paradox

Hey guys..... was at Hennessey Lexus discussing purchasing a possible 94 LS trade-in, when the sales guy tried to sell me the Lexus extended warranty after seeing my car. Told him I already had purchased Warranty Gold's 7/100 Diamond plan. He said that their dealership does not accept that warranty. I'm a little skeptical about that especially since he tried to get me to cancel it, and purchase Lexus' which is 2200 bucks, and does not cover as much. My understanding was that for any warranty work, they just call the company and get immediate approval via a credit card. Anyone else have warrantygold, and have a problem using it at a Lexus dealership? My experience with car dealers recently have left me very suspect of anything that comes out their mouths, so I figured I ask you guys. Thanks!

New Owner

I have no direct experience with 'Warranty Gold'. However, I looked into it and it works exactly as you say.

You basically go into the dealership (or any auto service facility anywhere) as a cash, non-warranty customer. You find out what's needed and what it's going to cost and call Warranty Gold. Usually they'll want the servicing dealer to call them, this may be where the rub is.

Most Lexus dealers are anxious to please and do a very grand job doing it, but I s'pose there's always that chance of finding a bad apple among the bunch.

Check 'em out with the Better Business Bureau. Here's what my local BBB had to say about a local Lexus dealer:

and if your dealer is not a BBB member, you'd probably do well to find one that is.

jgrooms

I thought about signing up with Warranty Gold awhile back but I was bothered by the wording in their FAQ's which states:

"Our Administrator's office will then pay the service facility the authorized amount (emphasis mine) with company credit cards." Reading further they explain the "authorized amount" is, "based upon Chilton's, Mitchell's, or other industry pricing guides." Well, my Lexus dealer charges $85 per hour while most other shops in the area only charge between $35 and $50 per hour (could this be the industry rate?). I could never get a straight answer from WG customer support as to what was the maximum rate they would authorize. I was only told that if I wasn't happy with the plan I could cancel at any time (at a pro-rated amount of course).

My concern was that they would only cover a lower shop rate such as Pep Boys (one of their "recommended" facilities, BTW) and not the higher Lexus rate.

I have also heard that there are numerous loopholes as to what is and isn't covered by extended warranties in general. (Just a thought - the reason why the Lexus plan costs more and seems to cover less could be because of Lexus' higher shop rate and the fact that they are more likely to be upfront about what is actually covered).

Finally, I was also bothered by the aggressiveness of the WG sales campaign. I contacted them over a year ago and not a week goes by that I don't receive an email with some sort of "special offer". Common sense tells me that if their extended warranty was in my best interest, they wouldn't be trying so hard to sell me one.

Just my .02 cents...

- J

New Owner

Only my opinion, but all of the aftermarket extended warranties are a big ripoff. It matters not whether you buy the Lexus Extra Care plan or one of the independent plans. They are all rife with weasel clauses. They are also very expensive and historically your chances of just breaking even with their high up front cost is very slim. They provide almost 100% coverage of things which never break down and practically no coverage of things which are likely to fail.

My advice is to bank the money and take your chances.

SCV8

I had the WG,came with my car,so I wasn't out much,and the car had it's PS pump,rack,trans seals replaced under the warranty,so I was happy with them.The WG has local reps that come and promptly inspect with the tech to verify,and allow repairs to be done.
This was done at a Lexus dealer,who had problems routing my wires such that they wouldn't rub on belts,swapped out my perfect headlights,left hose clamps off,so I had a bad experience for other reasons,won't be back.
I'd just keep in mind that these cars consume some pretty spendy parts every once in awhile,and bag the warranty schemes,and the dealer for certain.

HoleinOne

I had a Diamond plan (pumper to pumper coverage) from WarrantyDirect.com for my 97 MB E320 before I traded it in. It worked great never had a problem getting immediate approvals and even the dealer's service advisor had commented how nice and cooperative they were. There were a couple times when they authorized a little less than the dealer's listed charges (they authorized fewer hours than the dealer listed would take to d the work); but the dealer was always willing to adjust the charges. I paid $1200 for the plan and it has paid for itself more than twice over. In addition, since I still have over 30,000 miles and 19 months left on the contract when I traded in the car, I will get about 1/3 of it refunded to me.

The plan I bought was almost 1/2 of what the dealer was going to charge. It is a must of expensive cars. Unfortunately, the car dealers and other insurance companies got to the California Insurance Commissioner late last year and you can't buy this on-line anymore in California. The only other contract I am aware of is by Mercury Insurance. I am still looking into this one for my new LS.

Static911

I'm finalizing on a deal for ClubLexus members from WarrantyGold.

Ethan

seanl

Yeah, but that's on a *Mercedes*, which are known to have way more mechanical and maintenance issues than the Lexus LS400.

My factory warranty just expired at 70K miles, and I decided not to bother with an extended warranty, these cars are quite bulletproof.

HoleinOne

I just got a quote from Mercury Insurance for my 2002 LS430: pumper to pumper for 7 years/100,000 miles with $25 deductable for $858. A repair for the air conditioner, radiator, or control arm bushings would cost more than that. Speaking from experience on three previous extended warranties, it is definitely worth extra protection.

tmhcars

I have purchased two Warranty Gold policies over the past 3 1/2 years and I have had no trouble at all with the firm. WG's service has been outstanding. The service manager at the dealership has made very positive comments about dealing with them. My only "negative experences" has been that I have had some serious car troubles that resulted in expensive repairs that were paid in full by Waranty Gold. I have just acquired a SC430 and I will be buying a WG policy in the not to distant future for it.