Small independent dealer, decent reviews, and the car is 8 years old. The written warranty is one page and says powertrain, three months or 5000km. I asked what that covers and got engine and gearbox. I would like to know what it realistically does not cover before I decide whether it is worth anything or whether I should be budgeting as if there is no warranty at all.
The exclusions that actually bite in month one are diagnosis fees and wear items. Something rattles, you take it in, they charge you to look at it, and then the finding is a wear item that is not covered. Ask directly whether diagnostic time is paid if the claim is declined, and get the answer in writing on the invoice or the order form.
In writing on the order form rather than in an email is the important bit. The order form is the document that survives.
Since it is short, use it deliberately. Drive it properly in the first fortnight, motorway, hills, cold mornings, full lock in a car park, air conditioning on max, every electric window and the heated rear screen. Then have an independent garage look at it in week two while you still have recourse. Most people discover the fault in month five.
Also check whether the warranty is the dealer standing behind it themselves or a third party policy they have bought. Those behave very differently when you call.
@pandl_paula · 7mo ago · 3 replies
Powertrain usually means the internally lubricated parts of the engine, the gearbox, and the driveshafts. In practice that leaves out most of what actually goes wrong on an eight year old car.
Not covered, typically: air conditioning, alternator and starter, all electronics and sensors, suspension and bushes, brakes, clutch as a wear item, exhaust, cooling system hoses and radiator, injectors, turbo on many policies, and anything described as wear and tear, which is a phrase doing an enormous amount of work.
Before you sign, look for four things in the document. Is there a per claim limit or an aggregate limit. Is labour capped at an hourly rate lower than any real garage charges. Does it exclude consequential damage, meaning if a covered part fails and destroys an uncovered part, they pay for one of them. And does it require the repair to be done at their premises, which matters a lot if you live an hour away.
My honest assessment: budget as though it does not exist, and treat any successful claim as a bonus. Three months and 5000km is a goodwill period, not insurance.
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@gio_castellan · 7mo ago
Consequential damage is the clause that catches people. A covered oil pump fails, the engine is destroyed, and the payout is a pump.
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@threefund_dana · 7mo ago
Read it again with your list. Labour capped well under local rates and repairs only at their workshop, which is 70km away. That reframes it entirely.
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