2 years passed, good thing I didn't get extended warranty!

[faz]

Hi everyone,

It has been just over 2 years and 35k miles since I bought my 2005 3.0i. It had 3 months of orig warranty left and only had 42k miles on it.

During the first three months of my ownership, it was still under the orig 4yr/50k warranty, and a few sensors and issues got replaced/resolved by the dealer during that period.

Here is an old thread that I started back then asking others on this forum if the problems I was having were common problems or were specific to my car:

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...-problems.html

This forum has always been a good source of information and helpful people chimed in. At the time of posting the above thread, I still had a few days to get extended warranty from BMW dealer to cover me until now.

If I had gotten any such warranty, it would have expired now, and I would have ended up not using it.

I am simply glad that I haven't had any big problems that needed such repairs, and more glad that I ended up saving the warranty money for future repairs. I know there is some value to peace of mind that comes with having a warranty, and surely I did not have that kind of peace of mind over the last two years.

Here is what I thought about when I decided to NOT get the warranty:

- a bunch of sensors/etc. were just fixed under the orig warranty, and still would be covered under their individual warranty for the following two years anyway

- the car had only 45k or so miles on it, and I would still be below 80k miles in two years... it seemed like most problems would start at 70-80k miles and above.

- the car was a California car, and it would remain in California, immune from harsher weather and all the extra stress/problems that it can bring with it.

- it had the 3.0i engine, which was easier on transmission and less problem prone as per feedback from a few local independent shops, and was easier/cheaper to work on if a problem came up.

- I could fix some of the problems myself (leaking radiator hose / temp sensor, for example), and I could live with some of the other issues (occasional water dripping from the center-top console after heavy rain).

- I figured $2400 or so for extended warranty could be used for any major repairs that could come up at an independent shop.

- Brakes and other things like valve cover gasket, etc. , were not covered under extended warranty anyway (changed both front rotors/pads recently)


I am happy to report that the car is running absolutely beautifully; it has been maintained well but also used well too: I have put about 35k miles on it in just over 2 years.

Anyhow, I just wanted to share this with you all, and also perhaps highlight the point that the answer to an often asked question of 'should I get an extended warranty?' is not always a 'yes'. This question should be answered on a case by case basis.

Of course, I could be one of the few lucky ones. Who knows.

Thanks for the great website. Happy X5'ing.