[coldpotatosalad]

Hi all,

Relatively new here. I know there are several threads across these forums regarding the topic of extended warranties but I still feel compelled to ask for current input with respect to my specific car.

I recently bought a pre-owned 2021 X5MC. As of now it has about 10 months / 2,500 miles remaining on the factory warranty. On day one of owning the vehicle, the fuel pump failed and it went into the shop for a week. Since then, the issue recurred again, but this time it appears to have just been low fuel (I was at about 1/8th of a tank which has never caused issues in cars I have driven previously, but I seem to recall reading somewhere these cars have a poor fuel tank design). I filled the tank and the issue has not recurred since.

Though I've never been one to buy extended warranties, my initial thinking at the point of purchase was to get the BMW backed ESC. It seems at a glance to be a warranty worth the money, since it's an extension of the factory warranty as opposed to whatever random warranty the finance manager is trying to push at the point of sale. However it's been like pulling teeth getting dealerships to provide quotes for the ESC. With the help of GOLFFRR I was able to get one quote so far (and since it's coming from a reputable member here, I don't doubt that the price is good), but that price for a 7 year/100k is at least a few thousand more than I had anticipated, and the shorter terms, while cheaper, would seem to provide much less value (5yr/75k is about 60% the price of 7yr/100k).

I can't forget that all the consumables and regular maintenance are not included in these prices. I find myself going back and forth on the merit of such an expensive extended warranty when that money could be spent towards the items that will need to be purchased regardless (brakes, tires, etc) and/or light modding (intake, exhaust, lowering, chip tune, etc) that I would be much less inclined to do while under a warranty.

I have a million questions. Has anyone bought the warranty and felt it was a good decision? Or was it wasted money? Are there known reliability issues here that I should 'pre-pay' to have resolved? Is my early ownership experience with the fuel pump a sign of more trouble to come?

I find myself with 3 real options:
1. take the medicine and buy the warranty.
2. find an inexpensive "middle ground" warranty that would cover catastrophe.
3. Send it, yolo, be ready to part ways with the car if catastrophe strikes or repair bills start to exceed the cost of the full warranty.

Any and all input is welcome! Thanks so much for reading!

[Brandt51]

I can’t answer your questions, but I do think service experience has a lot to do with who the advisor is. I don’t think any manufacture has the perfect warranty program. It seems to vary from dealer to dealer regardless of manufacture. So, if you only go to one place and see one person, that could help.

[coldpotatosalad]

Originally Posted by Brandt51

I can’t answer your questions, but I do think service experience has a lot to do with who the advisor is. I don’t think any manufacture has the perfect warranty program. It seems to vary from dealer to dealer regardless of manufacture. So, if you only go to one place and see one person, that could help.

For option 3 I have a good independent mechanic who only works on BMW. So the service advisor will be the same even if I decide to self pay. This is a very good point though, having to take the car to different and possibly inexperienced mechanics would be a big minus if going without warranty!

[svangron]

I just purchased a 2022 BMW X5MC with 16,000 miles on it.

The BMW dealership sold me an extended warranty through EasyCare that runs through 84 months or 85K miles. The price was a little steep at $6,200. It covers all items on the car, including the suspension, which BMW told me was not covered by the factory warranty.

I looked at many other aftermarket options like Endurance, CarChex and CarShield. None of them would cover the engine or transmission under their warranty, so I was quite baffled what the point of their warranty was. On top of it they wanted to charge $250/month for their warranty through 85K miles.

With all the expensive components on the vehicle, one trip to the dealership for repairs I am sure will cost a few grand. I bought this for piece of mind and actually hope for once that I use my warranty at some point to recoup the cost.

[aug0211]

It’s been a few years but we owned an X5 out of warranty for a bit a while back.

Just before factory warranty expired, I got nervous and started looking around - similar boat to you.

Not sure if they’re still as good now, but Route66 was the place my research landed me. The pricing was competitive and everything was covered.

A few months after buying that warranty, the engine had massive issues. Repair bill would have been $16k.

We paid $0; BMW and Route66 worked together very well and offered a few options (repair vehicle at no cost, buy vehicle back, offer trade deal for new purchase).

I really don’t know if it’s the same these days or if we got lucky, but I wanted to share the experience with Route66 and also thought it was nice to see BMW work nicely with another warranty provider.

[coldpotatosalad]

Appreciate the feedback! I did end up deciding 8k was too much and I'd live on the wild side. Shortly after the warranty expired, my rear windshield shattered in 0 degree weather! That's been fixed and I also have started some light mods beginning with the Dinan lowering springs.

I'll be sure to update later on if it becomes clear that I've made the wrong decision! Wish me luck!