Who loves their extended warranty?

[mackeroni]

I am at a crossroads. I have always thought I would keep my 2011 135i forever, and I might, but I am also thinking of selling. It is possible that a comprehensive yet affordable extended warranty might put me at ease.

Who loves their extended warranty? How much did it cost? What does it cover?

On the other hand, I drive briskly, but I tend to take good care of my car. At 56,000 miles I have not had anything major go wrong, so would an extended warranty be a waste of money?

Peace... Mack

[Esteban]

I have a 2011 as well, but with 34K miles. No extended warranty and nothing has gone wrong yet, but things will go wrong, it's just a matter of when.

I think our cars are pretty great and plan on keeping mine no matter what goes wrong. That's the plan, but shit happens and people change their mind.

Personally, I love my car the way it is and don't see another car out there that I'd rather have. M2 looks nice but haven't driven one yet and it's expensive, and right now I'm paying nothing. My 1er is paid off.

There are some members here that have had their extended warranty already pay for itself because of expensive repairs, so there are definitely different scenarios.

You never know if an extended warranty will be a waste of money until you buy it, but if it will give you some peace of mind, maybe that's worth it to you. Also, as I said above (and you already know), eventually something will go wrong.

Curious, what would you buy if you were to sell?

[captain slowly]

I bought my extended warranty last year when my car only had 7000 miles on it. I'm now at almost 13000. Because of the low miles, the warranty was pretty inexpensive and its from a good company, which is why I bought it, for the piece of mind. If I had to spend $2-3000 for it, I wouldn't have, and just taken my chances. Plenty of competent independent shops out there. Also, as was mentioned, what would you replace it with that would make getting rid of the car worth it?

[Matticus91]

I think you know my stance on this already but....

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showt...light=warranty

[Esteban]

Originally Posted by Matticus91

I think you know my stance on this already but....

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showt...light=warranty

Just the member I was thinking of when I said "there are some members here that have had their extended warranty already pay for itself because of expensive repairs." lol

[chris_flies]

I've had this car since March, when it had 160k miles on it. Not one single mechanical breakdown, yet. Though, it does sound like the Alternator bearings or pulley is going bad. Still, it's only a noise, and the alternator still charges correctly, etc.

Honestly, it really depends on how you take car of your car. If you know how to take care of it, and spot things pretty early, a warranty may not be of great use to you. However, if you have two turbos that are known to go bad, a warranty may certainly be a good value.

I guess I kinda thread jacked you, mackeroni. I don't have an extended warranty, and I don't think it would be worth getting one in my situation.

[Esteban]

Originally Posted by chris_flies

I've had this car since March, when it had 160k miles on it. Not one single mechanical breakdown, yet. Though, it does sound like the Alternator bearings or pulley is going bad. Still, it's only a noise, and the alternator still charges correctly, etc.

Honestly, it really depends on how you take car of your car. If you know how to take care of it, and spot things pretty early, a warranty may not be of great use to you. However, if you have two turbos that are known to go bad, a warranty may certainly be a good value.

I guess I kinda thread jacked you, mackeroni. I don't have an extended warranty, and I don't think it would be worth getting one in my situation.

OP's got an N55, with one turbo that so far has been pretty reliable. The N54 has the twin turbo set up and I believe they have an extended warranty from BMW that covers the turbos (wastegates). Think it goes to 80,000 or something like that.

[chris_flies]

Originally Posted by Esteban

OP's got an N55, with one turbo that so far has been pretty reliable. The N54 has the twin turbo set up and I believe they have an extended warranty from BMW that covers the turbos (wastegates). Think it goes to 80,000 or something like that.

Well, that's good! That's what led me to get a 128 instead of a 135, even if I got the 135, it would have more than 80k in my price range.

No regerts...
Hehehe

[ejm3]

My 2012 135i convertible has 51k miles on it.

I looked into the BMW extended warranty when my factory warranty ran out. I think they wanted about $3500 for the gold plan.

So far the only thing that has actually "broken" that would have been covered was the oil filter housing gasket that went at 42k miles and couple months after the warranty expired.

I know a water pump is coming eventually (I think about $1k) and probably a battery at some point.

For routine maintenance it's kind of a money pit in terms of tires, brakes, oil, etc.
These items are expensive to fix and the life on tires & brakes isn't what I would hope for. Seems like I'm always replacing the [expensive] tires and I basically baby the thing.

That said the car runs great and I probably love it more now than when I bought it new.

I was debating a new car next year but I would just buy the new version of the same car (240 convertible).

My car is long paid off so I figure I'm prepared to pay $2-$2.5k per year to keep it running. That's a lot cheaper than a new car.

[Esteban]

Originally Posted by chris_flies

Well, that's good! That's what led me to get a 128 instead of a 135, even if I got the 135, it would have more than 80k in my price range.

No regerts...
Hehehe

No regerts necessary. You've got a great car! Famous BMW N/A inline six. Sexy 1er body. Rear wheel drive. Hydraulic steering. What's not to like? They just don't make 'em like that any more.

[chris_flies]

Originally Posted by Esteban

No regerts necessary. You've got a great car! Famous BMW N/A inline six. Sexy 1er body. Rear wheel drive. Hydraulic steering. What's not to like? They just don't make 'em like that any more.

Hahaha! Unfortunately they don't, but the M2 is pretty damned close to it!

[HyeWarrior]

Bought my car with 49k miles on it exactly 2 years ago. Currently at 73k.

Considering everything, I can't be too upset with the mileage and cost of repairs:
-$500 Waterpump and thermostat (saved on labor by DIY)
-$700 Valvecover, cracked was making a howl noise (with labor)
-$200 Expansion tank, small crack causing leak (with labor)
-$150 Oil sensor harness, got chewed up by a rodent (with labor)
-$200 Alternator, cheap'd out and replaced with a secondhand alternator

Honestly, I'm kind of glad I didn't buy the extended warranty that was pushed on me. Things don't have to be as expensive as they are if the car is taken care of. The ONLY problems I ever had with the car were when I had the JB4 installed (go figure). As someone mentioned, having a couple grand saved up for a rainy day is probably the best bet.

[MightyMouseTech]

Was $4k for the extended warranty. That can replace a LOT of parts, so I said to hell with it. [fingers crossed]

[mackeroni]

Originally Posted by Esteban

...

Curious, what would you buy if you were to sell?

Great question...and a very slippery slope. As soon as I start evaluating the possibilities I am halfway to making a new purchase. Actually, without having looked seriously, I can construct a short list of possibilities. In no particular order...

• Subaru BRZ
• Mazda Miata RF
• Porsche Boxster Used
• Porsche Cayman Used
• VW Golf GTI/R
• Nissan 370Z CPO

What if I found a clean low-miles CPO BMW 2 Series?

Just thinking out loud here.

Mack

[mackeroni]

Originally Posted by Matticus91

I think you know my stance on this already but....

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showt...light=warranty

Yes. This is the poster child story for extended warranties. Are you working on commission?

Peace... Mack

[HyeWarrior]

Originally Posted by mackeroni

Great question...and a very slippery slope. As soon as I start evaluating the possibilities I am halfway to making a new purchase. Actually, without having looked seriously, I can construct a short list of possibilities. In no particular order...

• Subaru BRZ
• Mazda Miata RF
• Porsche Boxster Used
• Porsche Cayman Used
• VW Golf GTI/R
• Nissan 370Z CPO

What if I found a clean low-miles CPO BMW 2 Series?

Just thinking out loud here.

Mack

Then you'll be making this same thread asking the same question about warranties on the 2-series forums in a couple of years

[MightyMouseTech]

Originally Posted by HyeWarrior

Then you'll be making this same thread asking the same question about warranties on the 2-series forums in a couple of years

Especially if he buys a used Porsche. You think BMWs are expensive to fix out of warranty.......

[Gangplank]

I have the Route66. It is good for 5yrs and 60k miles from date it starts. The cost was around 3000 if I recall. The best thing about the Route66 is they have different levels of warranty depending on what you want covered. I got the Easy Street which covers pretty much everything but the consumables and interior bits. AND it is transferable to the next owner so it increases resale to some extent.

So far it has replaced the OFHG once + belt tensioner, and the oil level sensor which just went bad. It will likely cover the water pump at some point. With just that it will be mostly paid for.

The real reason I got it is for insurance if the DCT transmission goes out. The cost of them is $14k give or take.

[Esteban]

Originally Posted by mackeroni

Great question...and a very slippery slope. As soon as I start evaluating the possibilities I am halfway to making a new purchase. Actually, without having looked seriously, I can construct a short list of possibilities. In no particular order...

• Subaru BRZ
• Mazda Miata RF
• Porsche Boxster Used
• Porsche Cayman Used
• VW Golf GTI/R
• Nissan 370Z CPO

What if I found a clean low-miles CPO BMW 2 Series?

Just thinking out loud here.

Mack

My choices from your list would probably be the Golf R, great all around car for the money imo. Second would be the 370Z. My wife has had three Zs and she loves them, and because she loves them I kinda love them too. More of a sports car than our 1ers, if that matters to you.

Then the natural progression would have to be a 2er, just because. Drove them several times and was underwhelmed, but maybe that's because I was comparing it to my 1er, and I thought it should have been better, not the same or less.

As said here if expensive repairs, and expensive maintenance will bother you, you should probably avoid the used Porsches, although there are those who love their Porsches and will put up with the expense because it's worth it to them. Then there are the Porsche owners you do all their own wrenching and will save a lot of money in the process.

If you are bored with your 1er then by all means test drive other cars and see if you like something better. If you need that extended warranty to make you feel more at ease then get one.

[mackeroni]

Originally Posted by MightyMouseTech

Especially if he buys a used Porsche. You think BMWs are expensive to fix out of warranty.......

Not sure how I would have reacted if I had done my BMW reliability homework in 2011. I suppose I could have used that sobering information to help with negotiations instead of just salivating like a lovesick teenager all over the showroom floor in front of that shiny new 135i back in 2011? If I decide to get serious about a Porsche, I will bring my lawyer, banker and favorite German Technician with me to the table.

Peace... Mack

[mackeroni]

Originally Posted by Esteban

My choices from your list would probably be the Golf R, great all around car for the money imo. Second would be the 370Z. My wife has had three Zs and she loves them, and because she loves them I kinda love them too. More of a sports car than our 1ers, if that matters to you.

Then the natural progression would have to be a 2er, just because. Drove them several times and was underwhelmed, but maybe that's because I was comparing it to my 1er, and I thought it should have been better, not the same or less.

As said here if expensive repairs, and expensive maintenance will bother you, you should probably avoid the used Porsches, although there are those who love their Porsches and will put up with the expense because it's worth it to them. Then there are the Porsche owners you do all their own wrenching and will save a lot of money in the process.

If you are bored with your 1er then by all means test drive other cars and see if you like something better. If you need that extended warranty to make you feel more at ease then get one.

All great advice, Esteban. Thanks!

Mack

[Gray_Panther]

Going slightly off the beaten path, but if I consider the Mk7 GTi to be perfect then the R is also too perfect of a car.
It just does everything so damn well and there is nothing that beats that all-around package for the money in the US.

I actually hate that it is so perfect.
Fyi I also own a MKVII GTI 6MT.