[drainaudio]

Hi all,

Firstly to the Mods, I realise this thread could go in the warranty/finance section but more people who may benefit will see it here - please don't move it..

Mini extended warranty has had a big update as of 1st March!!

You now have several options in terms of what is actually covered, whether you want road-side assistance, whether you want to pay an excess or how large the excess is etc.
It is now also possible to pay monthly by direct debit.

I have an 05 S (March build) with pretty much every option (£24,000 new) and 17k on the clock.
Quotes were for full cover (everything as per the factory build up to the original purchase price, except wear/tear items) and European breakdown assistance:

No Excess - £557.00 per year or £51 per month DD.
£100 Excess - £442.00 per year or £41 per month DD.
£250 Excess - £352.00 per year (didn't ask for DD price - this is getting very competitive when compared to Warranty Direct)

Personally I'm going for the full cover, no excess - seems like good value to me considering future resale value on a car that will be lucky to do 5k a year and have only ever been touched by a main dealer - if I ever sell, everything will work (+ I'm self-employed so it's a tax deduction).

Before anyone jumps on the "Warranty Direct" bandwagon I've done my reaserch on those guys and spoke to several different members of their staff to try and clarify what they really cover (seems they don't know half the time, just like the insurance companies who consider factory options "modifications").
They will not cover the following items no matter what policy I buy and do not cover up to the purchase price of the vehicle:
Heated Seats, Sat Nav, HK, iPod Link, CD Changer, MF Steering Wheel, Sunroof, Climate Control, Elect Folding Mirrors, PDC.

Nor do they provide Mini breakdown assistance which on the 2 occasions I've needed it was excellent.

miniwarranty.co.uk - I have to wait 24hrs while my details update but apparently you can configure your warranty package and organise payment online.

Hope this info is helpful.
Cheers, Geoff.

[sav112]

ok so not really getting this, this is to cover stuff over and above the insurance? Tell me its not £500 a year?

And concerning your car is worth what now, 14K-16K its covered for the full price you paid like 24K.

[drainaudio]

Quote: Originally Posted by sav112 (original)

ok so not really getting this, this is to cover stuff over and above the insurance? Tell me its not £500 a year?

And concerning your car is worth what now, 14K-16K its covered for the full price you paid like 24K.

Please read the post!!

Mini extended WARRANTY - it's not accident insurance, gap insurance, tyre insurance or home and contents insurance ..

Your car came with a 3 year manufacturers warranty - if you wish to continue to have this cover after the 3 year period you need to purchase an extended warranty.

Up to the original purchase price means they will not turn around and refuse to pay for your £7000 engine and gearbox replacement because their policy limit is £5000, for example.

Cheers, Geoff.

[feenaldo]

Great news that you can have it as a direct debit I think! For me warranty is a no brainer, MINI have been fab whenever I have had any problems, and mine will be up in a year so probably taking the same route as you, no excess, especially since you don't want to pay the £100 inspection fee every time your taking the car in with something you think might be wrong.

[Vitesse]

I have heard about these changes, but wasn't aware of the detail, so thanks.

My Mini is 3 years old in August and is on 11k miles at the moment, so barely run in. It seems stupid to trade it in at the 3 year point, just to lose more money. I'm more than happy with it, so will look to take out the warranty as well.

After the 3 year warranty expires, obviously you can buy the extended warranty for year 4, is there an age of the car where they won't allow you to continue extending it?

[Vitesse]

Oh I just answered my question by looking at the website, "so long as the car has not covered more that 100,000 miles at the time of purchasing the warranty".

So the rate I'm going at, I could be purchasing extended warranties for the next 17 years!!!!!!!

[Chellle]

i went for the extended warranty

car is tio top, so i want to keep it that way

[baskers]

Brilliant thread - should be stickied... I'm going for this next year!

[batou]

Under exclusions:

"Any item that has worn out rather than suffered from a defect"

Just note that places like warranty direct cover for wear and tear after 90 days and pays 100% of the parts upto 60k, hence how I'm getting my worn suspension bushes replaced under warranty from them

I suspect knowing bmw, the word "defect" will be used very strictly in any claim. If it's not a defect no claim... again i suspect.

[Damo]

Quote: Originally Posted by batou (original)

Under exclusions:

"Any item that has worn out rather than suffered from a defect"

Just note that places like warranty direct cover for wear and tear after 90 days and pays 100% of the parts upto 60k, hence how I'm getting my worn suspension bushes replaced under warranty from them

I suspect knowing bmw, the word "defect" will be used very strictly in any claim. If it's not a defect no claim... again i suspect.

Does that include tyres?

[drainaudio]

Quote: Originally Posted by batou (original)

Under exclusions:

"Any item that has worn out rather than suffered from a defect"

Just note that places like warranty direct cover for wear and tear after 90 days and pays 100% of the parts upto 60k, hence how I'm getting my worn suspension bushes replaced under warranty from them

I suspect knowing bmw, the word "defect" will be used very strictly in any claim. If it's not a defect no claim... again i suspect.

Sorry but I picked the Warranty Direct policy to pieces and it covers the bare minimum to say the least (from the horse's mouth)..

I will happily pay for some "worn" suspension bushes when my car hits the sort of mileage that would result in such wear (if ever).
In the meantime I'll be happy knowing that my £7k + of optional extras are 100% covered by my warranty and it will only ever be repaired at the BMW dealership of my choice.

Warranty Direct just doesn't make sense anymore IMO - you can get the same level of cover now from BMW for pretty much the same price since they reconfigured the warranty options.

In addition the WD policy is say £250 per year and on top of that you add Europe-wide AA cover say another £150, you are already up to £400 - £500 gets you the comprehensive Mini warranty with Europe-wide breakdown cover.

What's £100 in the grand scheme of a years motoring and who's Mini is going to command a higher premium in the years to come? - without a doubt the one that has only ever been touched by BMW, is in perfect working order and has a manufacturer's extended warranty that is transferable to a new owner and doesn't have a mileage limit.

By all means if you're happy with WD then more power to you, I personally wouldn't touch them with a barge pole.

Cheers, Geoff.

[hoojkel]

Still undecided!! Getting my PIN in next 24 hours to logon and get a quote but the comprehensive cover also covers " Heated Seats, Sat Nav, HK, iPod Link, CD Changer, MF Steering Wheel, Sunroof, Climate Control, Elect Folding Mirrors, PDC." I don't have most of these and it is a bit unclear on the website.
It states that Comprehensive cover is for all electrical/ mechanical except wear and tear items etc etc but I don't want this cover as i'm not going to pay extra for items above that I don't have.
So, What about the named component cover, it gives a list of items covered and if they're not on the list, tough.
So if I want the best cover I go for Comprehensive even though I am paying for covering things I don't have or the next best ' Named' which doesn't cover me for all the things I want to be covered for??

[drainaudio]

Quote: Originally Posted by hoojkel (original)

Still undecided!! Getting my PIN in next 24 hours to logon and get a quote but the comprehensive cover also covers " Heated Seats, Sat Nav, HK, iPod Link, CD Changer, MF Steering Wheel, Sunroof, Climate Control, Elect Folding Mirrors, PDC." I don't have most of these and it is a bit unclear on the website.
It states that Comprehensive cover is for all electrical/ mechanical except wear and tear items etc etc but I don't want this cover as i'm not going to pay extra for items above that I don't have.
So, What about the named component cover, it gives a list of items covered and if they're not on the list, tough.
So if I want the best cover I go for Comprehensive even though I am paying for covering things I don't have or the next best ' Named' which doesn't cover me for all the things I want to be covered for??

I think you are confusing yourself there
What are these other "mystery" components that you want to be covered for??

Comprehensive will cover the entire car as it left the factory up to the original purchase price of the car.
The other option is "Named Component" this effectively gives you the same cover that the Warranty Direct policy provides and covers up to a total bill of £5000:
Engine
Supercharger
Gearbox
Final Drive
Steering
Braking System
Fuel System
Cooling System
Electrical System
Casings if damaged by failure of an insured component
Sundries, oil, filters, coolant etc required as a direct result of a claim

It breaks, you take it to the BMW dealership of your choice and it gets fixed - WD will not pay BMW main dealer labour rates!!
You can also choose to include or not include (the excellent) Mini breakdown cover in your policy.

Cheers, Geoff.

[drainaudio]

The other thing to keep in mind is that the price of the comprehensive policy is aprox £500 per year.

Take the Mini breakdown assistance out of the equation and let's call it say £350ish.

That is less than the average (from what I've witnessed on this forum over the years) cost of 1 dealership visit for repairs - steering column for example, roughly £450.00 and a very common fault..

I needed a drive-shaft and engine mount within a week of my warranty expiring - no wasting time and energy on a "goodwill" gesture, I took it to my local dealership where they assessed the items as a warranty claim and fixed it - that's this years policy already paid for itself!!!!!!

Food for though I think.

Cheers, Geoff.

[hoojkel]

Quote: Originally Posted by drainaudio (original)

I think you are confusing yourself there
What are these other "mystery" components that you want to be covered for??

Comprehensive will cover the entire car as it left the factory up to the original purchase price of the car.
The other option is "Named Component" this effectively gives you the same cover that the Warranty Direct policy provides and covers up to a total bill of £5000:
Engine
Supercharger
Gearbox
Final Drive
Steering
Braking System
Fuel System
Cooling System
Electrical System
Casings if damaged by failure of an insured component
Sundries, oil, filters, coolant etc required as a direct result of a claim

It breaks, you take it to the BMW dealership of your choice and it gets fixed - WD will not pay BMW main dealer labour rates!!
You can also choose to include or not include (the excellent) Mini breakdown cover in your policy.

Cheers, Geoff.

I'm not confusing myself and I didn't say anything about wanting cover for 'Mystery' components.
Comprehensive cover will not cover the car in its entireity as it left the factory as it clearly says Comprehensive covers ' Most' electrical and mechanical components.
Yet they don't list what components these are and gives an overview as well as including Satnav,PDC, ICE, dashboard displays etc. of what is covered. I do not have some of these extra items under the comprehensive cover and don't want to pay extra as a result.
The 'Named' cover does list mechanical items strangely enough but even though it lists what is covered mechanically, you cannot compare between the 2 as you don't know what items are covered under comprehensive even though it states ' Most' items will be covered. What are 'Most' items i'd like to know. So, is this to lull you into getting the comprehensive for fear that you might not be completely covered under the Named cover.
Don't get me wrong, I do want to get some cover or other but I just find it strange that it doesn't list all items specifically or are these listed after you pay the money??

[Damo]

Quote: Originally Posted by drainaudio (original)

WD will not pay BMW main dealer labour rates!!

You sure about that, heard people on here (and our former service manager wife at woodmans) have had no issues with getting claims done at main dealers. In fact he recommended them to my GF

[drainaudio]

Quote: Originally Posted by Damo (original)

You sure about that, heard people on here (and our former service manager wife at woodmans) have had no issues with getting claims done at main dealers. In fact he recommended them to my GF

The standard WD policy i.e. the £250.00 per year "bargain" that people talk about does not cover main dealer labour rates, I believe the maximum they will pay from memory is £70ph.

You can of course pay a "premium" to cover main dealer labour rates however by the time I'd added this to the initial policy and added road-side assistance from a 3rd party (AA, RAC etc) the price was within £'s of the BMW warranty but still didn't cover all the optional extra's and had a maximum pay-out of £5000.00.

Cheers, Geoff.

[ratherbewindsurfing]

My view is that extended warranties are a waste of money. Just put the money in a savings account and hope for the best.

If nothing goes wrong spend the money on a skiing holiday.

If the engine blows up buy a secondhand one (£700) and swap it at the weekend, then salvage the good bits from the blown up engine and sell them on ebay.

Forgot to say, cars are for thrashing and crashing.

[drainaudio]

Quote: Originally Posted by hoojkel (original)

I'm not confusing myself and I didn't say anything about wanting cover for 'Mystery' components.
Comprehensive cover will not cover the car in its entireity as it left the factory as it clearly says Comprehensive covers ' Most' electrical and mechanical components.
Yet they don't list what components these are and gives an overview as well as including Satnav,PDC, ICE, dashboard displays etc. of what is covered. I do not have some of these extra items under the comprehensive cover and don't want to pay extra as a result.
The 'Named' cover does list mechanical items strangely enough but even though it lists what is covered mechanically, you cannot compare between the 2 as you don't know what items are covered under comprehensive even though it states ' Most' items will be covered. What are 'Most' items i'd like to know. So, is this to lull you into getting the comprehensive for fear that you might not be completely covered under the Named cover.
Don't get me wrong, I do want to get some cover or other but I just find it strange that it doesn't list all items specifically or are these listed after you pay the money??

Please..................don't be so lazy - GO AND DO SOME PROPER RESEARCH!!
Before you come on here talking absolute rubbish!!

It's all very clearly listed on the website in plain English if you'd actually bother to read it..

http://www.miniwarranty.co.uk/Pages/...ve/Details.htm

http://www.miniwarranty.co.uk/Pages/...ensive/FAQ.htm

Copy/pasted from the website..

Detail of cover.
Comprehensive Insured Warranty covers all mechanical and electrical components of your vehicle for defects - except the items listed below:
All exhaust components (except Catalytic Converter)
All service items which will require periodic replacement
Any item that has worn out rather than suffered from a defect
Auxiliary drive belts
Batteries
Brake and clutch facings
Bulbs and fuses
Channels and guides
Cleaning or adjustment of any component
Coolant and fuel hoses
Discs and drums
Glass
Handles, hinges and check straps
Trim, upholstery and cosmetic finishes
Wheels and tyres
Wiper blades and arms
Weather strips and seals

Cheers, Geoff..

[drainaudio]

Quote: Originally Posted by ratherbewindsurfing (original)

My view is that extended warranties are a waste of money. Just put the money in a savings account and hope for the best.

If nothing goes wrong spend the money on a skiing holiday.

If the engine blows up buy a secondhand one (£700) and swap it at the weekend, then salvage the good bits from the blown up engine and sell them on ebay.

Forgot to say, cars are for thrashing and crashing.

Brilliant idea other than the fact that my S isn't some £500 banger.
I can just see myself swapping out the engine on a residential street in London with a couple of mates and a few beers......"piece of cake these modern cars not like the old days, now them engines was complicated"....

Certainly glad I won't be buying your car at any point in the future..