THE WHOLE THING IS MECHANICAL. EVEN DOING ALL MAINTENANCE RELIGIOUSLY, AND PERFECTLY ON SCHEDULE, STILL DOES NOT GUARANTEE SOMETHING BAD MAY NOT HAPPEN.
AS WITH ANY "INSURANCE", YOU ARE PREPARING FOR THE WORSE. THEY ARE BANKING ON NO PROBLEMS/ FEW PROBLEMS/ AND THEY MAY HOLD THE "WILD CARD"
I'M NO BUSINESS MAN. BUT I HAVE HAD 1ST HAND EXPERIENCE WITH AN "EXTENDED WARRANTY" WHEN I WAS A U.S. ARMY AIRBORNE RANGER, STATIONED IN SAVANNAH, GEORGIA 1983-1987
I PURCHASED CJ-5 NUMBER 2 ('79 W/258, BASICALLY 4 YEARS OLD), AT THE TOYOTA PLACE.
I TOO, WAS TOLD OF THE WONDERFUL THINGS THAT THE WARRANTED OFFERED, WOULD DO, I WOULD BE TOTALLY "COVERED", THEY SAID, AS LONG AS IT WAS NOT ABUSE, AND FLUIDS WERE DONE ON SCHEDULE.
I FORKED OVER $4200 FOR THE JEEP, AND ABOUT $1100, FOR THE WARRANTY. BACK THEN, EVEN BEING MECHANICAL, I HAD VERY LITTLE FREE TIME, OR A PLACE TO WORK ON HIM.I HAD TO HAVE MY BABY, UP AND RUNNING AT ALL TIMES, IT'S ALL I HAD.I WAS STATIONED, ONLY 4 HOURS FROM HOME, RELIABLE JEEP WAS A MUST, FOR QUALITY R & R!
ME BEING ONE, TO ONLY TRUST MY MAINTENANCE, ONLY TO ME! (STILL LIKE THAT). EVERY THING I DID, I HAD TO SHOW THE RECEIPTS TO THEM, THAT I WAS MAINTAINING IT CORRECTLY (SORTA PIZZED 'EM OFF, THEY WERE NOT DOING IT, FOR EVEN MORE $$$) BUT I TOLD THEM "MY VIEWPOINT", BEFORE I COMMITTED TO THE CONTRACT. THAT'S WHERE THE RECEIPT THING CAME INTO PLAY.
ABOUT 8 MONTHS LATER, I DEVELOPED A SKIP, TUNING WAS NOT THE ANSWER, SO I TAKE IT IN FOR "WARRANTY WORK", I WAS TOLD IT WOULD TAKE ABOUT 3 DAYS, AND IT SEEMED LIKE A VALVE PROBLEM.
THEY CALLED AND I WENT TO GET HIM, HE WAS RUNNING GOOD. THEY TOLD ME IT WAS A BURNED VALVE, AND NEEDED TO GO INSIDE AND DO THE PAPERWORK.
THIS IS WHERE MY ATTITUDE CHANGE OCCURRED.
SEEMS EVERYTHING IS COVERED. IF IT'S BROKEN?
IF IT'S "WORN". SUCH AS A BURNED VALVE, OR OTHER. IT'S "NOT COVERED"
THIS NEW COST TO ME, WAS A BIT OVER $400!
HAD I KNOWN, I WAS BEING INTRO-COURSED, I COULD HAVE DONE THE JOB MYSELF FOR UNDER $100. IN THE BARRACKS PARKING LOT!
AFTER 2 WEEKENDS, COMMO-ING TO POTENTIAL FOREIGN CAR BUYERS, I WAS PUT ON TRESPASS NOTICE. MY HIGHERS, DIDN'T LIKE THAT MUCH EITHER!
SO THIS IS WHAT I LEARNED
I WAS OUT ABOUT $1500."WARRANTY ISSUES"
$1400 WAS JUST PLAIN WASTED!
A $1400 BANK "CD", WOULD HAVE GIVEN ME "EMERGENCY FIX IT MONEY" IF NEEDED, OR EVEN EARNED A LITTLE MORE IF IT STAYED THERE UNTOUCHED. LIKE MY MONEY DID FOR THEM!
KINDA A WEIGHT GAME, JEEP WAS $4200----MY EXPERIENCE $1400, SHOT TO HECK (OVER A 1/4 OF THE JEEPS INITIAL COST)
NO MORE FOR ME. NOT ME.I STILL FEEL THAT PROCTAL PAIN. BOINK ME ONCE, SHAME ON YOU. BOINK ME TWICE. SHAME ON ME!
PUT THAT MONEY IN THE BANK. YOU COULD PROBABLY HAVE YOUR ENGINE REPLACED AT A "SMALL SHOP" FOR $3000---MY WIFE'S FORD ESCAPE TRANNY, COMPLETELY REMOVED, REBUILT AND REPLACED WAS $1400 (MAY BE SAME TRANNY AS YOURS). AGAIN AT A SMALL SHOP. CAN YOU TELL, I AVOID THEM OVERPRICED DEALERS?
YES, OTHER SHOPS, CAN DO WHAT THE BIG BOYS DO. CHEAPER! YOU JUST GOTTA DO YOUR HOMEWORK TO FIND THE RIGHT ONES.I HAVE MY "HILLBILLY SUGGESTIONS", IF YOU WANNA HEAR 'EM.
OF ALL OF THE VEHICLES, IN MY CHARGE, ONE, THE ESCAPE, WENT TO THE TRANNY SHOP (SPECIAL PEOPLE, DEAL WITH AUTO TRANNYS!) AND WHEEL ALIGNMENTS. MINE HAVE NOT SEEN A SHOP SINCE '87. I DIY ALL OF MY STUFF, TALENTED WITH JEEP CJs, I'M A PLUMBER BY TRADE.
I HOPE I HAVE NOT WASTED YOUR TIME. OTHERS STILL MAY JUMP IN AND GIVE THEIR OPINIONS
GOOD LUCK,
THE MEDIC
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Sunday, September 4th, 2011 AT 1:51 AM
