[Wes335XI]

So the warranty is about to expire and I need some advice. There are two options, extend the warranty and/or extend the BMW Maintenance program.
It's a 2008 BMW335XI AT with only 33,000 miles on it. The dealer kind of gasped when he heard the mileage, it's 4 years or 50,000 miles, so BMW wins on that one.

There are a lot of electronic and technical componenets that could break or malfunction on the car. That is one of my concerns. Other concern is that I may be modding it with the JB4, FMIC, Exhaust/downpipes, and meth. The dealer sounded open to most of those except the JB4 and Meth of course. Any advice on those of you that have highly modified your car, do you still have a warranty? Am I likely to see a lot of costly issues?

I'm mechanically inclined and know a lot about cars, but this thing is so much more technical than what I am used to. I always joke about the mechanism that hands you the seat belt breaking and how much that thing would cost to replace. Another is the tranny and motor, but I'm told those are bullet proof. It was weird hearing that the differential does not need to be serviced until 100,000 miles and oil being changed once a year or 15,000 miles.

For the premium warranty which I don't think I even want is around $3,400.00, more concerned with the powertrain and electrical. Extended Maintenance is around $2,020.00. Brakes are coming up which I hear are spendy, but I may be replacing them with high performance slotted rotors and pads anyways.

So should I go with the maintenance or warranty or neither? I can't afford both and I rather go with BMW's plan, I don't like the idea of paying a deductible if something breaks or malfunctions. I plan on keeping the car till about 70,000 miles.

Thank you for the help/advice. I have about 2-3 weeks to make a decision.

[Sgt Beavis]

Let me get this out of the way first. Stay way from it if it is a 3rd party warranty. It is perfectly fine if it is a BMW factory warranty.

OK, so assuming it is a BMW factory warranty, have you shopped other BMW dealerships on pricing? They are not all the same. Call some out of state dealerships and see if they can sell you a warranty. I'm not sure if they can or cannot.

The warranty is basically buying you peace of mind. Is that peace of mind worth $3400 to you, assuming you get the premium warranty. Is a lesser warranty worth it?

The maintenance part is easier. Look at all the services due over the live of the plan and get the costs from the dealer or a certified BMW tech. If the maintenance contract cost less (and you can afford to pay a lump sum) then go for it. Also, does the dealer still give you loaner cars with the extended plan? It is just research and math.

One other thing to consider. You're looking at a lump sum of $5420 for both plans. Have you considered selling and using that money for a new BMW with all the coverages? Just something to consider.

[Kolyan2k]

aside from brakes there its that much maintenance....brakes are abit over $1k at dealer, but i had mine replaced under 4yr/50k miles maintenance/warranty. extended maintenance is probably a waste if you have some basic skill and can change oil etc yourself. warranty i would buy so shop around and maybe get a better price. and yes, stay away from 3rd party warranties.

[Wes335XI]

Thank you for the great advice so far. The car has at least $5,000.00 in interior/exterior mods that I would want to do get done if I did get a new car, so it's a wash there. It also has the rare Red Coral Leather interior that would be hard to find. Otherwise I would probably look at getting a used CPO or 2011 for a decent price.

I'll start calling other dealerships to see what my options are. I had no idea that was even a possibility or that dealerships would compete for that. I'll keep you guys posted with what I find.

Thanks again.

[SIN_CITY_TROLL]

Your best option would to have your dealer CPO the car for you. Most dealers should be able to do this for you. As long as you maintenance is up to date, and have factory tires and approved BMW tires, they can do your 335ix for $1560. This will will be an extension of your factory warranty to another 2 years or 50k miles from the original in-service date ($50 Ded). If you have a loan on your car, you can even as you dealer to refinance your car for you to take advantage of the CPO special rates (0.9% for 36 mos or 1.9% up to 66 mos through BMW FS.

You can extend the maintenance for $2295.

BE ADVISED - that dealers do have the right to mark up the cost of the CPO, Maintenance, and even the rate.

On a side note, I wouldn't do the maintenance unless your 100% sure your going to keep your car that long. All you really have from 50k-100k miles is a once a year oil change, brakes every 25k miles, drive belt, and spark plugs right at 100k miles... (oh and don't forget your windshield wipers).

[Bmwguy11]

If you are going to put those mods on, don't bother with an extended warranty (aka service contract). There is a good chance they might just deny any coverage for repair due to the mods.

[Bmwguy11]

Originally Posted by Sgt Beavis

Let me get this out of the way first. Stay way from it if it is a 3rd party warranty. It is perfectly fine if it is a BMW factory warranty.

There is no such thing as a factory BMW warranty for extended warranties. The only "factory" warranty is the original or CPO. All other warranties, including bmw's extended warranty that you can purchase, is a service contract.

[Bmwguy11]

Originally Posted by e92n54t

Your best option would to have your dealer CPO the car for you. Most dealers should be able to do this for you. As long as you maintenance is up to date, and have factory tires and approved BMW tires, they can do your 335ix for $1560. This will will be an extension of your factory warranty to another 2 years or 50k miles from the original in-service date ($50 Ded).

You can't CPO a car you already own. Only cars owned by the dealership that they are looking to sell can be CPO'd.

[Wes335XI]

Originally Posted by Bmwguy11

You can't CPO a car you already own. Only cars owned by the dealership that they are looking to sell can be CPO'd.

Well I guess you're right, you can't get a car CPO'd that you already own. It was weird reading online that people were doing this and suggesting this instead of buying the extended warranty.

[Wes335XI]

Ok so here's what I got so far.

BMW of Bellevue - Was rude as hell. He said I had to be in person to buy a warranty, didn't offer me any options, basically said what your dealer is telling you is the price so see ya and good bye.

BMW of Northwest - Very professional, waiting for finance to call me back.

BMW of San Diego - Lady by the name of Monica spoke to me. Gave me the same prices as my dealer, but she's offering $500.00 off until the end of September. She also offers a payment plan for the warranty of one year and 0% APR with 10% down (About $300.00 bucks). Basicallly free money for a year. She's going to FedEx the documents and a return FedEx label so I can send her the spare key with the signed document. She'll Send me the spare key back with all documentation once she is done. Talk about top of the line service. She said she has a ton of return customers and she does this all the time. So far it has really paid off to call around.

Waiting for BMW of Northwest to call me back, but I'm pretty sure I'll go with Monica at BMW of San Diego.

[Bmwguy11]

Originally Posted by Wes335XI

Well I guess you're right, you can't get a car CPO'd that you already own. It was weird reading online that people were doing this and suggesting this instead of buying the extended warranty.

Yea sorry about that, there seems to be a lot of misinformation and confusion on the forums about the two.

[Bmwguy11]

Originally Posted by Wes335XI

Ok so here's what I got so far.

BMW of Bellevue - Was rude as hell. He said I had to be in person to buy a warranty, didn't offer me any options, basically said what your dealer is telling you is the price so see ya and good bye.

BMW of Northwest - Very professional, waiting for finance to call me back.

BMW of San Diego - Lady by the name of Monica spoke to me. Gave me the same prices as my dealer, but she's offering $500.00 off until the end of September. She also offers a payment plan for the warranty of one year and 0% APR with 10% down (About $300.00 bucks). Basicallly free money for a year. She's going to FedEx the documents and a return FedEx label so I can send her the spare key with the signed document. She'll Send me the spare key back with all documentation once she is done. Talk about top of the line service. She said she has a ton of return customers and she does this all the time. So far it has really paid off to call around.

Waiting for BMW of Northwest to call me back, but I'm pretty sure I'll go with Monica at BMW of San Diego.

I have also heard good things about BMW of tuscon in Arizona. There are many people who got good deals there, you might give them a shot as well.

[BKV122]

My extended maintenance program price offered to me ~$2500, I denied it...Put on about 27,000 miles since my maint. warranty expired at a cost of ~$950 to me. Well worth not extending it

[Pappy]

Originally Posted by Wes335XI

.....She's going to FedEx the documents and a return FedEx label so I can send her the spare key with the signed document. She'll Send me the spare key back with all documentation once she is done.

Why the spare key?????