Anybody got experience of extended warranty claims on used cars?
Briefly - Omega V6 oil cooler failure results in oil slowly being pumped into cooling system - oil consumption not noticeably high. Finally the temperature starts to read high, at which point the header tank is checked and contains milky gunge.
Get the system pressure tested at a Vauxhall franchised dealer - fails test. Car not driven any further.
Garage removes heads and finds that the whole cooling system is clogged with emulsified oil/coolant. Car needs new radiator, heater matrix, head gaskets, oil cooler, etc, etc - the best part of £2,000.
Extended warranty company say they will only accept a claim for the oil cooler, as the rest of the damage was "drive on" and not covered.
Question is, can they invoke the drive on damage clause if the owner had serviced, inspected and operated the car under the manufacturer's recommendations? If there is no way the owner could have known about the leak - what's the point of the mechanical insurance?
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Nick,
I can only really tell you that the extended warranty I had really wasn't worth the paper it was written on.
I think you'll find that most Extended Warranties not only demand that the vehicle is serviced in accordance with the manfacturer's schedule, but also that the servicing agent must be VAT registered - so that negates DIY servicing.
I guess if you are really unhappy you could possibly request some form of arbitration - talk to your local CAB.
Good luck Nick!
Eddie.
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Yep I agree with Eddie,
my experience of Extended Warranties or indeed Warranty's for Second Hand vehicles sold with an "Aftermarket Warranty" is that you are covered for everything under the sun until you try and make a claim.
Then you discover that the items in question aren't covered fully as you thought.
Basically, IMO, they can be totally worthless :(
1995 3.0 V6 Omega Elite Estate Auto
1998 1.9 Tdi Audi A4 quattro Avant
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Nick,
I addition to my earlier reply, I never really heard of anyone who's had a wonderful experience from Used Car Warranty Providers.
I was considering taking out another warranty for my Synergie, but in my opinion the cost/benfit ratio just wasn't worth it.
You really need to examine the 'small print' - for instance you'll find that most cover clutch failure, then the 'small print' will say that clutch linings aren't covered as they are considered 'wear and tear' items.
Eddie.
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I'm usually really sceptical of these warranties - but I took out a 3 year one on my used Xsara. Cost £195 and apparently covers everything down to the wiper motors. Interesting to see how it goes, but I'll put this situation to the dealer when I collect the car on Saturday.
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It may be worth talking to one or two dealers and servicing/repair operations about their views. My local MB dealers were very emphatic about the RAC warranty being "a particularly good one"; it is the basis of their Signature scheme, but in this instance they had nothing to gain by recommending it and they did seem to be talking in the light of comparative experience.
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Unfortunately, you've found out the hard way that extended warranties are actually 'mechanical breakdown insurance', and only usually cover 'sudden mechanical failure' and not any consequential losses, which is what you have here.
I guess you've also found out why Omegas regularly appear close to the bottom of reliability surveys, and why nearly new ones can be bought for a fraction of their new price.
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On the subject of contaminated cooling system,I think the replacement of all the cooling system parts is a bit overkill.A good quality flushing fluid will remove most of the sludge with no probs .Most warranty companies only pay about £25 per hour to repairing garages,which I think is a bit unrealistic!
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"Drive-on damage" - what a favourite excuse that is. I mentioned in another thread about a '92 J Rover 214 which my mother once owned - this blew its head gasket without any warning on the M4, leaving us stranded.
When I say "without any warning", I mean that it went from running fine to immobile in the space of about a mile and a quarter, which is not a long time on a motorway. No warning lights came on, the temperature gauge was only very slightly higher than it should have been, and I pulled onto the hard shoulder as soon as I could.
Warranty company which shall remain nameless decided it was drive-on damage within about 30 seconds of us getting on the phone to them. Complaints about this were shuffled in a slow circle between the company, the SMMT and some ombudsman or other and after six months of this we just gave up in disgust, and forked out the £2,600 cost of the new engine and associated repairs ourselves.
Especially galling as my father had paid extra for us to have this warranty.......
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