I wouldn't buy it but I don't ever buy extended warranties. Like you say, it's insurance, but it's skewed in favor of the extended warranty company. If you do get one, read the fine print so you know what you're getting since there are 'lots' of items excluded from the warranty - basically anything Acura actually thinks might break or need maintenance replacement.

You might also not want to buy it now since you have plenty of time still left on the factory warranty. You never know - you might end up selling the vehicle before you planned - or it gets crashed, or stolen, etc. You could always buy it later.

 

Carbon build up may not be covered. It may be considered maintenance. I have a certified used Vw EOS. They even covered the top. They would not cover cleaning of the carbon on the valves.
I bought it.

 

I have been offered 1700US$ for 8years/100K or 1900US$ for 8years/120K. This is for acuracare.

Would you bite?

No.

First of all, keep in mind that the new car comes with a bumper-to-bumper warranty of 4 years, 48K miles, and a powertrain warranty of 6 years, 70K miles. So you're paying extra for things that will go wrong after that point, before the extended warranty expires - within 2 years and 30-50K miles, for the powertrain (which is what any expensive repairs would be for). $1700-1900 is an awful lot of money to cover that relatively short period. Chances are that you will never get enough back in claims to cover the high cost of purchasing an extended warranty. So my advice is, don't buy an extended warranty unless you don't mind spending a lot of money just for whatever peace of mind it gives you. On average, you'll probably never save enough on claims as you will spend on the warranty. (Some people do save, but most don't.) That's why they are so profitable for the dealers who sell them.

You can read the latest advice from Consumer Reports here:

Is it worth buying an extended car warranty?

Much of that advice is based on their earlier survey of 8000 readers with extended warranties, in this previous article:

Extended warranties: A high-priced gamble
Our survey of 8,000 new-car buyers shows they are usually a poor deal

According to that study, 42 percent of those with an extended warranty on an Acura never even received any claims on it, and only 14 percent actually saved money on it. The average loss by warranty holders - the amount by which what they paid for the warranty exceeded the claims reimbursements they received - was $500. That's why extended warranties are such a big source of profits for the companies that issue them and the dealers that sell them.

 

It's an insurance policy. Insurance companies are rich yet we still buy insurance. I bought it because of the electronics. The odds are you'll never use it. But you never know.

 

This is a tough call in my opinion. Yes, there is data around extended warranties. However this 3G MDX is full of technology. It would be risky to own one with no kind of warranty. The head unit, alone, would pay for the warranty itself....if it fails.

 

The head unit, alone, would pay for the warranty itself....if it fails.

Actually, replacing the head unit probably wouldn't even come close to paying for the cost of the warranty, if you replaced it with a used one. You can find warrantied used parts pretty darn cheap on car-part.com You would need to have multiple repairs, or something really really expensive fail (like an entire engine or transmission). And remember, it would have to fail in the relatively brief period after the normal warranty expires but before the extended warranty expires.

 

The head unit, alone, would pay for the warranty itself....if it fails.

Only if it fails after the normal 4 year warranty and before selling the vehicle (and if it's actually covered by the warranty).

Electronics are usually pretty reliable after the early life failure period. Something like a hard disk would be an exception since it has mechanical components, a head flying at thousands of RPM barely above a magnetic surface, and contaminants can cause it issues. On something like the MDX I don't know if the HDD fails 5 years down the road whether it could be replaced independently of the whole enchilada. This assumes it's really an HDD and not an SSD (which in today's day and age in an application like a vehicle is what it should be - i.e. an SSD, but may well not be).

 

We had an engine problem last year with our 2008 Nissan Pathfinder 3 months after the warranty ended. It cost us $1800. After dropping $54K on a vehicle, I'm ok with an extended warranty. I purchased one and it's transferable so when it comes time to sell it, the car might be a bit more marketable by giving potential buyers a little peace of mind knowing that it's still covered.

 

It's really a personal decision. I purchased a 2011 MB GLK350 w/ 8K KMs, came with the extended MB Certified Pre-owned warranty(6 yr)... Wouldn't purchase an MB without it... and I do ALL my own maintenance(all documented,receipts,etc BTW)!!! I know when I trade for a 2016 MDX, it will have value, either through trade, or a private sale to someone who needs a 'backup relief' should the machine possibly fail! But, I have Never purchased any kind of extended warranty for any electronics, toys, etc. I'm betting in the next few months a 2016MDX will be available with few KMs... and a Certified extended Dealers warranty. Can't go wrong, and the NEW vehicle feeling is still there, without the new car $$ depreciation hit!

 

When I said head unit, I meant the infotainment unit. It is well over 2 grand to replace. My buddy's 07 TL needed a new unit at 80K miles. His screen failed. Luckily he had a warranty.

I am sure the engine and tranny will be fine. It is all of this new technology that concerns me and is expensive to repair.

 

When I said head unit, I meant the infotainment unit. It is well over 2 grand to replace.

Only if you buy it new. There's one from a 2014 MDX for sale on car-part.com for $750. Once there are a lot of them in junkyards, that price will go down - A LOT. But even if you had to pay $750 for a replacement, that's still only half the cost of the extended warranty.

My buddy's 07 TL needed a new unit at 80K miles. His screen failed. Luckily he had a warranty.

You can buy information centers for the 2007 TL on car-part.com for around $150 each all day long. Too bad your buddy wasted several grand on an extended warranty when he could have instead spent just a few hundred dollars on the repair!

 

Having health insurance can make the difference between dying or having the ability to get treatment to keep you alive. House insurance is required by banks or, if you paid off your mortgage, probably represents your largest net asset and it is an appreciating asset. At some point you are likely to cash out on it to pay for your final days rotting in a nursing home.

An extended warranty is more like what you get offered at the checkout at Best Buy. The car might have cost you a lot to buy, but by the time it kicks in it is worth a fraction of what you paid and is continuously depreciating in value after that.

Better to put the money in a mutual fund. If things go bad down the road you can use the money. Unlike health insurance, your worst case down side is limited to using the money towards replacing the car if the repair is too costly, and use can use the fund to help cover it. If you are experiencing serious problems with a car that old, you might like the option to replace it.

 

Understood. I don't own any warranties on my cars and never have bought them. I am just saying that as cars become more like rolling computers that it may become more compelling.

 

My buddy's 07 TL needed a new unit at 80K miles. His screen failed. Luckily he had a warranty.

It'll always be possible to find anecdotes of cases where one recouped more from the warranty than the cost of it but that's not really the point to consider. The point to consider is the 'percentage' of times when one recouped more and thus they came out ahead by having the warranty. It's a game of odds and the odds are in the favor of the company.

In simple numbers, if the purchasers come out ahead on these extended warranties the majority of the time then the companies would either no longer offer them or they'd raise the cost of them or they'd write into the fine print more exclusions. These aren't philanthropic organizations.

But some people are willing to pay thousands of $ to swap out the perfectly good factory wheels so if they think this extended warranty will give them a warm and fuzzy feeling and that's worth the cost of the item to them then perhaps they should go ahead and make the dealer sales guy happy and buy one.

 

I bought the extended warranty and it's a drop in the bucket for some peace of mind

It's a no Brainer for me, but I don't sweat $2k

If you do, think harder about the warranty

 

If you need peace of mind from a financially devastating repair down the road, then I suppose it might be worth it. I'd rather have $2k in my pocket for the next five years and take my chances on losing more than that later.

 

but I don't sweat $2k

Then there's another way of looking at it - pay $2K now for potentially no tangible benefit, or don't sweat paying some money down the road for repairs if they turn out to be necessary.

 

Mathematicly it doesn't make sense to buy the extended warranty. Unless you are the one who ends up using it.

 

Makes sense of German cars or British cars. Not on acuras. I think everyone has read demuro range Rover carmax insurance. If not you should.

 

I bought the 8 yr/120k extended warranty when I bought my 11. It was the last item negotiated and I got it at dealer cost, and it was rolled into the cheap financing so I am paying for it over 5 yrs. My thinking was both piece of mind and it is transferable in a private transaction, so I believe it will help sell the car. Also, if I trade the vehicle I will receive a prorated refund as I did from the extended warranty on my 05 when I traded it for the 11.

As mentioned above, it is a personal decision.

 

Hey Rouble.

Where did you get that offer of $1700? That seems like a heck of a deal, can you either post the place on here or IM me? If anyone else knows that place or a better deal, please post on here or IM me as well. I'd highly appreciate it!!

I am getting it because we are going to keep the car for 6-8 yrs for sure and the gadgets and sensors will cost a lot, so a great peace of mind! :29:

 

They probably wouldn't cover the carbon build up. On my Vw EOS. They considered it maintenance. Wrong quote but you get the drift.

 

So for those who bought the extended warranty, how much did you guys pay? I inquired about the Infiniti QX60 and the finance guy quoted me $3300 for 120K b2b.

 

Hi Rouble,

I'm interested in purchasing the extended warranty. Who did you purchase this from? I live in the SF Bay Area, but I understand that you can buy these from any dealership across the country.

Thanks,

Sal