Extended Warranty - A Wise Buy?

[Steve_996_4S]

Hi everyone,

As a new member I am seeking some advice from all you experienced 996 owners out there!

I own a 2003 996 4S, full OPC service history, done 32K miles, just had the 4 year service which it sailed through with no problems reported. I was asked by the OPC whether I would be interested in taking out the Porsche extended warranty at a cost of £895 per year.

Three questions:

1. Does it represnt good value for money? I can hear you say that like any insurance, if you make a claim it is worth every penny, if not it was a waste of money. But in general what would be your advice?

2. For those that have made a claim, was it starightforward or do Porsche look for a "get out" where every possible?

3. Are there any restrictions on the warranty that I should be made aware of?

I will be interested to hear your view.

Regards,

Steve

 

[NicD]

I have had a couple of claims and it was very straight forward, no quibbles at all, but others have had different experiences

 

[SNDa]

I would say an emphatic yes. At the outside, it's insurance against the gearbox and engine where they ever to give up the ghost. £895 plays upto £12k for engine replacement. for me, that was a lot of piece of mind and a no brainer when you think of how much is tied up in the car (financially and otherwise)

I have had no problems on those parts covered by the warranty.

 

[bobsprats]

My old GT3 developed an engine rattle that required an engine re-build, Not what you expect on a 3 year old 11k car, but was delt with on the Porsche extended warranty. I was most impressed, no problems at all other than some parts took a few weeks to arrive. When you see the price of the parts alone ( about £4k ) It was well worth the money. I also had a new steering rack a few months later, again delt with on the warranty, again no problems encountered.

My personel views are, When you buy a second hand 996, Get the warranty for at least the first year, until you get to know the car. Hopefully you will never have a claim, but if something big goes wrong, you will be glad you did.

 

[Guest]

Steve

This is a very common question and a search on the topic will provide you with plenty to trawl through; although as someone once said before, it may leave you feeling more indecisive!

The warranty does not cover everything, for example the cooling system expansion tank (for some unfathomable reason).
However, it does now cover RMS failures and other common oil leaks, which it didn't previously.
There is also comprehensive roadside recovery assistance included with the warranty although I'm not sure how much this is actually worth.

I had asked the same question, and ultimately made the decision to buy the extended warranty, the principal reason being to cover the cost of an engine failure, the cause of which can be varied on the M96 engine; but that's another subject.

Now this bit may raise a few eyebrows. When I was enquiring at my OPC about warranty coverage etc and seeking advice on 'whether or not to buy', I was told that if my 996 suffered an engine failure for example, and I had declined the offer of extending the warranty, Porsche would take this into consideration prior to making any 'goodwill' contributions to the cost of repairs! [&:]
(Interpret that as you wish!)

 

[Richard_Hamilton]

ORIGINAL: concept
Now this bit may raise a few eyebrows. When I was enquiring at my OPC about warranty coverage etc and seeking advice on 'whether or not to buy', I was told that if my 996 suffered an engine failure for example, and I had declined the offer of extending the warranty, Porsche would take this into consideration prior to making any 'goodwill' contributions to the cost of repairs! [&:]
(Interpret that as you wish!)

No pressure there then. Blackmail is the term that springs to my mind.

Interesting piece about the warranty in Peter Morgan's column in 911 & PW this month. Seems like passing a 111-point check is no guarantee that the car is a good one.

 

[Steve_996_4S]

Firstly, thank you to everyone that posted a reply to my questions regarding the extended warranty. My conclusion is that for peace of mind it is probably worth the outlay. If I did have a problem with the car, without the warranty, £895 could be very quickly spent at an OPC!

One further question, a lot of threads refer to the RMS, what does RMS stand for?

Regards

 

[jpbecker]

I'm not going to renew mine when it runs out. I have never renewed warranty on my less superior cars such as Saabs etc, why should I have to on a high quality product like this. If engine relacement stats are that bad, then there is a big problem. An amount like £895 pa can buy alot towards normal wear and tear in my mind!

My view anyway![]

 

[Guest]

RMS is Rear Main Seal, where the crank exits the case.

 

[Dylan1]

ORIGINAL: jpbecker

I'm not going to renew mine when it runs out. I have never renewed warranty on my less superior cars such as Saabs etc, why should I have to on a high quality product like this. If engine relacement stats are that bad, then there is a big problem. An amount like £895 pa can buy alot towards normal wear and tear in my mind!

My view anyway![]

in my experience 895 is well worth it for peace of mind-and £895 at an opc only buys a few cups of coffee[]

 

[jpbecker]

Hi Dylan,

I guess it's like any insurance, you pay your money or take your chances! Everyone has their own view, but how many of us would pay for a warranty extension on normal cars? I nearly bought a yacht instead of the car and I wouldn,t extend the warranty on that either!

 

[Diesel130]

ORIGINAL: SNDa

I would say an emphatic yes. At the outside, it's insurance against the gearbox and engine where they ever to give up the ghost. £895 plays upto £12k for engine replacement. for me, that was a lot of piece of mind and a no brainer when you think of how much is tied up in the car (financially and otherwise)

I have had no problems on those parts covered by the warranty.

Agree totally. I took the warrantee on mine primarily for peach of mind re engine issues, so was well chuffed when mine went in for a service the other week and the OPC service manager phoned me up sayig they'd detected a leak on the front nearside radiator and were going to replace it under warrantee.

 

[Steve777]

After spending my hard earn't cash on an 03 C2 I wouldn't leave home without the warranty. 895 is a small percentage of the cars price for peace of mind

Had two small claims so far. A switch failed so the alarm woudn't set properly and an electric windown switch problem. All sorted out under warrnaty no probs

 

[Guest]

ORIGINAL: jpbecker
.....Everyone has their own view, but how many of us would pay for a warranty extension on normal cars? .....

You're right of course, but I think the main decider here is the risk of engine failure as these units are known to blow.
Problem is, we don't know the actual extent of failures because we don't have any figures to go by to enable us to weigh up the risk; so it's a bit of a gamble.
Nevertheless fail they do - and if they do, it's a lot of cash to stump up at one go.

BTW, any reports of 997 unit failures at all or do all the M96 issues seem to have been sorted?

 

[Guest]

ORIGINAL: dyllan
in my experience 895 is well worth it for peace of mind-and £895 at an opc only buys a few cups of coffee[]

Yes, but you do get a Porsche chocolate biscuit with it as well, what more do you want?

Sheesh, some people.

[]

 

[Steve777]

I guess another way to look at it is that its less than 9 hours labour at an OPC

 

[Rotorhead]

ORIGINAL: concept

ORIGINAL: jpbecker
.....Everyone has their own view, but how many of us would pay for a warranty extension on normal cars? .....

You're right of course, but I think the main decider here is the risk of engine failure as these units are known to blow.
Problem is, we don't know the actual extent of failures because we don't have any figures to go by to enable us to weigh up the risk; so it's a bit of a gamble.
Nevertheless fail they do - and if they do, it's a lot of cash to stump up at one go.

BTW, any reports of 997 unit failures at all or do all the M96 issues seem to have been sorted?

The Porsche Extended Warranty is an insurance policy, and the premium will have actuarially calculated to meet the anticipated claims and provide the underwriter and retailer with a profit. The modest premium of £895 pa would indicate a relatively low claims expectation.

However, being so inexpensive (less than £18 per week), it makes sense to renew and maintain it. It covers most eventualities, from a new RMS seal to a new engine. It also makes any Porsche much easier to sell privately.

 

[jpbecker]

Without shooting me guys, I really don't think these big ticket failures are common place, perhaps I've jinxed myself now[]. I am just so sick of the amount of insurance policies we have to take out on everything we own, sometimes you have to take risks. Don't you think if a 997 engine blew without missuse, Porsche would goodwill a repair? It wouldn't look good in the paper compared to a guy with a 25 year old Skoda who still on his original engine! I know the engine is less stressed but you can see my point.

 

[Diesel130]

ORIGINAL: Steve777

I guess another way to look at it is that its less than 9 hours labour at an OPC

Wow - you've found a cheap OPC. Mine is 110 + VAT, so its less than 7 hours labour !!!

Where do you go ?

 

[Steve777]

Maybe its 110+VAT. Can't remember. But either way its not a lot of labour for a 895 peace of mind on cars that costs a small fortune to buy and run. I'll be renewing mine in September for sure