Honda Care (extended warranty) - how much to pay? before factory warranty expires

Discussion in 'Clarity' started by hanman, Jul 8, 2021.

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  1. Dan Albrich

    Dan Albrich Well-Known Member

    I don't personally think there exists a bad answer to extended warranty.
    Folks who don't do it, like Fast Eddie B tend to win the stats game and save some money. If you're the type that likes buying the insurance when you can buy, so be it.

    And part of this gets personal fast, but in the unlikely event a high priced repair comes up after the initial warranty period, how set are you financially to deal with it? Anyway, I acknowledge that there are many factors that lead to ones personal decision in this regard.

    I guess for me it also matters what it costs. Given that I had to pay $35,000 when I got my car, the ~$1550 extra for warranty didn't seem like a bad deal. Admittedly, there's a reason Honda won't offer a warranty at all after 8 years (i.e. that's the time when things that really cost are more likely to occur). Rational or not, I had a 5 year loan, and wanted a warranty that at least covered the period of the loan.

    Also - as others have noted the traction battery has a legally required warranty that one doesn't need pay for out of pocket. With no extended warranty, you get 8-10 years on the "big" battery depending on your state. I have to add, Honda appears to be a good company; even folks without extended warranty got their AC condenser covered for an extended period. (BTW Clarity is my first Honda ever).
     
    Last edited: Sep 2, 2021
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  3. Phil_Meyers

    Phil_Meyers Active Member

    I bought the extended warranty. I think it was either the 7 or 8 year (I don't remember which) with 130K miles or so. I negotiated to like $1500. I generally never buy extended warranties, but for that price it seemed worth it. I don't worry if I never end up using it either. It is nice knowing if something stupid goes wrong, it will hopefully be covered.
     
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  4. MrFixit

    MrFixit Well-Known Member

    I am in the last couple weeks of the factory warranty expiration (have 27K miles, but it will be 3Y in November).
    For reference, I obtained a quote from Hyannis, and thought I would share it to calibrate others who may be on the fence too.
    Here is the quote:

    warranty.png

    Based on my usage, I would be considrng the F58 option for $953. I don't think I have ever purchased an extended warranty in my life (and I'm pretty old !), so this decision pains me. Being very close to 3 years, I am forced to decide.

    If I went with this, does anyone have experience using these on-line quotes as leverage with your local dealer? I would prefer to give my money to them rather than to a dissassociated dealer somewhere else in the country, but not if they won't match the price...
     
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  5. insightman

    insightman Well-Known Member Subscriber

    I'm sure I remember at least one forum member saying his dealer met the online price after the member showed it to his dealer, but I couldn't find that post. Because the $0-deductible plans are exactly $100 more than the $100-deductible plans and because most Honda owners never use their extended warranties, I doubt many choose the $0-deductible plans.

    I didn't buy a warranty for my 2000 Honda Insight and never needed it. I bought a $1,400 plan for my 2006 Honda Insight and never used it. Didn't buy one for my wife's 2010 Honda Insight and never needed it. But after I heard the infotainment head-unit for the Clarity PHEV cost more than an online 5-year extended warranty, I bought the extended warranty--and haven't needed it. Our November 2017 (built 10/17) car was one of the first to need an AC condenser and that (including the refrigerant) was covered by the factory warranty.

    Ironically, my wife and I now both choose our electric MINI Cooper first, so our poor, neglected Clarity with less than 15K miles just sits around while its brake rotors rust (what are they made of, raw iron?). So Honda's not likely to be returning any of our warranty money. We hope our pandemic angst will subside and we'll be happy we kept our comfy, fuel-efficient Clarity Touring for long trips the 110-mile range/charge MINI can't handle. The extended MINI warranty was thousands more than a Honda extended warranty so we didn't get one.
     
  6. MrFixit

    MrFixit Well-Known Member

    I just spoke to the local dealer where we purchased the vehicle.
    He told me that he "can't come anywhere close to the price quoted" by Hyannis.
    He claimed that the quoted price is "below cost".

    OK, then if I decide to do this, then the path forward is clear.
     
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  8. Dan Albrich

    Dan Albrich Well-Known Member

    Yeah, I'm normally a fan of buy local, and will spend some extra money to support a local business. In my case, too, the local dealer couldn't come close. I will say that I suspect the folks in the service department don't seem to know I bought it elsewhere. I mean I bought the car from the local dealer, and the warranty separately. But I've had the service check-in person say with a smile, oh I see you bought the XX warranty.

    Anyway, now that the car has been discontinued by Honda, I suspect there is even more reason to get one of the Honda plans. Thankfull that my Clarity really hasn't had problems (knock wood) but also not wanting to worry about it at all. i.e. Even if ultimately and technically waste of money, there is some peace of mind to me.
     
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  9. I bought a new 2020 Clarity Touring in September 2020 from my local dealer and declined the extended warranty at the time. After a few weeks, I offered them the opportunity to match an online quote for an 8 year, 100,000 mile extended warrany (slightly more expensive than Hyannnis since they don't cover California vehicles) and my local dealer matched the quote.
     
  10. NorCalPete

    NorCalPete Active Member

    MrFixit, thanks for sharing your experience. I'm facing the same choice: my 3Y is in December, 24k miles, looking at the F58 option, and feeling a similar pain (having never even considered extended warranties in the past). At this point, I strongly suspect that I'll purchase the warranty for the same reasons that you and Insightman mentioned. The peace-of-mind may be worth it in this case, given the low cost of the policy versus the high cost of even one repair.
     
  11. Same as all of you. December also.
     
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  13. Annwn

    Annwn Member

    Going to quote myself from earlier to help you get a slightly better deal potentially -

    I did follow-up after that post with College Hills - they said to shoot them the Hyannis offer and they may be able to beat it. My local Honda dealers stated that they either don't sell Honda Care (some Asurion one instead) or could not beat it. Regardless, it never hurts to send a few emails back and forth.
     
  14. MrFixit

    MrFixit Well-Known Member

    Another minor point of reference - I did also get a quote from Saccucci. Their F58 plan was $928 but then you had to add on $50 for miles > 12K, or $100 for miles > 24K which made it more than Hyannis. Saccucci specifically stated "no tax". Hyannis stated "out the door, "no additional fees".

    If anyone has an interest, I can post the Saccucci quote.
     
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  15. oko

    oko Member

    I am sorry if this was mentioned before. Do we need inspection for purchasing extended warranty? If yes, how much does it cost? If no, how do I prove the mileage?
     
  16. Annwn

    Annwn Member

    Haven't heard of many inspections - maybe a singular if I recall in the threads about the extended warranty I've read. These cars have Honda link, it's possible Honda could verify that way. It hasn't come up in my quote requests, and I suspect it would have.
     
  17. MrFixit

    MrFixit Well-Known Member

    I just purchased the extended warranty from Hyannis.
    There is no inspection or mileage verification. You simply tell them the mileage.
    They query your VIN number which could give them a sanity check, or possibly not.
    I think if you tried to file a claim, and it was inconsistent with what you told them, it may be possible for them to question it.

    All-in-all a very simple process with only a 5 minute phone call.
     
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  18. Tom H

    Tom H New Member

    I am sure that, with the VIN number, a Honda dealer like Hyannis can find out all the service records done at other dealerships. They were great to deal with and the price was also the best around.
     
  19. Bay Area

    Bay Area New Member

    I have a California 2020 with 3500 miles, and received a quote from Saccucci for the

    D80 96/100K @ $1405
    D78 84/80K @ $1151

    with no deductible.

    Why there is no 96/80K for vehicles under 6,000 miles, where for you guys can get a quote for 96/80K? Is there price difference between under and over 6000 miles? Should I just wait till 6001 miles?
     
  20. If you wait until 6001, you probably should wait until 2 years and 364 days. IIRC, the plans that start after 6000 miles only run to 5 years, and the clock starts when you buy the plan, so it pays to buy right before your factory warranty expires.
     
  21. MrFixit

    MrFixit Well-Known Member

    This was the wisdom that I followed..
    The 8Y/80K plan purchased right before the 3Y warranty expires gives you 5 additional years (the original 3 plus 5 more)

    You are covered for the 1st 3/36 for free, so is seems like purchasing a plan when the car is 'new' gains you nothing for the 1st 3 years (unless you drive a lot more than 12K miles per year...

    The only other factor I can think of is the fact that these prices can change any time. You may lock in a lower rate than you could get after waiting 3 years. During these past 3 years (2018-2021), I don't beleive prices have gone up.
     
  22. NorCalPete

    NorCalPete Active Member

    I just purchased the F58 (5yr/80k) plan from Saccucci for $1128. Our car has 24,860 miles, and my 3-year window closes December 26, so I needed to purchase it this week. (Hyannis wasn't an option for me -- anyone know why they don't sell policies for CA cars?) The process with Saccucci was simple and fast: completed a form on their website yesterday, immediately received an email with their price list for various plans, called them this morning, gave them my Quote Number and credit card info, and received a confirmation email when done: it took about 5 minutes.

    I tried working with College Hills last week, but they weren't very responsive -- they didn't return any of my phone calls and, once they finally answered the phone, they didn't send me the follow-up email with the application until six days later (this morning). I didn't want to risk having them run down the clock until Dec 26, so I went with Saccucci instead.

    I also checked with my nearby dealers. My local one doesn't sell Honda Care, and the nearby one (where I bought the car) quoted $2780 for the F58 policy. While I like supporting local businesses, I don't like paying more than twice-the-cost to do so.

    This is my first time purchasing an extended warranty for a car -- a this point, am I supposed to hope that something breaks? :confused: Maybe I'll just enjoy the additional piece-of-mind that this policy provides. :)
     
  23. I had a similar quote from an online seller and a similar quote from my nearby dealership. I showed the online quote to the dealership and they matched it, so I went with the local dealership.
     

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