Let's Talk Extended Warranties

JWalker

Northeast Region Director-Retired
Well I'm just about ready to turn 10,000 miles on my 07 Dodge and I'm thinking of getting an extended warranty plan, now that the factory warranty has expired. It seems every company has a different version. I have narrowed it to 2 plans. One is from Dodge, called Easy care. The other is from Vehicle Assurance/Enterprise Finacial Group.

Any goods or bads about each. Thanks for the help.

Jamie
 

jnbhobe

Well-known member
Jamie; My experience is all with Ford and a couple of GM plans and Western National. Now days I won't buy any warranty that is not backed by the manufacturer, For me that means the Ford ESP plan. If the Dodge plan is backed by Dodge itself thats the one I would go with. Remember if you do any work yourself, Keep records.
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
I agree with Jon, but 3 others are good also. Western national, Western general, and GE Capitol. Your main concern is what is covered and where is it good. This to say, is it accepted anywhere, do you have to pay up front and then hope they pay you. Read all exclusions very carefully. I believe you get the GM "GMPP" policy on your Dodge.
 

GOTTOYS

Well-known member
Chrysler offers the CSC plan or Chrysler Service Contract. They are affiliated with the manufacturer and are honored at any Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer. I have experience with them as well as the GMPP plan offered by General Motors. In my opinion the Chrysler plan was a little more liberal and easier to work with. Plans backed by the manufacturers are usually heads above those in the aftermarket with few exceptions. You may shop the CSC plans online and find that several dealers will sell them over the internet for about 1/2 of what your local dealer may charge for the exact same plan. If I was going to purchase a Service Contract for my Ram, I would not consider anything else. Then on the other hand..only putting 2,000 miles a year on your Dodge why do you want to waste your money on a Service Contract at all? With that small amount of miles what do you think is going to go wrong? The truck won't even be broken in for 7 or 8 more years. In fact, maybe you should sell the truck and rent or one when you need it..JMHO...Don
 

JWalker

Northeast Region Director-Retired
With that small amount of miles what do you think is going to go wrong? The truck won't even be broken in for 7 or 8 more years. In fact, maybe you should sell the truck and rent or one when you need it..JMHO...Don

I'm sorry, I'm new to diesel trucks. How many miles a year do you need to put on, until something goes wrong?
 

brianharrison

Well-known member
I'm sorry, I'm new to diesel trucks. How many miles a year do you need to put on, until something goes wrong?

No apologies needed! In general diesel powertrains are known to be trouble free workhorses for many years. Mileage is mostly irrelevant; yes, there are some wear parts on the power train that can deteriorate with increased mileage however these are easily maintained with good care and service.

Unfortunately it is the truck around the powertrain that seems to become troublesome with age - little things start to creep in just like any vehicle, diesel or gas. The bumper to bumper warranties do help with these if you do not want to be troubled with these things and wish to just "take it to the dealer, without the hassle of paying hundreds of dollars per hour shop rate to fix a little thing".

In general and as mentioned, I would purchase the extended warranty from the manufacturer (Dodge) as they pay upfront, vs aftermarket where you pay and get reimbursed. The Dodge route will authorize, conduct and pay for the warranty with no hassles, the 3rd party warranty company may become troublesome if all parties do not agree it is a warranty claim. My $0.02.

Hope this helps,

Take care,
Brian
 

lwmcguir

Well-known member
As others have said, the only warranty worth the money is from the Manufacture and if you are a low mileage driver then save your money.
 

GOTTOYS

Well-known member
I'm sorry, I'm new to diesel trucks. How many miles a year do you need to put on, until something goes wrong?

The Cummins diesel has a design life of 375,000 miles the last I heard. I have almost 25,000 on my 2010 and it's never been in the shop for anything but a couple small time recalls. In reality the chances of your truck needing a repair of any consequence is very, very slight with the amount of use it gets. It would be much better for the truck if you took it out and exercised it at least once a month. A lot of the seals and gaskets need to be kept wet to keep from failing. A 30-40 mile run to warm it up good will prevent having to spend a lot of money on repairs. If you do choose to purchase a Service Contract read it over carefully. The term "Bumper to Bumper" is the one of the biggest lies in the industry. Look at what it doesn't cover as well as what it does....Don
 

jnbhobe

Well-known member
If I'm not mistaken Jamie just bought this truck with 7K miles on it. He is driving it as a daily driver and putting a lot more miles than the previous owner.
 
I need some advice on this topic, I am working on picking up my 2012 Cyclone 3950 in the next couple of weeks. I would like to know what would be the best route for the Extended Warranty and what type of insurance will I need to live in it fulltime with the family?

Thanks
 

GOTTOYS

Well-known member
Why worry about an extended warranty on something that has at least one year of factory warranty on it? Wait until you are close to the factory warranty running out then decide if you need something or not...Most extended service contracts, (they're not really warranties) aren't worth much. Once again look at what they don't cover not what they do cover. The only one worth buying in my opinion if you must buy one, would be the Good Sam product...Do
 
First, sorry for the long post:

I've got a 2003 Ram 1500 4x4 Hemi and have put 243,000 miles one it. I have had all the fluids changed at their normal interval. This means oil, transmission, transfer case, differentials, and including radiator flush, fuel filter, and a/c regen. My truck has not seen the shop for anything other than a service since I got it new except for brakes and/or tires. It is bagged (Firestone LoadRite) and I have pulled a 24 foot enclosed trailer between VA, Florida, and Louisiana for most of those miles. Before that I owned another 2003 Ram 1500 4x4 Magnum, and two 2005 Ram 1500 4x4 Hemis. Sold them all just before 100K miles. Currently, I also have a 2006 5.9L Cummins 4x4 Mega Cab DRW with 62,000 miles on it. It is my workhorse. I also use it to pull our Sundance 3000RK and it has been all over the southern states between Florida to Louisiana to Virginia and back. The only mods are a 4" exhaust, 100gal auxiliary tank from RDS, and the 5th wheel slider. Same thing with this one, I follow the recommended service interval. I rotate between the Chrysler/Dodge dealer, and don’t laugh…Valvoline, Midas, and Jiffy Lube. Never had a problem with any of them. Depends on where I am when it’s time for a service. Even had it done at a Pilot Truck stop.

Anyway, none of them ever had the ESP except this 5.9L Cummins. Why? One, it's my absolute baby. It has given me the best drive for the money I have ever spent. Second, for no other reason than piece-of-mind. If something goes wrong somewhere, I don't want to have to spend more than my deductable. For me, everything on those 1/2 tons is replaceable and something I can do myself or get help with. Those diesels are something different. I'd rather have a specialist (preferably from Cummins and not a Dodge dealer) take care of it if there ever was an engine issue. That would cost a lot of money. My gut tells me that I will never get a cent out of that ESP because I have never had an issue with any other vehicle that I have ever owned. But, for me, this was that one special time that I simply wanted piece-of-mind. That alone was worth the money for me.

BTW, it does not matter who you buy your plan from, just make sure they cover everything you want it to and make sure you read the fine print. There are a lot of really bad one’s out there, so do your research. If you can get the one from Chrysler/Dodge, go with that one.
 
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