Dodge Caliber Forums banner
Cancel
Create thread New Garage Forums

Chrysler Extended Warranty

Jump to Latest
1 - 17 of 17 Posts

donsmith

· Registered
Joined
·
187 Posts
Discussion starter · #1 ·
Against my better judgement I let myself be talked into an extended warranty by Chrysler/Dodge, not a third-party extended warranty. Among the benefits listed is a rental car for free for up to a day (bring back the next day) anytime I leave mine for repairs, even if they wait woudn't be that long.

Call it buyers remorse or what have you, but I'm finding myself more and more skeptical of this or any extended warranty program. I let myself be talked into one years ago where I was promised the same thing for any repair that would take over two hours. Well, my new van needed a power window motor right away and I took it in. The service writer said he'd have to keep the vehicle all day. I said 'Fine, just give me a loaner as specified in my extended warranty'. He said, oh, that's if the repair ITSELF takes two or more hours, your WAITING for that repair doesn't count!'. Well, hell, it would take a short block replacement to go over two hours!

So, my question is this - Have any of you any experience with the Chrysler/Dodge extended warranty and can you tell me if I was a sucker?
 
#2 ·
I had one on my '99 Dakota. Saved me lots of money on repair cost after the original warranty expired. Had a power seat replaced under the extended warranty, which was $800 at the time. My warranty didn't have rental car re-inbursement though. Might want to look around for a dealer that offers loaners for long repair jobs. The dealer I went to before I moved to San Diego had a van they would use if the repair was going to take a while to take people wherever they needed to go in town, be it work, or just the mall. Give them a call when you were done and they'd come pick you up.
 
#3 ·
well lets say if you are a sucker then i have to be one to ,because i also let me talk in to one 7 years-115000km gold plan ,i just hope if something goes wrong that they will owner there waranty acording to the contract ,so i would like to know to am i a sucker ??? let me know,Cheers Thomas:p
 
#4 · (Edited)
Don,

Here is a previous discussion that reflects some early-on attitudes, opinions, and especially INSIGHT about the extended warranty:

http://www.caliberforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=201

I did buy the extended warranty, for the reasons cited in these 2 previous posts of mine in other discussions:

http://www.caliberforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=4010&highlight=extended#post4010

http://www.caliberforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=6486&highlight=extended#post6486

As far as experience with it, I will say that my Caliber has already spent 2 extended visits in the "shop" - the first for just over a week and the second time for 3 weeks. Although both were for the same factory (cosmetic) defect, there was no question or hesitation at all about loaner vehicles for either stay. The dealership provided vehicles (through Enterprise Car Rental - they picked me up at the dealership, took me to their office to complete paperwork, I returned the vehicle to their office when my Caliber was done, and they drove me back to the dealership to pick up the Caliber), all covered by the warranty.

I did not have, or felt it necessary to have, an extended warranty on previous Chrysler products because of the previous longer warranty periods. However, I do think that the current 3 year/36,000 mile warranty is not very long - and is especially inadequate for a first-year model vehicle.

As explained in one of the threads linked above, one of the reasons that may be attributed to the lower price of the Caliber (and that keeps prices from similarly escalating on other models) may be that the warranty is not as long as in the past.

My attitude is that I am certain to have some warranty-covered service concerns, with related loaner vehicle needs, during the period from 3 to 7 years from now - or between 36,000 to 70,000 miles. As I posted in one of the other linked discussions, I did the math to figure what it cost me per month or mile for that extra 4 years and 34,000 miles.

Considering the cost of repairs, plus the daily cost of rental/other temporary replacement vehicles, I'll likely come out ahead financially with the extended warranty - while NOT having the hassles of dealing with the relative uncertainty if I did not have such coverage.

Plus, as I also stated in those previous discussions, a lot depends on how long a person keeps or plans to keep the vehicle. I tend to keep them at least 8-10 years. My plan is to keep this Caliber that long; therefore, it will be mostly covered by warranty for the much greater part of that period. However, if someone only plans or usually only keeps a vehicle about 3-4 years, an extended warranty is not feasible anyway.

As far as your personal experience, that is one of those things that happens when what is promised and what actually happens when the time comes to provide their promise tend to become obvious when the dealership seems to either manipulate wording or clarify something that was not well articulated by them in the first place.
 
#5 ·
One thing I didn't mention is that, according to the terms of my factory extended warranty, it is transferrable (one time only to the second buyer).

Thus, if you do eventually plan to sell your Caliber while it is still covered under the extended warranty, this can be an additional selling point that can also potentially increase the value and selling price. I didn't look further, but I believe there is a $50 transfer fee, which seems quite reasonable considering the above benefit.
 
#6 ·
Generally speaking, more people will NOT see the fruits of their investment in an EW than will, otherwise, the EW people would be bankrupt!

DC may sell this EW paper to a third party (underwriter) and let them take on the risk of loosing, or, and this is what the buyer of that policy hopes, that there will be a profit in taking on the EW themselves as fewer take advantage of payouts than those who do, hence, the profit margin.

Personally, I have NEVER taken on an EW. I have owned, from new, a DC truck, van, PT and now the Caliber. On either of the first 3, if I paid for EW, I would have LOST as I have not had a major repair.

Your mileage may vary.
 
Save
Reply Quote Like Like
Discussion starter · #8 ·
I appreciate all the thoughtful answers. I actually would not care if I bought the warranty and never needed it. That would be just fine with me. I know that SOME people have to not need it for the plan to make money. It's basically insurance and insurance companies play the odds. I will only care if I need it and the warranty people find a way to avoid covering the repair. But, it sounds from the great answer posted here and by the links to the other threads that the Chrysler-provided warranty will do as it says if the time comes that I need it. That's all I wanted to hear. Thank you all very much.
 
#9 ·
I bought the extended warranty too.

The dealer said that I can cancel it at anytime, minus a pro-rated amount. Now that I think about it, maybe that might not be true. I guess I should read the actual warranty.
 
Save
Reply Quote Like Like
#10 ·
New engine, new tranny, new car and a heck of a lot of electronics running it all, a lot of peace of mind with the extended warranty.
 
Save
Reply Quote Like Like
#11 ·
I went with the Gold warranty. I thought it was a pretty good deal. Along with the usual "if something breaks" stuff, it also includes oil changes and tire rotations.

Now I wonder if the "oil changes" include synthetic.
 
Save
Reply Quote Like Like
#13 ·
My wife's last car ( Mitsu Montero) needed a new engine after only 60k miles, fortunately she wanted the extended warranty in which covered everything. Thus the reason for us geeting the maximum coverage (85K or 5y) on our new Cali. It's supposidely covers 5007 things on our car.
 
#14 ·
Nothing but good things can I say about Chrysler's Extended Warranty. This is the third time I have gotten it. Previous times it has proved itself it worth plus. The rental car is nice as well. At my dealership they pick you up and take over to fill out the paperwork. I return it back to the dealership and they take care of it getting back to the rental place.

I keep a vehicle for 7 years and it is nice to know that I don't have to worry about anything but tire and windshield wippers.

Oh, I always get the $0.00 deductible.
 
#15 ·
the warranty is good IMHO,but that depends on the dealer where you bought your car will he give you the rental car (i.e.) when you put yours on repair etc etc..but I think if its specified in the warranty that you cannot get the rental i.e. if the service is repairing your car within 2 hours it should be also written that they have to fix it in 2 hours and not leave the car all day in the service because of the 2 hour work..are you gettin me?dats my opinion and I think that a lot will agree with me
 
#16 ·
Principal said:
I went with the Gold warranty. I thought it was a pretty good deal. Along with the usual "if something breaks" stuff, it also includes oil changes and tire rotations.

Now I wonder if the "oil changes" include synthetic.
Click to expand...
I got the best warranty they have for SRT's, which includes up to 20 oil changes over 5 years. It was around $3200 for Plan 365. My car takes 7 liters of Mobile 1 0-40 Synthetic and that's a $150 price in Canada. Of course we're paying for this up front at the time of purchase, but if you figure it out going by the recommended change interval, every 3 months, it's about the same as what it would cost if you paid each time. Interestingly, my dealer said they only make $1.50 off this deal. I ALWAYS make sure they're using the right oil too by watching very closely.

It's nice as well to have the assurance that everything will be covered, including rental, meals, accomodation, towing, tire road hazard and pretty much everything you can think of. Well worth it IMO for the peace of mind.

Free rental/loaner cars ended for all vehicles in 2005. If you've got an 06/07 and your dealer gives you a loaner, well you've got a good dealer!

Medic
 
#17 ·
I also got the Chrysler Gold Warranty it's and awesome deal, plus i new the sales manager and got this warranty for cost... $700.

i would reccommend this warranty to everyone, just wish i could have gotten 7 yrs... but o well 5 yrs 100K will do
 
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
About this Discussion
16 Replies
14 Participants
Last post:
jayster_4_69
Dodge Caliber Forums
posts
395K
members
70K
Since
2005
A forum community dedicated to Dodge Caliber owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about SRTs, performance, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, maintenance, engine swaps, and more!
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
Caliber SRT-4 Discussion General Caliber Discussions Performance: Caliber SRT4 Specific Problems / Dealer Service New Member Introductions