lisalisa

Hi everyone.

..my sc430 is about reaching its 50K miles and my roof was sticking for a few secs the last time i put it up. im thinking about getting the plat. warranty? what does everyone think? what is the price that is be paid for these? ur help would be appreciated!

thanks

tfischer

I only have about half the miles on my car that you do on yours (22,000 in 4.5 years), but I looked into the Lexus warranty and several other extended warranty plans (they are really service agreements, not warranties) and determined that it was not a smart move. Visit your dealer and get the full documentation from the person who handles this, and look over what is covered and what is not.

Also, I think Lexus changed the plan a year or two ago to exclude most of the roof mechanics, which were originally covered.

Remember that if nothing covered goes wrong during the period of coverage, then you are out the cash. If something does go wrong that is covered, you are still behind unless the total cost of all such problems exceeds the purchase price of the plan. To make it worthwhile, you would have to have several large problems during the coverage period, which I think is only two years. This is possible, of course, but not likely for most cars, and especially so for a car with the reputation of the SC430.

It's a form of insurance, which makes some people feel good, but I felt that the premium is too high, and there is never any need to insure yourself against something that you can afford to pay for yourself anyway.

I passed on these plans, but your mileage may vary.

MNPine

Someone posted a while back that the Lexus Dealer in Melbourne, FL was the best place to purchase a Lexus plan.

If it excludes the top and other vital parts then maybe just put that money in the bank and let it draw a few pennies.

It does help in resale at times so that is another factor to consider.

howardde

I bought the Lexus Platinum warranty just before my '02 SC 430 was to hit 50,000 miles. You'll pay around $2,500, but remember, the cost is negotiable. Price the warranty at several dealers and let them know you know its negotiable.

The reason I bought it? Well, the platinum warranty DOES cover the top (including motors), as well as the DVD Navigation system. Its the only warranty that does cover these items. All aftermarket warranties I investigated exclude a navigation system and convertible tops (and their motors).

For me, I can't imagine having to replace the Lexus top at a cost of $8,000...so it was a no-brainer. The only problem is that my warranty will expire in early 2008!

tfischer

As far as I can see, the failure rate of the top is hardly commensusrate with the premium, especially considering the short term of coverage. Your only way of coming out ahead in this deal is to hope and pray for a tragedy to strike your swell new Lexus.

I couldn't live like that.

dingo

howardde,

Be careful what you say about the extended plan as they change it at will. I was going to purchase it on our '03 (I think it was an '03) and they had excluded all of the roof parts except for one (something to do with latching as I recall). I had the dealership call the District mgr and his comment was "if its not in there specifically then its not covered").

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...ght=dingo+roof

tfischer

The above post echos my experience. When I looked at the mis-named "Platinum" (the dealers call it Platinum, not the car owners) "Warranty" (it's really a service agreement, not a warranty) last year, the roof was not covered except for the latching mechanism, whatever that is. When first offered in 2001, I think it covered everything with listed exceptions. Shortly thereafter, they switched to covering only certain listed items; these forms are almost always less comprehensive.

As noted above, my decision was that the coverage (for only two years beyond the original warranty) was not worth the cost, especially considering the reliability of Lexus in general and of this model especially.

I forgot to mention that I only put about 5,000 miles on my car a year, which is also a factor to be considered. Not that many things can go wrong while the car sits in the garage waiting for nice weather.

lisalisa

I asked about the platinum warranty if it covers everything on the car..including roof and nav. and my contact assures me that it does cover everything. On top of that, i get 3 years of free oil changes.

What am I to do?? There are some who say it doesnt cover..some who says the plat. does cover?? Please help! Ive read all the post, and it has been of great help..

thanks!!

[posted edited, private information removed]

Addiction2

Read the contract, if it covers the top you buy it just for the piece of mind. Better to sepend $1800 on nothing (my end of day price) than to spend $8,000 if somethign happens.

howardde

Dingo doesn't know what he's talking about. I'm an attorney and have the contract...its an exclusionary policy meaning that it covers all items OTHER than those specifically listed as not being covered. In addition, it specifically mentions that it covers the navigation system and the top (including the motor, etc. for the top).

It was a no-brainer for me...I use the top every day, often 6 or more times up and down a day, and I just have this feeling these things fail. Also, those d*&n motorized doors for the nav system and stereo have me worried as yet another breakable item. I say, go for it.

By the way, I bought my policy in March 2005, so the current policy (as of then anyway), covered those items.

beachdrive

I negotaited a gold plan into my initial purchase on a 2002 SC430. After seeing the comments here, I just looked again at my policy as it was the retractable top that most concerned me when I added the policy. My policy under ITEMS COVERED BY THIS AGREEMENT and sub section Electrical, lists Convertible Top Motor.

Now I understand there are multiple motors in the SC430 roof and that it might be a retactable roof and not a convertible top. I also relaize that there are a lot of other components involved in raising and lowering the roof. Looks like i might not have the security I thought I had.

dingo

howardde,

So you're a lawyer, eh? Then you must realize that there are more than one of those contracts "out there" as they have changed it at least once that I know of. How about scanning the relevant part of the one you have and post it so we can see what it says.

As beachdrive stated: "ITEMS COVERED BY THIS AGREEMENT" - are you saying that this is an "exclusionary policy"? Seems "inclusionary" to me - but then I'm not a smart assed lawyer .

tfischer

Well!

That wasn't very nice.

No ice cream for you.

dingo

So, I guess you'd have been "kinder and gentler" to someone that said you didn't know what you're talking about? Yeah, sure.

And I'm a Supreme Court Justice that happens to drive a Lexus with no extended maintenance contract.