Quote:
Originally Posted by Fdmcg
I imagine anyone that can finance a $82K vehicle can cover unexpected repairs.
Would you consider any of the coverages to be a good “investment”: coverage cost vs likelihood of needing the service or do you consider “self-insuring” a better alternative?
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The way I've always looked at these are that the dealership is not out to do you any favors. They sell you these plans in hopes you never have to use them. These are pure profit centers for them. They have done the research to know what the price point should be, etc. They know the likelihood of you needing the plan is low. Just making up numbers here to show the point, but for every 1 person who actually gains value and utilizes the plan to their advantage there's probably 5 or so who do not.
For the wheel and tire coverage - you can buy tire coverage at your local tire shop for pretty cheap - probably adds $100-200 to the cost of the tire swap. For the rim coverage - if it's scraps and curb rash, local rim shops and mobile shops will charge less than $200 to fix these types of damage. If you destroy the rim, you're out a lot of money. I've been driving for over 20 years and have never destroyed a rim. So I'll roll the dice on that one. The rest of the damages I'll just absorb and pay out of pocket.
I think I saw that people were getting the rim and tire package for the 22" rims at around $2,000 for 4 years. Based on my numbers above if you buy a tire coverage plan for $200 that should cover your in case you have a blow out. That then leaves the remainder for rim repair. I only bother to fix the rims quarterly because I know they'll get scraped up again. With all that - It would be unlikely that I would get a return on my rim/tire package from BMW. My local rim guy, who's a mobile rim refinishes, charges $75 per rim for Alloy rims - Does a great job - definitely passes the 3 foot test.
For your case, specifically, since you don't drive much - your risk is even lower.