I'm approaching 36,000 miles on my '05 Mini. I'm conflicted about buying the extended warranty and maintenance plan. Any advice? Any '05 owners having expensive repairs between 36-100K?

 

I'm actually wondering myself about the worth of extending my warranty. I have been offered that through the mini dealer for about $1,899 for 5 yrs or 100k with a $200 deductable. I currently only have 11k on my 04' MCS JCW. What do others think; Problems ahead, or smooth sailing and not to worry?

 

Don't forget repairs are covered until 50K.

 

Well, there is a difference between extended warranty and extended maintenance plans. Extended Maintenance covers wear-and-tear items. An example of a wear-and-tear item would be brake pads. If your pads are looking on the thin side (approaching minimum wear thickness) and the rotors are likewise approaching minimum wear thickness, you probably will want to at least consider the Extended Maintenance plan. Extended Warranty covers the items that are not wear-and-tear. An example would be a CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) on the Cooper. There have been a number of posts on NAM about CVTs failing around 60,000 miles with a repair cost around $7,500. Whether to buy an Extended Warranty contract is really a question of your tolerance for risk of unexpected repair bills. If you don't want unexpected repair bills, go for the Extended Warranty. You are buying peace of mind.

 

A brake job will be $600/$700 easy and I’m guessing more through BMW. That in itself is something to think about. You will need a brake job before you hit 100K for sure.

 

I just did my front brakes (pads and rotors) for $180.00, so if you do things yourself you can save some money .

I really don't have any advise, my Mini has been alot like sndwaves, almost trouble free. Has only been to the dealer for the "free" scheduled services. And that was some time ago.

Nik

 

My '05 MCS is 2 years old and has been 100% troublefree and solid like Sndwave's. I am currently at 23K miles. I still have 2 "covered" scheduled maintenance stops (In this coming summer and the last one next year). My factory warranty expires March 2009.

I plan to purchase the extended maintenance (45K mile pit stop) at the dealer next year (You MUST purchase it before the end of the 3 year/36K mile scheduled maintenance plan) and perhaps buy an extended warranty contract that will hopefully cover the car for another 2 years/100K miles after the factory warranty expires.

I plan to keep my '05 R53 until 2011 or until MINI facelifts and cleans up some of the controversial design aspects of the new R56. 2011 will be the last year of the R56 hardtop so an all new MINI will be available in 2012. We'll see what happens...

 

My suggestion is to buy the extended maintenance. You don't have to buy it from your nearest dealer. I think the lowest offer out there is about $750.

I think it's worth it not because of the oil changes but the brake job and potential clutch job. A clutch kit and replacement is running $1,300 and is only covered under the maintenance warranty as wearable parts.

I regret not buying it as I am looking to pay for my clutch replacement out of pocket now...

 

Sorry, but you asked. The day I pay 600-700 for a brake job, or 1300 for a clutch will be the day hell freezes over for me. Learn to do some things for yourself, maybe not the clutch, but you can do it if you need one and don't have that much money. The MINI dealer is not the only repair option on the planet.

Take the money you would be spending on the maint or warranty extensions and put it religiously in the bank...

Just my sorry pathetic opinion.

YD

 

I agree, if you're spending $700 for brakes something is wrong. You can find replacement pads and rotors for all 4 corners of the car for under 400. Install shouldn't take more than an hour or two from a good mechanic. That's 550 or so if you replace EVERYTHING on the car at once. Rotors tend to last quite a while . As for the clutch, You can buy a replacement clutch for 200-300, and either install it yourself, or have it installed for $500-$600 at an indy shop.

 

The prices quoted are probably dealer prices, which make the extended warranty look like a better deal.

You can buy a Bentley manual, parts and any special tools you might need, screw up the repairs at least once, and still come out cheaper than letting the dealer do the work.

Also, a lot of people have trouble getting the extended warranties to cover what they think they should cover.

 

IMHO extended warranties are not worth it. First off they are VERY expensive for this car and they have a $200 deductible. I have had warranties on other cars with deductibles and its just a headache. It is no where near as good as the factory warranty. I would save the $2000 + $200 deductible for each problem and take your chances... Put the $2000 in a savings account and if you ever need it for a large repair use it...

 

I always think of it this way.
Am I going to have greater than $2,000 worth of problems plus an additional $200 worth in the next X amount of miles... guaranteed? I always pass on the warranty. I can't justify it. If it happens it happens, but you can bet the odds are against you having that kind of $$ tied up in repairs.
I guess you'd really have to do some math(s) to work this one out.

What is going to go out for sure AND be covered under warranty? Is that greater that $2,000...+$200 a pop for a deductible.
I'm too new to Mini's to make tht call. but I know what I'd do on all the other cars I own...

 

IMHO, extended warranties an service agreements are a huge waste of money. My '05 MCS w/ 36K hasn't needed a thing other than scheduled maintenance since I've owned it and I don't think it's likely to need anything else for the next 30 months/36K. I've done additional maintenance in between and spent very little - the benefit of having a few tools and sufficient abality. If the car was breaking down so often that I thought it wasn't going to make it thru the warranty, or continue to have such problems, I'd have gotten rid of it by now.