I'm sure the dealer tried to sell everyone on an Extended Warranty(s). Mine was no exception. An extended warranty to add 3 years to Mini's factory warranty was $3500 and an additional warranty to cover the tires and wheels against damage of any sort was $1700! Needless to say I declined the warranty offers. I couldn't see spending the money up front like that for future repairs after 4 years. Also, the tires (Pirelli RFs) carry 100% free replacement in the 1st year for road hazards and defects.

What is everyone's thoughts on this subject? Also, any recommendations for a 3rd party Extended Warranty that is reasonably priced?

 

Never! Only good if you need them, which is rare enough that the house wins. They have enough of a mark up to make them discountable so bargain away if you must have. Or get out of the car at warranty time up and get a new one.

 

I was quoted $895 for MINI tire 'n wheel, which does NOT cover cosmetic damage. And you're right, the RF tires on your Clubman carry a very comprehensive 1 year warranty from Pirelli.

Cosmetic rim repair runs between $75 - $150 per rim, depending on the finish of the rim and the extent of rim damage. I'd rather purchase a new set of rims and tires for under $1,500 for all 4 corners than do the insurance.

Extended warranties are really service contracts and the aftermarket ones often have more ways for the company to get out of paying than ways for you to get paid for repairs. And I'm sure that $3,500 "extended warranty" could be obtained for much less, if you feel there is value to be had at any reasonable price.

The reason I lease and have leased for many years is I'm never out of warranty and I always am driving the newest and the latest. With vehicle design and technology evolving quickly, it's enjoyable to drive the latest at very reasonable cost. Every calculation I have done works out in favor of leasing in my particular circumstances. The one exception I made was in 2010, when I purchased a fully optioned 2008 Jaguar XJ lease return with 13,000 miles and a 6 year Jaguar select edition comprehensive warranty. The car had brand new Pirellis (NOT RUN FLATS), 19" high line rims, and was purchased for 50% of original sticker price. I put 50,000 miles on that car in 3 years of ownership, paid only for oil changes, and still had substantial equity when I traded it in for a lease on a new 2012 Jag XK.

The major drawbacks to leasing are mileage limits and, of course, needing to return the car as acquired, thus limiting customization and performance mods.

The most economical thing to do, of course, is to purchase a near-new vehicle, maintain it well, and keep it for 10 years or more. My wife still drives her 1984 Jaguar, which was a very low mileage lease return that we bought for her in 1988 -- it still looks brand new and, given our length of ownership and the fact that I paid $24,000 for it in 1988 and it's probably worth $5,000 now, it's been the best transportation bargain I've ever had.

So, how long to do plan to keep your beautiful new Clubman? How much and how hard do you drive? Are you in a position to salt away $100/month on the chance that in three years, if you still have the car, you might need $3,500 in repairs? And then, of course, if you have salted away $3,500 and you don't need repairs and you start craving that new car smell... you've got your Clubman as a trade and $3,500 that you didn't give the dealer for insurance you never used

The art to life is managing risk.

 

Chances are I'll keep this car quite awhile. The last car I had for 17 years and only had 89,400 miles on it when sold! I also do most repairs on my cars as I have been turning wrenches for the last 35 years on all of my cars. I expect, this one will be more difficult to do any major repair, but maintenance, brakes, etc. will be done by me. I do have a tendancy to push my cars hard, but not to the point of abuse. I will be taking my chances after the warranty is out, but I'm willing to risk it. I figure, by the time the warranty is out, I will know what kind of issues I might be dealing with to the point of deciding to keep the car or trade it.

 

You are taking a very wise and reasoned approach. IMHO.

 

Agree. I am the same as Gearhead60. Been wrenching all my life, though this is the first car I actually ever ordered new. Extended warranties are huge money makers for the sellers, and for good reason. We put few miles on our cars also. The Clubman is my wifes DD, as was our 2008 ClubmanS. Which only had 50k miles on it when we took delivery of the 2016. We bought it in mid 2010 with 19k on it. So about 5k a year is typical, which makes any extended warranty a typical loser. When the dealer tried to sell us the extended warranty, I stated plainly, that if I needed warranty work on a 4 year old car with 20k miles on it, I was dumping it fast! My 911 is a 2002 and only has 57k on it. I use a company car or rental much of the time, and have a work truck for bad weather. Far better to bank the monthly warranty money oneself, be self insured, and enjoy actually using it for the next car, if nothing goes wrong. For instance, the only things that I had done on the 2008 was the timing chain tensioner, cassette, etc, replaced under the recall, at 42k miles. If we had the typical miles on it for that year, I would have had to pay $2500, or do it my self for $750, which is what I would have done. But then, I would not have been reimbursed. I also had to replace the oil ines to the turbo, the seals on the oil cooler, & the Tstat...all in early 2016, none of which would have been covered under a +3 or +4 year extended warranty work on a 2008, which at the dealer would have cost about $2500. But I did the work myself, with the better Detroit Tuned parts for under $400. So no matter how you look at it, if you drive low miles, have the skills, room, and tools, the extended warranty is far more likely to cost you way more than you get out of it. Which is how the sellers make so much on them.

 

The only time we ever bought an extended warranty was for our 1992 VW Passat. The dealer wanted $1200 for it at the time and we beat them down to $700. It paid for itself eventually. If the dealer had said $1000-1500, I might have had pause to consider it and then try and push it down. $3500? Go screw yourself!

 

I work at a MINI dealership and we don't mark the pricing up at all. We just give you the cost that BMW of North America sets on the warranty. If you are interested, PM me your VIN (last 7) and I will get you pricing straight off the site.

 

PM sent

 

I'm just a bit confused about your dealership's pricing on "...the cost that BMW of North America Sets on the warranty."

Are you saying you sell the warranty at "dealer cost," or at the suggested retail price that BMWNA recommends?

Thanks for clarifying this for us.

 

So with a great majority of dealerships, there is a finance department that can hike up the prices of warranties and maintenance packages, and the tire/wheel, windshield and all the other products. My dealership does not have a finance department so we just sell them at cost. The most expensive warranty I have seen on a Clubman so far has been 3,750 which would match CPO coverage plus a year for 7 years or 100k miles.

It is one of the biggest things I love about our center is since we don't have a finance department we don't have to play games with people. It is the number one thing I hate about dealerships and I don't think I could ever work for a dealership that had a finance department. Even buying a car is easy, everything gets done through the MA so they don't have to play back and forth and trying to sneak things around.

 

Thank you Camyman for the prompt response and the clarification.

I was quoted $895 for tire 'n wheel for a 3 year/30,000 mile lease and I had no way of knowing where that price was in relation to dealer cost. When I looked at everything that the package didn't cover, and I realized the Pirelli tires came with a 1 year warranty from Pirelli, I passed.

 

Huh... That seems like a weird level of coverage. We do a 3-year package but there's no mileage limit and it covers cosmetic damage as well. Even if you purchase different tires for the car, they are covered. Whatever is installed on the car is covered. So when clients purchase a set of wheels and tires for winter, those are covered, or even if they buy snow tires, and something happens, they are covered. I wish I would have gotten it because I have already scraped the ever loving snot out of the passenger side wheels (35 profile run flats on 19" wheels and a LOT of sharp curbs at work and home) and that would have been somewhere around 1200 if I remember correctly. I am seriously considering an F60 countryman after seeing a prototype yesterday at a corporate level event we held. The weird part is that my fully loaded build on the countryman I want is LESS than my Clubman which is missing a few thousand dollars in options.

That being said, we only offer the best options to our clients and we are brutally honest. I refused to let a client purchase a maintenance package because they weren't driving enough.

 

Your dealership isn't selling at cost, they are selling at msrp. Otherwise you'd be looking for a new job.

 

I usually get wheel and tire and my old Countryman went through about four tires in three years due to punctures, bubbles, etc. With the Clubman I just ordered, I added wheel and tire. Past experience with my father's BMW Wagon - four tires also in three years led me to make that choice. Made interaction with the dealer much easier when it came to tire pressure issues.

 

And I thought our roads here in Chicagoland were bad...wow! Just over 20 years with three former daily drivers and only 1 tire killed with a sharp edged pot hole, otherwise simply worn out. Add to that, 25+ years with my 'toy' Mustang and zero tire loss from road hazards. Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket?!?

Back to the subject at hand...I couldn't find any appreciable value in any of the warranty packages offered up by my dealer. As I get closer to the end of the factory coverage, I will likely look at them again and make a final call. Since I generally keep my rides for 8-10 years it may make some sense at some point to consider it.

 

I consider extended warranties 'snake oil'. I've never bought one for any car or appliance I've purchased since 1952 and have yet to regret it. Sure there are occasional winners just like there is in Las Vegas but in the end the house always wins.

 

I never heard of paying for an extended warranty on tires and wheels and can up with a reasonable explanation why anyone would?

 

Wheels are expensive and, especially on leased vehicles, need to be restored to near-new condition at lease end. Low profile tires do little to cushion impact, resulting in bent and destroyed wheels in areas where the roads are bad and full of pot holes. Run flat tires are costly and can rarely be repaired. Even a small puncture might demand replacement of the entire tire at significant cost.

The challenge is determining the right value for tire and wheel protection and to find truly comprehensive protection insurance that covers cosmetics, doesn't limit the number of allowed claims, and isn't a hassle to use.

The reason BMW and MINI sell so much of this is the high prices dealers charge for replacement wheels and tires. As leasing has grown in popularity, many people just pay the extra bucks every month to avoid any lease return hassle.

The question always is one of value. Dealers often inflate the cost of these insurance plans to increase profits on otherwise thin margins on cars. For people who are willing to pay a lot to avoid hassles, there is value. But as insurance, it is expensive even if one can negotiate a rock bottom price. People often end up paying a lot for the coverage when, for less money, new/better tires and rims for all four corners can be purchased.

 

As your argument illustrates, why I can't understand.

I've been driving over 50 years, on and off road and have had one two tires destroyed. Never a rum.

 

No logical reason to buy the extra warranty. Some people like the comfort of not having to deal with the issues at all so they pay upfront to the delight of the dealers pocketbook.

Old timers, myself included prefer to ignore the scare tactics and pay at the end if things go south.

I've destroyed a bottle of rum in my time, rims not so much.

 

I once purchased "Wear Care" insurance which used to be offered by Jaguar when Ford owned Jaguar. For $700 one could turn in the Jag at lease end with fully-worn tires, chipped windshield, small tears in the leather, small door dings, worn brakes, gravel chips, and curb-rashed rims. It was a great deal on a 45,000 mile lease. After 3 years of carefree driving, all I had to do was park the car at the dealer and drive off in my next new car. Brakes and tires, both of which were needed, would have exceeded the $700 cost of the insurance, plus I never had to worry about the inevitable paint chips on the hood or the condition of the wheels or windshield.

I also purchased 3rd party wheel protection on another leased Jag, for $300, which included annual treatment with a wax product to reduce brake dust adhesion and coverage for curb rash, which, on the 20" rims, was inevitable. This coverage wasn't comprehensive but did take care of a few hundred dollars of cosmetic rim repair when it was time to turn the car in at lease end. I figure I broke even on this at best.

I did not purchase MINI Tire 'n Wheel coverage because, for the $895 offered price, I couldn't see the value since I knew I was going to replace the Pirelli run flats with other tires immediately upon delivery of my Clubman plus cosmetics were not covered. I spent less than $500 for excellent new tires and I ordered the factory spare & jack for $100 and I have the nearly new Pirellis in my garage so I can turn in my Clubby at lease-end with the required run flats in excellent condition. If the black factory rims need cosmetic work, I can have that done for about $75/rim. If I trash a rim, which has never happened to me in almost a million miles of driving, my insurance agent informs me there is a high likelihood my comprehensive auto insurance would cover it.

This is a long way of saying that risk management, and the cost thereof, is valued based on perceived risk, convenience, and peace-of-mind variables that are difficult to quantify. My ongoing issue is the lack of cost transparency, high pricing of add-on warranty products, difficulty in knowing exactly what coverage one is purchasing, and, most irksome, the high pressure context in which these add-ons are usually sold at dealerships. The add-on warranties are marketed as if the dealer really cares and wants the customer to be well-protected. The reality is these products are pricey and represent big profits for dealers. Many F&I people have quotas and sales targets to hit, so the sale of these add-ons is more about profit than protection. But, at the right price, if one can get the right price, there may be value for some.

 

Here's a more cost effective option for tire warranties... But it must be done when the car is absolutely fresh new off the dealer's lot and you'll have to find a tire dealer who will agree to this plan - I've done this twice in the past with brand new cars at my local Discount Tire store.

- Drive in with brand new car
- Negotiate a no cost direct swap for similar tires that are on your car (They re-sell the OEM tires as "Take-offs")
- Or swap high performance summer for high performance all weather tires like I did to get better year-round traction and longer treadwear
- Pay for only the mounting & balancing of the swapped tires and tire warranties = WAY LESS than any dealer's offered tire warranty! Free rotation, balancing, air checks & flat fixes at Discount Tire.

 

Sounds like a good way to avoid what happened to me with my new Mini tires: the tread wore out at about 16k miles. I actually bought the more durable replacements at the Mini dealership in Scottsdale: $700 out the door. And they never mentioned a tire warranty and even though my warranty is up in April they never mentioned an extended warranty when it was in for service last week. And I was never turfed to the finance dept. by my MA when I bought the car either. No extended warranty offer then either.