Warrant Direct... Yay or Nay?

WRITETOMAB · 15 Apr 2014

Apologies if this has already been covered somewhere else (most likely numerous times)... but I wanted to get your thoughts on Warranty Direct.

I am about to purchase my first ever Porsche... A 2007 911 C2S, which I am picking up on Friday. Its having a comprehensive inspection and comes with a 12 month warranty etc. However, I was looking at the warranty terms today and there is single claim limit of £4000, which god forbid if the worse happens (i.e. IMS or RMS issues) would not cover the cost of a rebuild. So just looking at a few other warranty options including Hartech and the Porsche warranty and I just got off the phone to Warranty Direct.

They quoted me for a 12 month warranty on their Extra Care policy. On the face of it, it seems like a good policy. It covers all the main engine components including bearings, crankshaft, pistons, cylinders etc. It also covers all wear and tear items as well (after the first 3 months) I even asked them directly about cover for IMS and RMS issues and they stated categorically that it is covered. They also perform an independent inspection (free of charge). They cover labour costs of up to £200 per hour. The single claim limit is up to the value of the car, so that's fine. The price was £1170 for the year which you can pay in 4 instalments.

So what's your thoughts? Anyone have good or bad experience with these guys? The price seems quite high, especially when you consider you can get a 12 month Porsche warranty for just a little but more. However, I don't mind paying for the added peace of mind.

Any thoughts or suggestions appreciated!

Many thanks

Zingari · 15 Apr 2014

I think its a case of checking the claims limit on these types of warranty as an engine rebuild following bore score etc will getting on for £8-10k if indeed a replacement engine is not needed. :what:

Doe Hartech cover all the 'claim' on their programme? Sure I read somewhere that there was a contribution element, which can be a few sacks if the engine has gone pop?

How much is OPC warranty?

Maxie · 15 Apr 2014

WRITETOMAB said:
The (Warranty Direct) price was £1170 for the year. The price seems quite high, especially when you consider you can get a 12 month Porsche warranty for just a little but more. However, I don't mind paying for the added peace of mind.

I think the P-warranty is another £100 in which case, if it was me, I would be getting that instead. However, the Hartech warranty is not to be dismissed.

~ Maxie

MJA911 · 15 Apr 2014

I recently took a look at options available for my car once it's Indie warranty runs out and I would suggest you doubly make sure the Warranty policy will cover you for all issues that are "well known". One of the WD competitors has this clause which they confirmed for a 996/997 meant IMS/RMS, bore scoring etc., would not be covered, which totally defeated the object for me.

"The Failure of any Part with inherent, common and well publicised manufacturing defects which you could reasonably have been aware of at the date of purchasing the Vehicle, or any Part requiring replacement due to it being up-dated, superseded, redesigned or recalled by the manufacturer where you have no proof that the Part has been previously replaced."

The OPC warranty seems to stand alone in how comprehensive it is, but it does cost quite a lot and I get the impression they are going to be picky about any personalisation of your car (e.g. LED lights, LTT, non N-rated tyres, iPod connector etc). This would be a PITA for me.

The maintenance plan approach is different, e.g. the Hartech plan and is paid for monthly and whilst it costs quite a bit less than a warranty up front, includes services, MOTs, wear and tear components (and is geared around prevention), it requires a pricey acceptance inspection/service and if the worst still happens only covers labour, not parts, so a £10k rebuild might cost £5k.

I've come away thinking the OPC warranty or a maintenance plan such as Hartech's are both viable options, but I'm sceptical about the 3rd party warranties. That said, I don't need to make my move just yet and remain open minded.

rossman999 · 15 Apr 2014

From experience with my last BMW is that WD will contact you with a reduced price in a few days.

WD payed a couple of bills without any problems - but for an extra few hundred I would go with the porsche warranty.

WRITETOMAB · 15 Apr 2014

Thanks guys... All good advice.

I will double check with with Warranty Direct on the exclusions but I did ask and he said IMS and RMS issues were covered. He also mentioned that the Porsche warranty does not cover wear and tear items... Is this true??

If the warrant direct policy is that comprehensive then it looks like a reasonable warranty. It gives you flexibility on where you get the car repaired, covers wear and tear, allows you to spread yearly payments over a quarterly basis, has no single claim limit. So seems like a good option.

mike brown · 15 Apr 2014

If your car is standard I would not hesitate in getting a two year porsche warranty it's a no brainier .yes it will have to be to req standards for the 111 point insp, but it could be the best money you ever spend, mike

plavix · 15 Apr 2014

This is from a previous 'discussion' of a similar nature. My opinion would be no to a third party warranty. Your available options are an OPC warranty, which requires an inspection. A specialist maintenance warranty, such as Hartech. Or keep the money in a jar, circa £1,000 per annum for arguments sake, and use it as a fighting fund should things need replacing or repairing.

John H said:
John H said:

Why not use Warranty Direct?

Their Luxury-Care policy covers everything that a Porsche Warranty covers and is usually less expensive. They also cover 'Wear & Tear' issues which Porsche doesn't and the work can be done at either a Franchised Dealer or an Independent.

The cost-restriction for labour is £200 per hour which pretty much means you can go anywhere you like...

The other added benefit is that you can fit Michelin Super Sports without fear of voiding the warranty... :thumb:

Click to expand...

Er, how about no? I've yet to see a third party warranty that is actually worth the paper it's written on.

When you have a warranty what you really want is that the major stuff, such as engine, drive-train, gearbox etc. are all FULLY covered. Those things that, should they be missing, make you vehicle a rather large but possibly attractive paper weight or doorstop.

Often third party warranty companies will 'wriggle' out of obligations because it was pre-existing (IMS, bore-score) or they don't cover the ancillaries, such as the cylinder heads, the shafts, the seals, the hoses, the mounts etc. etc. You get point. All of those things are rather crucial for a complete repair and are a major cost component.

Another favourite is they won't provide repair or cover until it has actually 'failed', so for instance a leaking seal on a drive-shaft will probably result in a failure, but do you fancy taking the risk of ending up in a field 100 feet away from your last point on the road, upside down? It would prove it failed though. :floor:

When I purchased my C4 it had a third party warranty on it, with me fully intending to place it back on an OPC warranty. When I had it inspected it needed, amongst other things, the cardan shaft seal replacing and a new air conditioning radiator. Guess what, they covered the rad but not the shaft FFS. :frustrated:

As my OPC are so great they only charged £344.85 for the part and zero for fitting as they managed to stuff the warranty company through billing hours where they did cover.

I've had other instances of third party warranties in the past so I've learnt my lesson the hard way. They are not something I intend to repeat with my 911. :thumbs:

And, N-rated are no more expensive than general manufacture so why bother?

Warranties have been discussed many times on the forum. There is I suppose no right or wrong answer as we each have our own approach to maintenance, risk and expenditure.

gaz41 · 15 Apr 2014

Hi, I can give you first hand experience with Warranty direct. I recently have bought a 53 C4S on 82k and went through all your fears. I tried a few warranty companies and had figures of around £3000 for 2 yrs. So left it, but Warranty Direct called me with a new quote of a warranty lite cover. this was £500 for 2 yrs. Yes IO thought as you are now yeah nowt covered. so the cover is 100% labour and 50% parts, you must have up to date service and MOT but buying one of these why would you not... So where am I going with this you ask. I took the £500 option and last week had to make a claim.
1. Had car recovered to garage of my choice (Indy local).
2. Left my cover book with them.
3. Next day had call from Garage to confirm my thought new Alternator.
4. Garage said they had contacted WD and got approval to do work.
5. Picked car up day later, garage confirmed that not only labour and 50% parts covered also diagnostic test too. But had to pay full amount
6. Called WD, just need to need to email scan of invoice, MOT, Service, claim form. cheque to be sent out 7 day after receipt.

Note Garage said best Warranty company they had dealt with got go ahead over the phone on first call.

There is much more to the policy and all mechanical including internal bearings covered. PM if you want more details, but on my experience I just paid for my cover....

Gaz

MJA911 · 15 Apr 2014

Interesting. For £500 that sounds excellent. To see how far it goes, maybe ask them a direct question, in writing (email) not by phone...about IMS failures (Intermediate Shaft), RMS failures (Rear Main Seal) or Cylinder/Bore Scoring and whether Warranty Direct have any special conditions or exclusions in relation to these or other matters on the 996/997 Porsche 911. Would be great if they confirmed that subject to their conditions about servicing, MOT, correct oil grades etc, they have no special exclusions, not so great if they have something about pre-existing or known faults.

megdog · 15 Apr 2014

I got a Warranty Direct warrant for the same reasons as you state - with my 3.6 2007 997. It covers up to the value of the car essentially - as previous posts point out, could be substantial if IMS failure etc. They paid out £400 for a claim I made, so they do pay out.

WRITETOMAB · 15 Apr 2014

MJA997 said:
Interesting. For £500 that sounds excellent. To see how far it goes, maybe ask them a direct question, in writing (email) not by phone...about IMS failures (Intermediate Shaft), RMS failures (Rear Main Seal) or Cylinder/Bore Scoring and whether Warranty Direct have any special conditions or exclusions in relation to these or other matters on the 996/997 Porsche 911. Would be great if they confirmed that subject to their conditions about servicing, MOT, correct oil grades etc, they have no special exclusions, not so great if they have something about pre-existing or known faults.

I have emailed the guy at Warranty Direct to ask him to confirm if there are any exclusions relating to the IMS and RMS issues so will let you know how he responds. I have had a read through the exclusions and what's covered and I can't see anything specifically that would void an IMS or RMS type claim.

WRITETOMAB · 15 Apr 2014

gaz41 said:
Hi, I can give you first hand experience with Warranty direct. I recently have bought a 53 C4S on 82k and went through all your fears. I tried a few warranty companies and had figures of around £3000 for 2 yrs. So left it, but Warranty Direct called me with a new quote of a warranty lite cover. this was £500 for 2 yrs. Yes IO thought as you are now yeah nowt covered. so the cover is 100% labour and 50% parts, you must have up to date service and MOT but buying one of these why would you not... So where am I going with this you ask. I took the £500 option and last week had to make a claim.
1. Had car recovered to garage of my choice (Indy local).
2. Left my cover book with them.
3. Next day had call from Garage to confirm my thought new Alternator.
4. Garage said they had contacted WD and got approval to do work.
5. Picked car up day later, garage confirmed that not only labour and 50% parts covered also diagnostic test too. But had to pay full amount
6. Called WD, just need to need to email scan of invoice, MOT, Service, claim form. cheque to be sent out 7 day after receipt.

Note Garage said best Warranty company they had dealt with got go ahead over the phone on first call.

There is much more to the policy and all mechanical including internal bearings covered. PM if you want more details, but on my experience I just paid for my cover....

Gaz

That seems like a very decent service. The quote I got was for all labour costs up to £200 per hour and also 100% parts and also covered wear and tear. Seems to good to be true but will see what they say and will definitely consider it.

Adzman89 · 15 Apr 2014

My mate had a new starter motor put on his Lambo for £4k without any issues from WD.

On that basis I have taken out a policy that covers a single claim off £10k, £50 XS and coveted for anything (I hope!)

GregorFuk · 16 Apr 2014

I used Warranty Direct to cover my B5 RS4. When the drivers side turbo went pop they would only pay for the replacement of that single turbo even though all the Audi service literature stated they should be replaced as a matched pair. I subsequently spent hundreds more having a strange surging issues resolved, caused buy??? You guessed it, miss matched turbo waste gates.

I'm pretty sure they also would not pay for the initial diagnostic work.

Initial inspection when taking out the policy is a basic check to make sure you are not trying to warranty an already broken car. They kick the tires, make you drive round the block and go through the gears. That's about it.

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