...

This is from Doug in TO
I will be going with the extended pkg, my worry is terminal engine failure, we do not have the revised banjo bolts that Europe got and all F20c got right after mine was made.
I'll explain more when I get home, I will be shopping at Ontario.

To some degree, that might be worth it for a car that spends a long time at high rpm (although there's a lot of cars out there without the new banjo bolts that have spent a lot of track hours, too). Since my car spends 99.99% of the time driving to work, around town, trips, etc. at >6k rpm (maybe 75-80% of the time while autocrossing) it's much less of an issue.

And then there's the issue of whether the extended warranty would cover it anyways if there were any clues as to track useage...

I'll take my chances. My S is a 2000, long out of warranty. For minor repairs and such, I've just paid for it (weather stripping. I had my CV joints replaced and split the cost with Honda even though I was outside the tiem warranty (TSB helped). When my rear diff went last summer (26k miles) I again talked ot Honda directly and got most of it taken care of. Through the conversation , it comes down to Honda loyalty and what service shop you deal with. I live in a honda family, and have recommended 8 or 9 folks to Honda, all on record. Ontario Honda stuck by me, and has done outstanding work. For the price of a warranty, I could replace some big ticket items on the car. I only drive ~5k miles a year, all "hot" miles, but the mileage per year just doesn't make sense to have a warranty...

FROM DOUG IN TO

I suspect it could be a waste, but $1,000 for a policy or $10,000 for a new engine... I'll take the $1,000.

Oh, and Jeff, you need more time above 6k rpms! :stick:

Since I do mostly street driving, I'd get pulled a lot more than I already do. Don't need the hassle... ;)

The autocrossing season is nearing - I'll be able to get my fix soon. Until I get a way to sit on the floor there's little likelihood I'll ever be able to do any tracking. :mad:

Got extended W when I bought S used. Would not think of going without it on a car the revs to 9 grand. Have visions of rods flying thru hood etc.... Honda extended Warentee has been rated as the best one can get at 7 years or 100,000 miles for the engine and drive train only. If I had to buy it today I would get it from Hard Top Guy cause he can also fix it if it is major.

Where is hardtop guy located? Just curious ..

Cleveland, OH. He has delivered Hardtops to upstate NY members homes in past and is a pros pro. All dealers honor the contract but HT guy can give it that special knowledge that he has from fixing so many members screw ups. Check his sponsors site or group buys.

Good suggestion Nick!,

Also note any Honda dealer will do the repair work, you don't have to have the repairs done from the same place you got the extended warranty, so for those of us up here if the pricce is right this could work out very well.

In fact I think I'll give HT Guys a ring...

It really is a gamble I know, although I say I'm going to do it, I have to admit I'm still on the fence...

I know it may seem foolish, but I always have been the gamling type...Especially with the S paid for, i'd be out the car for a while, but not much more if I did have a problem....and with summertime so short, it just hasn't come up the money curve yet...

hardtopguy.com

I don't think you can beat his price! He just gave me a price that was a couple hundred lower than the dealers around here.

I have to make a decision soon, but after speaking to Jeff I'm about 90% sure. You guys have to remember the amout of track driving my car is subjected to. This year alone I already have 10 days scheduled and am looking for more.

Just be certain that no one will void the warranty because of track usage. That would be an expensive mistake to discover later.

Understood, but according to what I read most days, you and I are the exception to the rule; we like our Honda Dealers and have had great luck with them...

I was talking to Doug and John about this last Friday and it is unfortunate
that the coverage depends on the dealer. It would be nice to have some
guarantee that if you buy Honda warranty, it should be upheld by any Honda
dealer, within reason. Makes it a difficult decision for me as I may move from the area in the future.

Hardtop guy is one of us and is where to go if your issue happens on the track. How much does UPS charge for shipping a car to Ohio?

Holy Crap!
This just in from Ontario Honda.
Now I'm 99.99% sure I will be buying it.

Just to let you know Honda is also offering a 0% interest free payment plan on the Honda Care right now..you pay 10% down and then have 12 equal payments taken directly from your checking account or credit card at no interest.

I also bought the HondaCare warranty @ 100K/7yr/-0- deductible. I've been happy with the perceived extra attention I've gotten, including one pretty major engine problem....not long after the 36K expiration :thumbup:

Now I'm over 62K miles and looking at the 7 years coming up in October 2006 :eek: As some others have said, I got the warranty b/c of the unproven new vehicle/ engine/ drivetrain, etc. I'm not sure if I'll buy it for the next S...

When you first purchase the Honda Care you have an option of paying a little bit extra(~$100) which allows you to get a full refund for it if you don't ever end of using it over the period of time you had it. Might be something to look into.