Generally when you purchase an ex lease car or any pre used car, it can be very worth while considering an extension to the manufacturers warranty. Some cars are more liable to breakdowns than others, however nowadays with electronics featuring so much in the modern car; there is not a manufacturer that escapes this ever increasing problem.
An indication of the potential risk and cost of failure of a vehicle during the extended warranty period is normally reflected in the annual premium. At the high end of the market you can pay five thousand pounds, although, one thousand pounds for one year’s cover is not unusual for a quality car. However expensive the premium appears, the more expensive it is likely to be if you don’t have cover.
The quality of engines and components have improved beyond recognition over the years, only to have much of that improvement cancelled out by electronic failures. Perhaps given the choice between the two, many motorists would prefer a mechanical breakdown than the much feared electronic breakdown.
Cars at one time, British cars that is, could only be relied upon in one respect; to break down with quite extraordinary frequency. The difference being that motorists, with some very basic mechanical knowledge could often get it going again, this is not an option with an electronic failure.
It was not unusual in times when cars were less reliable mechanically, for motorists to carry a toolbox and a range of spares in the boot of their car. Today for example an experienced BMW engineer would probably have little choice, if his personal BMW broke down, other than to get the vehicle into a dealership and onto the diagnostic equipment.
When a car that is not within warranty requires diagnostics, it can become very expensive and extremely worrying; the dealership often cannot quote how much it is going to cost for the diagnosis, because it is as long as it takes to locate the problem. Locating an electronic fault is not as simple a matter as perhaps some previously thought, it is anything but an exact science.
The most common period that contract hire and leasing companies keep a car before disposing of is three years. The majority of manufacturers provide a three year warranty on new cars. Some people do however opt for a four year contract hire term, usually in order to keep the monthly rentals down. They should of course be made aware that should they take the vehicle without a maintenance contract, they are responsible for any repairs needed in the fourth year.
The hirer should perhaps consider that if the leasing company do not want the risk of having a vehicle on their fleet that is outside its warranty period, should they be taking that risk? If it has some sort of fault during that year, even if it is one they can live with, they must return the vehicle in good working order at the end of the term.
Before committing to buy a used car, why not as an alternative, look at contract hiring a vehicle over perhaps three years term? When everything is taken into consideration; the cost of extending the warranty or the possible cost of repairs if you don’t extend it and the car’s depreciation, there is often little difference in cost but with the difference that you will have a brand new car with a three year manufacturer’s warranty.
