I am buying a 2002 Ram 1500 SLT 4WD with 26K miles and I am considering buying an extended warranty.

I will not buy that from the dealer.

Does anyone have any recomendations on warranties and/or the companies that sell them?

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Here's my opinion of extended warranties. I have purchased them in the past, both from third parties, as you are considering, and from dealerships that sold the extended warranty from the manufacturer. I would NEVER buy one again from a third party and would only consider buying one from the manufacturer. Here's why.

Third party warranties are many times, subject to acceptance. In otherwords, some service facilities will not accept them period. So you end up having to get an estimate on the repair, contact the warranty underwriter for permission, pay out of pocket, and submit for repayment. Also, some third party warranty providers have simply gone out of business. You end up with a worthless piece of paper. At least with the manufacturer's warranty, you have a resonable assurance they will remain in business to backup their warranty.

Many times you can negotiate the price at the dealership. It really depends on the dealer, however. I have not purchased an extended warranty for over ten years. It's sort of a crap shoot. Several hundred dollars, maybe a thousand plus, and if you don't have a problem that is covered, you don't get much return on your investment. The only reason companies offer these things, is because they make huge profits on them. If they didn't, they would not offer them. The odds are in their favor. While it's true that an engine overhaul for a blown head gasket can be much more expensive than the cost of an extended warranty, you just never know if the problem you are going to have will be that expensive or not.

So my advice is, if you want one for peace of mind, I'd opt for one from the manufacturer. Otherwise, you really need to do your homework. Hopefully, some others can offer their opinions to help you in that endeavor. Good luck.

 

Thanks for the info Mazz.

I have always been lukewarm on extended warranties of any type. I am still undecided on what is best. I have done pretty much homework on warranty companies and prices. The only thing I was tryin to avoid was the BIG breakdown. I have had Dodge products in the past (Caravan & Stratus) and both have had major problems right at the 3 yr /36k Mile deadline. The Caravan was good for 7 years until I sold it and the Stratus developed electrical problems.

The single biggest thing that scares me about Dodge is the transmission problems. Although the 5.9L tranny combination in my truck is supposed to be more dependable, it still scares me. My neighbor owns his own transmission repair shop, and he said that he did not really think any of the Big 3's were better or worse.

I'm am still getting the truck, not sure about the warranty.

The best price I have found is about $1000 for $100 deductable and would be good for 6 more years and until 100k miles.

Thanks.

 

I bought the aftermarket warranty for my 2004 1500 Hemi from www.warrantydirect.com. They have been in business for 25 years where others have not. I paid $1075 for 7year/100,000 mile no deduct. CHRYSLER wanted 2300+! I'm sure that the manufacture warranty is better because there is no "calling for repair approval", but their price is high. I did buy it for big ticket idems that might come up in latter years. I bought one for my other truck and used it several times with no problem.

I hope that helps!

 

You bought an extended warranty on a new vehicle? I have no idea, but aren't you double warranteed until the MFG expires?

I have a quote from warrentydirect, what did you get 'MaxCare' or 'Power Wrap'?

So far, 1Source is looking to be the better offer right now.

 

MaxCare+

Warrenty on new vehicle sure! The dealers offer them when you sign the papers. The Extended warrenty kicks in after the Manufacturers warrenty runs out. Plus, the extended warrenty picks up the deductable on the manufacturer's power train warrenty!

The warrenty will cost you alot less when the truck is new then when you are about to run out on the factory warrenty! Yes, you can take the money that you spend on the extended warrenty and put it in a CD or a savings account for down the road, but you won't have very much more after 3 years/36,000 miles.

Sorry, I don't know anything about 1Source.com

Hope this helps!

 

I have had no luck in the past with these third party warranties. I would recommend steering clear. I got my extended warranty through Chrysler. The terms and conditions are much better and make it worth the investment. Keep in mind two things:

1- The dealer marks these warranties up by a lot of money, so you can bargain them down just as you can on the price of the vehicles.

2- No matter what warranty you get, they will ALWAYS look for ways to get out of paying. In my experience, you have a better chance with Chrysler or manufacturer warranties.

 

The same coverage for my truck would cost $1725! Ouch!

I have a budget of around $1,000. The best I can find is $1009 for 5 years and up to 100K miles with $100 deductible.

I have also priced AWG, Warranty Bynet, Warranty 4Wheels, and Auto Warranty Broker. Them and the 2 other mentioned have the BBB seal.

I found them on another webiste:

http://www.extended-warranty.info/carwarranty/

 

With an older truck they will hit you harder on the price.

I think that the Chrysler warranty is the best way to go if money is no object. And, Chrysler is not going away anytime soon. I did try to buy the factory warranty but the lowest the dealer would come down is $1300 for 5year/60,000mile. Again, the dealer was over $2300 for the 7year plan that I got for $1075. It's sad that we have to play the "dealer game" on a product that should have a fixed price.

Time will tell on my warranty purchase.

Hope I've helped.