Parts and Labour Warranty

[noby39]

I own a Mercedes E270 Cdi on a 53 plate. The warranty that came with the car is due to end in December this year. I've looked at the Warranty Direct website and this quotes £271 for one year's cover, for among other things parts and labour (including breakdown due to wear and tear). To extend the MB warranty for a year would cost £636. I would welcome suggestions on similar warranties that may be worth looking at. Also, any experience that readers have had with non-MB warranties would be welcomed. Thanks.

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

There have been a number of threads on this. Have a bit of a look around. I'm kind if in the same boat myself only it seems rather a lot more expensive. I have a 52 plate (2003) C240 and MB are quoting me £85 p/m for service plus, which pretty much covers everything, or £43 p/m just for servicing - but the things they don't mention in the contracts are worrying me.

 

[Blobcat]

Pls see the attached thread http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/showthread.php?t=17592&highlight=servicing+costs
IMHO warranties only cover what isn't broken. The link has all my servicing and repair costs for 3 yrs and 90K miles. Not having a warranty or service contract has been significantly cheaper in my case. However it is a gamble and you pays your money. Do you feel lucky

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

I just went on the warranty direct and it gave me a quote of £32 p/m which I though was very good - until I selected "build your own cover" and I selected all the things I would expect to be covered, like electrics, motors, lights etc - and then it went up to £70 p/m, only £15 less than MB service plus which includes all the servicing costs too.

Look like a bunch of cowboys to me....

 

[Rory]

There have been a number of threads on this. Have a bit of a look around. I'm kind if in the same boat myself only it seems rather a lot more expensive. I have a 52 plate (2003) C240 and MB are quoting me £85 p/m for service plus, which pretty much covers everything, or £43 p/m just for servicing - but the things they don't mention in the contracts are worrying me.

Service Plus is *not* a warranty - it only (in addition to Service) covers wear and tear items like brake pads and discs. It would *not* cover something which breaks - like a gearbox or engine, for example.

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

Service Plus is *not* a warranty - it only (in addition to Service) covers wear and tear items like brake pads and discs. It would *not* cover something which breaks - like a gearbox or engine, for example.

according to MB it does. Look at the other thread, I have posted all the replies I have had from MB and I also have a copy of the service plus contract. I have also spoken to the service manager at Tony Purslow in Guildford and the only things it doesn't seem to cover are the Tyres and the tax disk.

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

This from MB when I asked the question:

Service Plus

Inclusions
All that is described above as well as all repair or replacement of any
electrical or mechanical items due to normal wear and tear.

i.e brake pads,brake discs, wiperblades, as well as things like the
exhaust, engine, electric windows, CD player, air conditioning.

Basically as long as the item is electrical or mechanical, fitted as
standard from factory and has failed due to normal wear and tear and not
due to damage, whether accidental or deliberate and as long as you have
taken the right steps to have the item fixed and have not ignored warnings
that parts need to be fixed then it is covered.

This means all repairs that arise from the MOT or service or at any time
during the contract period

 

[Blobcat]

This from MB when I asked the question:

Service Plus

Inclusions
All that is described above as well as all repair or replacement of any
electrical or mechanical items due to normal wear and tear.

i.e brake pads,brake discs, wiperblades, as well as things like the
exhaust, engine, electric windows, CD player, air conditioning.

Basically as long as the item is electrical or mechanical, fitted as
standard from factory and has failed due to normal wear and tear and not
due to damage, whether accidental or deliberate and as long as you have
taken the right steps to have the item fixed and have not ignored warnings
that parts need to be fixed then it is covered.

This means all repairs that arise from the MOT or service or at any time
during the contract period

Which as per Rory is not a Warranty. If the gearbox fails you would have to pay. The reasoning is that it did not fail due to wear and tear, it failed because of any number of issues non of which the Service Plus contract covers. It is covered in more detail in the thread I attached.

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

btw Blobcat, I couldn't add the W, it made the log-in name too long.

 

[Blobcat]

btw Blobcat, I couldn't add the W, it made the log-in name too long.

I noticed the 'newest member' this morning and wondered if it was you. BTW be careful as Moderators don't like multiple logins.

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

I'm happy for them to Junk the others. In fact, is there a way I can ask them to junk the others?

p.s. sorry to hyjack the thread again everyone.

 

[Blobcat]

I'm happy for them to Junk the others. In fact, is there a way I can ask them to junk the others?

p.s. sorry to hyjack the thread again everyone.

It is an admin issue rather than a moderator one. However, not seen an admin around. Try PM'ing one of the moderators (if you have that option enabled yet)

 

[Rory]

Which as per Rory is not a Warranty. If the gearbox fails you would have to pay. The reasoning is that it did not fail due to wear and tear, it failed because of any number of issues non of which the Service Plus contract covers. It is covered in more detail in the thread I attached.

Exactly.

You (whoever you are) are in for a shock (or at least a very huge argument) if something on your car suffers a mechanical or electrical failure.

It could be very interesting though - MB would have to explain why the item had failed, rather than worn out, which would then presumeably cause them to admit that the item was faulty in some way. If they did admit this, and it was on an item which you'd expect to last the life of the car (like an ECU, for example) then you could sue (this is where it gets complicated) the *supplier of the vehicle* in the small claims court.

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

I'm asuming from the "tetchyness" in your response that you have already tried?

 

[noby39]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I've been back to the Warranty Direct website and, under build your own warranty, I've been quoted £368 for 12 months. The following is covered by the warranty:

£368.41 Build Your Own Warranty

Engine Included
Gearbox Included
Franchise £22.60 (for repairs at an MB dealership)
AirCon £33.90
AutoTrans £9.04
Braking £9.04
Cooling £15.82
FuelSys £18.08
Ignition £11.30
StarterMotor £6.78
Steering £15.82

Can't think of anything else that I ought to include.

MB wants £636 for a one-year extension of the existing warranty. How can the difference be justified, other than on the basis of excessive greed?

 

[Blobcat]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I've been back to the Warranty Direct website and, under build your own warranty, I've been quoted £368 for 12 months. The following is covered by the warranty:

£368.41 Build Your Own Warranty

Engine Included
Gearbox Included
Franchise £22.60 (for repairs at an MB dealership)
AirCon £33.90
AutoTrans £9.04
Braking £9.04
Cooling £15.82
FuelSys £18.08
Ignition £11.30
StarterMotor £6.78
Steering £15.82

Can't think of anything else that I ought to include.

MB wants £636 for a one-year extension of the existing warranty. How can the difference be justified, other than on the basis of excessive greed?

IMHO no aftermarket warranty is as good as a MB Warranty, there are just too many exclusions. You are gambling with the warranty company ovr what will go wrong. The problem is that they set the odds and all the fine print. I would save the money and take the risk.

 

[Rory]

I'm asuming from the "tetchyness" in your response that you have already tried?

Not at all - and I've had several products (including cars, but not MB) repaired FOC when outside warranty.
I think all these things are a complete rip-off ( a car should last for ever any servicing should be so simple you could do it yourself - you can't even change bulbs on some cars now). However, you're deluding yourself if you think Service Plus gives you warranty cover. Such is my suspicion of MB and its dealers, that I wouldn't be surprised if they 'find' a fault or two during the year in order to generate some revenue for themselves.

 

[Rory]

IMHO no aftermarket warranty is as good as a MB Warranty, there are just too many exclusions. You are gambling with the warranty company ovr what will go wrong. The problem is that they set the odds and all the fine print. I would save the money and take the risk.

The question you have to ask yourself is can you afford whatever, say, a new autobox costs?
If you're loaded, then you can afford to take a chance. If a £3K bill would wipe you out then you should probably take the warranty.

 

[Blobcat]

The question you have to ask yourself is can you afford whatever, say, a new autobox costs?
If you're loaded, then you can afford to take a chance. If a £3K bill would wipe you out then you should probably take the warranty.

Simple answer is that I couldn't afford a new auto-box. However there are always options. If something serious goes then I would find a specialist. On another thread an A160 owner has been given a quote for £4.5K for a gearbox from MB. However other members have come up with transmission speciallists with a more reasonable £1.2K.
I still think that if something major did fail the warranty company would find its way out of paying. That is my problem with warranties and insurances as well for that matter.

 

[Rory]

Simple answer is that I couldn't afford a new auto-box. However there are always options. If something serious goes then I would find a specialist. On another thread an A160 owner has been given a quote for £4.5K for a gearbox from MB. However other members have come up with transmission speciallists with a more reasonable £1.2K.
I still think that if something major did fail the warranty company would find its way out of paying. That is my problem with warranties and insurances as well for that matter.

That's true (the bit about finding a specialist) but there's still a cost in time (which you might not have) and inconvenience.
Plus, hunting around is OK if you have a 'spare' vehicle, but if you're relying on a car for everyday use, then it needs sorting quickly. It's tough to find a reliable and honest specialist, especially on a 'one-off' basis. They replace the box, then find the ECU is faulty etc etc.