Help on used Mid Sized Truck

I like the previous generation of Ridgeline over this current one, but I’m sure they’re a fantastic vehicle.

Stanley wrote:

Not trying to scare you just saying if you didn’t get one you may want to look into it.

I purchased a 3 yr / 36,000 extended warranty. I normal never get my $ back out of them but was not really willing to risk it with the turbo and other electronics on this one

If you don’t use them you should get the money back at least in my experience.

CaptainMusky wrote:

If you don’t use them you should get the money back at least in my experience.

Huh ? If you don’t use the warranty, you get refunded ? That’s the craziest thing I ever did hear.

Bearcat89 wrote:

Huh ? If you don’t use the warranty, you get refunded ? That’s the craziest thing I ever did hear.

Yep, we had Route 66 and if we didnt use it they would refund it. They were great. Unfortunately one vehicle we had consumed ALL of it but the other we got refunded.

CaptainMusky wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Bearcat89 wrote:</div>
Huh ? If you don’t use the warranty, you get refunded ? That’s the craziest thing I ever did hear.

Yep, we had Route 66 and if we didnt use it they would refund it. They were great. Unfortunately one vehicle we had consumed ALL of it but the other we got refunded.

I’d sure like that, but I have never hear of one that worked like that. Hard to understand how they would make money on a deal like that. Use it and likely get more out of it than you paid and not use it and get your money back. Not sure where their earnings would come from.

fishthumper wrote:

I’d sure like that, but I have never hear of one that worked like that. Hard to understand how they would make money on a deal like that. Use it and likely get more out of it than you paid and not use it and get your money back. Not sure where their earnings would come from.

We got it through the credit union and had it on multiple vehicles so perhaps there is something between interest being shared or something.

Careful with the warranty companies. There are some good ones and then there are others that won’t cover a lot of stuff they should. I have always thought if your going to spend 3-4 grand on one, maybe just think about putting that money in an account that could make simple interest. Just a thought, rarely do I see a person actually make out on the warranty. Also some of them won’t pay full labor rates so you can get stuck paying for part of it because they take an average of the shops in the area, yet seem to find the run down ones with terrible reputations to compare to.

John Rasmussen wrote:

rarely do I see a person actually make out on the warranty

Yep. I’m one who has probably never made out on the few I have purchased. I do recall one auto where I did not purchase one and I would have make out like crazy had I had one. I look at the warranties a lot like insurance. You don’t purchase it hoping you use it. You purchase it just in case you need it.

The extended warranty saved my a$$ for sure with my wife’s truck! New engine no charge, new transmission paid only part of it. The one thing I didnt realize is that they base whether or not they cover a claim is based on what was already paid and NADA value. So the tranny I had to pay most of that. They were GREAT to work with I would highly recommend them.

John Rasmussen wrote:

Careful with the warranty companies. There are some good ones and then there are others that won’t cover a lot of stuff they should. I have always thought if your going to spend 3-4 grand on one, maybe just think about putting that money in an account that could make simple interest. Just a thought, rarely do I see a person actually make out on the warranty. Also some of them won’t pay full labor rates so you can get stuck paying for part of it because they take an average of the shops in the area, yet seem to find the run down ones with terrible reputations to compare to.

We had a little over 12k worth of work done on the Tahoe under some 2nd owner extended warranty. I can’t recall the company, but leaky shocks they fought us on, new tranny, every oil and cooler line, and a bunch more. But with the lady friend running the shop sure helped. They tried denying every claim but the tranny and her shop got them to cover everything. It paid for its self 5 times over. I don’t usually buy used vehicles but if I do I will always get that coverage. As long as the lady friend manages the shop they will definitely help us with everything

Bearcat89 wrote:

As long as the lady friend manages the shop they will definitely help us with everything

Glad it worked out and her being in control to a degree helps. However I have personally seen it not work out. Either way just a suggestion from someone in the industry. Also more of these being sold at the dealerships have clauses built in that the selling dealer has first rights to the repairs and the warranty will offer them the job first, which is fine and all but does not allow you to choose where your car is fixed and that is a right that the consumer should have I believe.

Holy crap these are some horror stories. Never had any trouble. I know guys like to pay cash but go through a credit union the extended warranty we got through them was fantastic.

More power to you if you want to buy a warranty for piece of mind, but dealers are selling them because they make good money off them. The math on the vast majority of warranties sold favors the seller, otherwise they would not offer them.

Like I said I have a Zurich warranty bought through the dealer when I bought my truck. I never had one before and was leary at first but figured if something major happened the warranty was cheaper than the repair cost if covered. To date I had a driveshaft replaced, front axle seals, timing chain cover and valve cover gaskets. Out of pocket would have been about $3400. I have a $100 deductible but that’s per invoice not per repair so I have spent $200 on deductibles. My mechanic said that Zurich has been very easy to work with and nothing has been denied or extra costs passed on to me. If I had not had any claims I could have got money back on a pro rated basis if I sold the truck before warranty expired.

I have heard the horror stories about warranty companies and just heard about one with my bosses son when the transmission went out on his 2020 Chevy 2500. I don’t know what company he had but the extended warranty he bought denied the claim but the dealer gave him some sort of free warranty when he bought the truck which ended up covering it.

I’m sure some companies are better than others. Finding out which one to buy is the hard part. I know from the few I dealt with they were a PIA!
When they are selling the policy they cover everything but the deductible. File a claim and they deny many things and prorate items etc. Don’t cover diagnostic time, fluids, tax, etc. Only pay dealer warranty time at discounted labor rate. You name it many have A LOT of fine print.
And don’t get me started on unscrupulous dealers selling some of these warranty policies at inflated prices.