My 2012 CM is nearing the end of it's 3yr/36k warranty and I'm considering extending it. It's an automatic non s. So far no major issues except for my spilling soda on the shifter. Since it's under warranty I keep up with the maintenance.

My main reasoning behind extending the warranty is because I'm not the best at putting money aside for car maintenance and repairs. Also for the peace of mind. I have the money to pay for the warranty so I'm thinking why not just prepay for these things now rather then delay things later cuz I've spent all my money.

I live in northern VA and passport MINI said the warranty would cost $1800.

I owned my last MINI for 7 years and think I will keep this one a long time unless I decide to go back to having a convertible.

So has anyone extended the warranty and is that the going rate? Is this the kind of thing I should be shopping around for? I'm at 33k so I have a few weeks left to figure it out.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

I recently extended my MINI CM with the MINI Maintenance Program Upgrade which extends the 36,000/3yr to 72 month, 100,000 miles which covers the routine maintenance items. And of course is not the same as the original 50,000 factory warranty. For example, it covers the clutch and labor but not the flywheel--see excerpt details below. Also it does not cover any abuse (for example if tracked). That said if I simply replace brakes I should break even, and if I need a new clutch, I am ahead. Dealer mentioned it is typical for a clutch by 60,000 miles.

So here is what I figured out. I was initially quoted $1,895+VA tax or $1,945.22 w/ tax on my 2014 JCW from my local Mini dealer (note: Virginia uses the lower auto tax vs regular retail sales tax.) I followed up by checking with other dealerships and found out these plans have a few hundred dollars they can work with. Some dealers it all goes to the dealership but some dealerships permit the finance person or finance manager with some discretion to negotiate. After very little haggling-- my local dealership took $100 off the offer. Further, by contacting other out of state dealerships I was able to easily get mine for $1,695 from a state that does not tax on warranty contracts. (The dealership will require a recent Key Read from your key fab scan within the month to set up the contract. But that can be from any dealership. For example, if you were in for any service, Mini will have it captured.)

One dealer website:
"Remember Mini provides 36 months and up to 36,000 miles of stress free motoring. Inquire today about how to protect your MINI by extending your maintenance for up to 72 months / 100,000 miles for only:

• $1,995 for COOPER Models
• $2,095 for COOPER S Models
• $2,195 for COUNTRYMAN and PACEMAN Models"

I should mentioned that Mini recently was offering couple hundred dollars off to promote the extended warranty. So the above dealer website numbers were a couple of hundred dollars cheaper last month (before July 1st).

Here is a what one dealer provided as a example:



From another dealership they only had a whiteboard showing BMW and MINI plans:



In the end I signed up for extended plan since I plan to keep my Mini for at least 100,000 well within the 6 years allotted.

 

I'm one of those that considers extended warranties in the category of snake oil. I've never purchased an extended warranty on any car or appliance I've purchased and have yet to regret it. I think of Las Vegas. Sure, there are occasional big winners but in the end the house always wins. That equates to the warranties being a crap shoot.

 

Ah....we're talking "maintenance plans" not warranty.

Warranty is 4yrs, 50k miles for USA; pays for stuff that fails, unexpectedly, not wear items like brake pads and clutch discs that just were used up.

Maintenance plan is 3/36, pays for service and wear items.

Good discussion, nonetheless...comparing the prepay cost versus the cost of each service during the timeframe. Or the cost of doing it on your own (in the example I ran, the dealer's offer was pretty close to what I'd spend doing in myself...with my "free" labor).

 

Yes, your correct I wanna extend the maintenance not the warranty (not yet at least).

My reasoning is that I have the money now so I consider it prepaying for these eventual expenses.

As opposed to not buying the extended maintenance and saying I'll save the money but instead I slowly chip away at it or hold off on maintenance because I don't wanna part with my cash. I'm just being realistic I should be more responsible but I'm not quite there yet.

I'm gonna start calling around to different dealers as suggested and seeing if I can get it any cheaper.

 

What happens to extended maintenance warranty if the car is stolen or totaled? Can you get a refund? What about if you decide to sell early, is it transferrable to new owner?

Basically prepaying at with today's dollars for something in the future is always an iffy case for me, the economics have to be so compelling that it would be a loser for Mini to be providing the warranty, which isn't normally how they operate.

 

The good news is that it is transferable to a new owner but not another Mini and goes with the car to the new owner.
I should mention that I am not pushing this. But I have owned my CM for less than a year, and I already hit 20,000 miles. I know I will use it as I drive a lot. Of course it would cheaper to do the maintenance myself or use a local mechanic, but with the brakes only, I think I will be ahead.

 

I got a minute to fish out my previous post, where I'd compared MINI's service plan to paying for the services as you go and to DIY. It was a LOT closer to my DIY than I'd have guessed. Here's the link...

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...omparison.html