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      02-19-2020, 09:46 AM   #1
lockescow
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US 3rd party warranty on used 2015 vs reliabilities

Im seeing quite a lot of good deals on 2015/2016 that i assume would be out of warranty coverage. Other than the drivetrain cannot restart issues and the windshield cracking, are there any other large and expensive issues to worry about once it's out of warranty? I'm looking into 3rd party warranty on used cars, which would allow me to shop beyond dealers and cpos, but insure of what sort of coverage they'll honor. Heard both good and bad about them. Has anyone been able to find a reliable 3rd party warranty coverage in the US and have them succesfully covered the warranty work? What sort of things do they normally covered? Im a fairly DIY effecient kind of guy, but electric car is all new to me.
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      02-20-2020, 07:34 AM   #2
patsgarageonline
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Very good question! The most stressful part of owning an i8 is risk of costly repairs. Transferring risk to a warranty company is a good idea in order to prevent losing a lot of money on expensive repairs.

I've heard a lot of good things about Carchex as a 3rd party warranty company, as they broker other insurance plans which warranty repairs. Some i8 owners purchased it before I called them and I saw reports that it covered a lot. I called them in late 2019 to see what coverage I could get, while my car was still under factory warranty with 21k miles, and I wanted to obtain coverage above and beyond the CPO. The maximum coverage I was eligible for was for drivetrain repairs. Nothing else would be covered. No one wants to take on the risk for warranting this car's repairs. They want to transfer the risk to the owner. The i8 can have no problems, or significant problems. I've read about drivetrain errors resulting in having the entire Electric Machine Electronics (that drive the front motor, manage the battery, control electric/gas interoperability, etc.) replaced and that's very expensive. So, I decided to make sure I have a reserve of about $10k on hand for repairs after my CPO warranty expires in Nov 2019. I will consider selling the car after my CPO warranty expires in order to reduce my risk or use that $10k for repairs and then immediately sell the car to avoid taking on any more risk.

One problem I've seen posted a few times is a general drivetrain failure which disables the car. This could be the result of the electrical machine electronics, which control the high voltage battery, electric motor, communication between the electric and gas engine, etc. This seems to be the most expensive situation the i8 could be in.
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      02-20-2020, 08:56 AM   #3
lockescow
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Really insightful response. Thank you, patagarage. Carchex was also what i saw while researching online as well. The worst case scenario you mentioned, would that be covered under their drivetrain warranty?

Ive been very lucky in my run-ins with worst case scenarios. Ive hit every big out-of-warranty items on my Lotus that not a lot of others have had, and the highest of it was a 5k engine-out wire harness replacement. Im dreading having the same luck again while owning an i8...
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      02-20-2020, 05:58 PM   #4
orion1977
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Here’s a thread on my experience: https://bmwi.bimmerpost.com/forums/s....php?t=1675462

Ultimately, I think the client gets shafted by both the dealer and the 3rd party warranty company. The dealer wants to over-repair and the 3rd party warranty company wants to under-repair. Hopefully the truth comes out from the middle of the two extremes.
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      02-21-2020, 12:33 AM   #5
lockescow
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@Orion, from your thread, it looks like the 3rd party extended warranty was worth it after all. Paid for itself in one use. I wonder if without it, you would have been able to negotiate the cost down to 1500 on your own.

Can we get a 3rd party warranty if the car is preowned but already out of warranty?
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      02-22-2020, 07:54 PM   #6
orion1977
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lockescow View Post
@Orion, from your thread, it looks like the 3rd party extended warranty was worth it after all. Paid for itself in one use. I wonder if without it, you would have been able to negotiate the cost down to 1500 on your own.

Can we get a 3rd party warranty if the car is preowned but already out of warranty?
It’s $4K for 6 years, so yes worth it. McLaren charges $4K per year!


Yes, I suspect you can get a 3rd party warranty even when it’s out of manufacturer’s warranty.
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      02-27-2020, 03:36 AM   #7
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Any advice on best after market warranty in the UK?

I've got about 6 months left after i bought mine which is currentyly with a comany called 'blackstar'. Problem that i didn't know when i bought it was that it has a £1000 claim limit so probably won't cover the major stuff that you would want it to! Wish i'd clarified that.
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