Warranties Are They Just A Waste Of Money?

[wackyjim]

Been thinking about buying a warranty for my "new" 2006 Rx400h but having trawled through the internet I'm more confused than ever. There appears to be so many exclusions and get out clauses in theses policies and most won't even cover hybrids however I've found 2 that will to a max of £2000 per claim ( excluding the actual hybrid battery) but I'm beginning to wonder if the £798 for 3 years cover would be better staying in my pocket and instead saved for the normal routine maintenance and service costs.My only concern is that the Rx is a complex beast and if something does go wrong then I could easily rattle up a four figure repair bill so before I decide I thought I would ask someone on here for their opinions.

[Stuno1]

Unless it's a extended manufacturer policy i believe they are a waste of money. I had one on a fabia VRS that was the top policy from warranty direct and had 3 claims declined due to small print.

Just bought my wife a Auris with supposedly 'top' warranty cover thrown in, water pump needed replacing and that was also wriggled out of by the company in question.

Stu

[rayaans]

Unless it's a extended manufacturer policy i believe they are a waste of money. I had one on a fabia VRS that was the top policy from warranty direct and had 3 claims declined due to small print.

Just bought my wife a Auris with supposedly 'top' warranty cover thrown in, water pump needed replacing and that was also wriggled out of by the company in question.

Stu

I agree with you on that one! The manufacturer warranties are the best as they actually do the work for you if you claim. The problem with other companies is that, as mentioned, they wriggle out of it and act like it was YOUR fault. Personally, I believe that Lexus vehicles (and im sure most of you will agree) are one of the best manufacturers for reliability if not the absolute best. Likelihood of problems is small and depending on the dealer, the prices arent too bad, nowhere near the extortion that RR, Audi, BMW, Merc charge you.

[stevet]

Just noticed you have had a few Land Rovers. I can see why you are thinking about a warranty :)

I'm on my 9th Lexus and only ever had one (ISF) that I got the extended warranty. May be just me being lucky but not had one single problem on any of them.

I've not got a warranty on my current RX400h but had the free Hybrid health check which covers the hybrid Battery for 12 months.

[royoftherovers]

Does not cover the entire Hybrid system Steve......read the small print. And read the Tony Richa saga !! (do a search)

Regards

John

[wackyjim]

Thanks Steve your right I've had plenty experience with Land Rovers and had my fair share of problems along the way, my current LS400 is 20 years old and has never let me down...Do Lexus provide a free Battery health check for all RX400h's?

[rayaans]

I had my previous RX300 for 8 years. Not a single issue.

Currently on the RX450h and its been 2 years already, no issues on this one either

[DanD]

I personally would not spend my money on an extended warranty for a Lexus either and take my chances. The most likely issues you will ever have will be due to wear and tear and this tends not to be covered by warranties anyway.

If you really want one, have you considered one from Lexus themselves?

[wackyjim]

^ Perhaps Dan but my car is part Lexus service part independent so might not be easy getting a warranty from Lexus?

[Jaspersilus]

Hi

only manufacturers worth having, had a top warranty direct policy on my old Laguna ( French Rubbish), had 3 problems during the warranty term and would nt pay for any!

Always shows a large list of whats covered, looks impressive, the list of whats not is far larger!

Cheers Jason

[ColinBarber]

When I purchased my RX400h I negotiated with the dealer to not sell it as an approved Lexus vehicle and removed the Lexus GB warranty. They put on their own third party warranty and I saved myself a few hundred pounds as I was confident it wouldn't be required. Had the vehicle for 5 years and only needed a couple of brakes discs and a 12v Battery after about 4 years ownership over and above standard servicing.

Now 400h vehicles are getting over 9 years old, and with that the possibility of a hybrid component failure is increasing, although still unlikely. This would be the only reason why I'd want a warranty and so a £2k limit or less isn't going to cover it. Personally I'd go without a warranty and source secondhand components if it had a major issue.

[mcleish]

Over the years, with owning newish Jeeps, RX's and Rav4's, I have found that "official" Manufacturers extended warranties are only worth your hard earned cash when it's a relatively new model and parts are really only available via main dealers.

The RX 300>350 and 400 fall out of this bracket in my opinion, as parts are readily available from 3rd party means, but there will nearly always be occasions when the only choice will be a main dealer.

Not owning a 450h, I do not really know if there are parts readily available outside of main dealers (yet).

If you buy any of the above models from a Lexus approved dealer, it will automatically come with a full years Lexus warranty and they are well worth it, but I would never pay for a non Lexus warranty, just not worth it (money wise and hassle wise) when it comes to a claim and they start with all the small print rubbish on how something is not covered.

PS: I am going to contradict myself here, but I am sure I am in the minority. When I bought my RX300 and it came to the end of its Manufacturers warranty, I did opt for the Lexus extended warranty, paid for it for 3 years and nothing happened....until there was a very unusual issue with the transmission and engine, cant really remember exactly what, but it cost almost £5k to fix and it was covered under warranty. The warranty at the time over a 3 year period cost me approx £3k, so in my case, it was worth it.

As always, its down to the individual to decide and take the gamble !!!

[joecash]

had a warranty on an e class mercedes from one of the so called "better" warranty companies. ECU packed up not covered - Turbo packed up covered for 50% of cost of part, could have got a refurbed one for less! - who won? warranty company.

Best value for money is the LEXUS £59 Hybrid check that warranties the hybrid system for a year. then get it checked again with a day to go for another £59 as long as LEXUS will do it.

Lexus warranty for an rx atm is on special offer as long as its less than 140k and 10 years old £995 for 24 months instead of 12 - check the small print!

[Valkirk]

Been thinking about buying a warranty for my "new" 2006 Rx400h but having trawled through the internet I'm more confused than ever. There appears to be so many exclusions and get out clauses in theses policies and most won't even cover hybrids however I've found 2 that will to a max of £2000 per claim ( excluding the actual hybrid battery) but I'm beginning to wonder if the £798 for 3 years cover would be better staying in my pocket and instead saved for the normal routine maintenance and service costs.My only concern is that the Rx is a complex beast and if something does go wrong then I could easily rattle up a four figure repair bill so before I decide I thought I would ask someone on here for their opinions.

Only a waste of money if nothing goes wrong ;)

That said you should be getting the Lexus Extended Warranty - for an RX over 5 years old it is £695 currently for 2 years, this also gives you breakdown cover as well - covers cars up to 10 years old, includes all the components including hybrid but there is a clause regarding multimedia which I think you can upgrade - have them checking for me as just purchased myself.

[wackyjim]

Thanks for the replies...I think I will "take a chance" if those are the right words and do without any third party warranty and hope that Lexus's legendary reliability stays good for me over the next few years