Aftermarket Warranties...

The slideout will be the least of any problems you may have. I agree on skipping it. on the price, I`m guessing they are going to be around $1500 for a 5 year policy. and with that they will do whatever they can to get out of paying. being in the automotive repair industry the aftermarket warranties are terrible for this!

Warranties are very profitable sales items which is why the salespeople are instructed to push them. If the cost of a repair is going to be more than the cost of the warranty and the repair is likely to be needed during the period of the warranty then it makes sense to pay for one.

When the DLP televisions first arrived they had lots of problems with the fans and lamps and master circuit boards and any one of these problems would result in a $300 to $800 repair bill. We bought an extended warranty and it quickly paid for itself. Now with LED L:CD TV' we don't bother.

The only items in an RV I would worry about are the inverter and the fridge. The other items are relatively reliable. If the RV has a 1-year warranty on the installed items I would expect that to uncover any defects.

One good thing about RV's is that the components used by one manufacturer are also used by many other RV manufacturers and the construction of them has changed very little over the past 20 years. It is going to be the new technology like tilting solar panels or similar innovations that are most likely to have teething problems where it is difficult to predict the reliability of all the parts that are used.

It is worth taking the time to review the owner's forums for a particular RV and see what problems they have experienced and the cost of any repairs. Best way to learn about any problem areas for a specific RV and its manufacturer.

This appeared in the RV.Net Blog: Keep in mind, these extended warranty policies are a money making business for those selling them. Therefore, for the average buyer, they more than likely will not be cost affective. This is not to say that you will not be one of the few that such contracts have saved them tenfold. Essentially it is a risk whether you buy or not. If you buy an extended warranty, you only win if repairs are required, at or above the cost of the contract. If you don’t purchase the warranty you only win if your repairs are below that of the contract cost. In general, the odds are in your favor to not purchase such a guarantee.

I bought a Chrysler extended warranty when I bought my Chrysler. I have saved lots of money because of it.
The dealer offered it to me for $3600 at first. I said no and he came down to $3300. I declined as I saw the policy could be purchased until the original warranty ran out. About a month after purchase I got a letter from Chrysler offering me the same warranty for $2800. I started searching the net and found a Chrysler dealer in Illinois offering the EXACT SAME warranty for $1650.00. In addition he gave one year no interest to pay. Think about the markup that allowed the $3600 policy to be sold for $1650 and the dealer who sold it still made money.

Shop the net look at Good SAMS offering but do not jump into it.

The dealer is trying to make money. If you want the policy you can negotiate the price; try offering about 70% of what the are asking. Settle at 80% max.

According to Larry Dorfman, CEO and Chairman
"EasyCare is a brand of Vehicle Service Contract offered by Automobile Protection Corporation - APCO, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company.......
The EasyCare contract is very similar to the ESP contract offered by Ford Customer Service Division. APCO is part of Ford Customer Service Division."

It is a service contract.....pricing varies as does coverage.

If it was part of the deal at no charge...worth it.
Otherwise......save your pennies for that rainy day.

Run Forrest! Run away, fast!

I would question the salesperson about it being a part of Ford..Saw nothing about that when I looked it up on the net. I bet they said it covers everything "bumper to bumper" too. Most service contracts exclude more than they cover. You need to read the fine print. Easy Care has a lot of complaints posted on the internet..

B.O.

Don't waste your money. They are not Warranties they are insurance policies.

rk911 wrote:

calewjohnson wrote:
We just purchased our first NEW travel trailer...Outback 323BH...Boss Lady wants to keep this until the kids are gone. Now, mind you, we have had our fair share of problems with our other, which was purchased used, but when the sales lady asked about the warranty, wife was inclined to say yes....I told her to hold off so I could consult the folks here and have a round table discussion.....The company they use is EasyCare. I did not ask for prices, but I can on Friday when I am back up there. She said that they are somehow mingled with Ford...I did not really pay attention to this one point, but she did say that as long as we get it before our warranty is up, it will be as a new travel trailer. Any thoughts to this company or another one that may be better?

Thanks,

Cale

take the money you would have spent for the warranty and start a repair fund and then add $X each month to that fund. use it for routine maintenance, major repairs...whatever you like...once the initial warranty period ends. we did that back in 2000 with our new MH and we are dollars ahead.

Great idea...did not think about that as an idea....a simple $100/month may be a good way to start...

Cale

Read the actual policy, not the sales brochure, to see what is actually covered and what hoops you have to jump through to get coverage. After that understand that the warranty companies, actually insurance, are not regulated and they can "go out of business" leaving you with a worthless policy. In fact, for many warranty companies that is their business model. Then understand that they have access to a lot of repair orders so they carefully word their policies to eliminate common failures.

While you will hear many people say they have made money with their extended warranties, understand that the odds are not in your favor. They collect money from many to only pay out to a few. Also understand that the dealers who sell these "warranties" make a lot of money from their sales, often more than from the sale of the RV itself. Therefore, you will get considerable pressure to buy.

In almost every case, you will be better served not to buy the warranty. If you would be including the cost of the warranty into the loan of the RV, don't forget to include the financed cost of the warranty, not the initial purchase price, when making your decision.