Extended warranties on used cars

[Craig D Peltier]

Im thinking of buying a used range rover. A person I know from neighborhood friends is the head of the service dept at land rover near me. he talked to me on the lot yesterday and told me these cars have a lot of electronics. Buy and extended warranty. The vehicles im thinking of buying are out warranty.He also said buy from 2006 and newer. Due to BMW engine in pre 2005 to Jaquars in 2006 and up. replacement BMW engine for example 16k new Jaq engine 6k.
Does anyone have experience or name of a company to get a quote from that you have used.I heard through the dealership you may pay a quite a bit more.I know to read the fine print to make sure what is covered is what im looking for.

Thanks

[Jeff Monson]

Craig, get a hold of Paul Ryan, he is a member here on SMC, he works with extended warranties for a living, he will steer you in the right direction for sure. I would not buy a used rover without a warranty plan, as you stated "read the fine print" on what is covered, you will want a plan with extensive electronic, and gaskets + seals coverage.

[Chuck Wintle]

Personally i would not touch a used or new Range Rover. These vehicles have problems above the average for the this class of transportation.

[David Weaver]

Personally i would not touch a used or new Range Rover. These vehicles have problems above the average for the this class of transportation.

I would agree with this.

If you absolutely can't resist the temptation to buy an inferior high--frequency and high-severity repair vehicle, I wouldn't buy any warranty that isn't from the manufacturer (not the dealer, the manufacturer). At least not without a LOT of study and VERY thorough reading of contract terms from a company that has been around for a LONG time.

There are a lot of people getting ripped off by third-party warranties, even if the "ripping off" is because of contract terms that are cleverly worded but legal.

[Bruce Page]

Personally i would not touch a used or new Range Rover. These vehicles have problems above the average for the this class of transportation.

Wise words. Google "Range Rover quality/reliability ratings"

“Reliability isn’t a strong suit.” -- Car and Driver

[Al Wasser]

I can't speak to a Range Rover. I tend to think an extended warranty is good if you will keep the vehicle for some time. We bought a used Maxima and got and extended warranty. We lost the AC in Oklahoma. The warranty paid for itself on that single repair. You also need to consider your driving history - ie, high mileage per year or low mileage. In our case it was for 100,000 or 5 yrs. The warranty ran out before we got to the 100,000

[Greg R Bradley]

I bought a new Range Rover in 1989 and drove it 188K, mostly hard adventure use. Fabulous vehicle, which made the dozen or so other 4-wheel drives I have owned seem poor. Rugged and reliable with very little electronics. The two issues that were unexpected were electrical, an AC switch and the tailgate solenoid each failed twice.

I wouldn't even consider the newer ones with all the nonsense in them. They have a very poor reliability record. The people I know that own them do love the way they drive.

[Craig D Peltier]

After getting quotes on after market warranties I decided against it. It was 7100 for 4 years and 48k miles.I will do that in 3 years. Its too bad the quality isnt superior for an 80-110k truck. Its by far the prettiest looking SUV out there inside and out. Only way I would do it is new from dealer , 3 year lease or buy and return it as warranty ruins out. I have a friend who has an 2010 Range Rover HSE Sport. Over $100k, its been in the shop 11 times.

For me I just wanted a 4x4. I may get my same model Jeep in 4x4 with low miles.

Thanks

[David Weaver]

I'm confused about what's in an RR that makes it a $100k vehicle.

I remember thinking they were goofy when they were 65k because they were:
* less reliable than other SUVs on the market at the time
* had less power and were slower
* mileage was just as bad or worse

I hear the girls like them, though. Expensive cars attract expensive girls, though. Bad combination!!

[Orion Henderson]

The saying with Range Rovers is "They will get you there, they just won't get you back". I heard it from a very nice woman who had one. I love em, but would never have one as a daily driver (even if it were in my price range). Now a used or gray market Defender? That would be nice-no electronics to break.

[David Weaver]

I would imagine that the polite company here hasn't seen the movie Step Brothers (and you probably shouldn't if you're polite), but every time I see someone step out of a range rover now, I'm reminded of the brother "Derek" in the movie.

[Craig D Peltier]

The saying with Range Rovers is "They will get you there, they just won't get you back". I heard it from a very nice woman who had one. I love em, but would never have one as a daily driver (even if it were in my price range). Now a used or gray market Defender? That would be nice-no electronics to break.

I think 40k for one of those is pretty outrageous thats in decent shape. There all over 15 years old that you can legally own in the US.

[Orion Henderson]

I think 40k for one of those is pretty outrageous thats in decent shape. There all over 15 years old that you can legally own in the US.

The guy who does "Chasing Classic Cars" has an exotic dealership that is on my way to work. Some years ago I bought a nice, but by no means exotic, used car from him. He had a pair of Defender's for sale. One had about 5000 miles (4 or 5 years old at the time) and he was asking 5 or 10K over the original MSRP. When I asked about it his quote was hilarious-"well, someone has to pay for those miles."

Mind you he is a good guy and a nice guy, he was just selling for market price.

BTW-you can order one direct from Land Rover today and have it shipped. Just no dealer support. You might have to bring it through Canada or Mexico to get into the states. It can be done.

[Paul Ryan]

I work with extended warranties every day. Usually multiple times a day. Like anything there are good warranties and bad warranties. Rule of thumb, for the few extra bucks buy an extended warranty from the manufaturer. In most cases it will save you headaches in the future. There are some good aftermarket warranties. But never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever, buy an extended warranty from a post card solicitation, or an advertisement you see on television. You might as well give me your money. Or put it in your fire place and get some heat out of it, that will be more than you will get out of it form one of the "solicitation" warranties.

[Pat Germain]

FYI, a friend of mine bought a late model, used Range Rover several years ago. He got it for what he thought was a steal. He soon found out why. Not only was the vehicle notoriously unreliable, nobody but the Rover dealer would touch it. He couldn't get the oil changed outside the dealership. He couldn't find parts outside the dealership. And, of course, every type of part and service at the Rover dealer was sky-high. He promptly sold the Range Rover.

Just something to consider before buying.