Having just bought a new 08 bike the dealer was hard selling the Harley extended warranty. The first question is the prices for the 3,4,or5 yr extended warranty set pricing or does the dealer establish the pricing. If others have gone with it what were you quoted for the 5 year warranty? Secondly is it worth it or not?

 

I didn't bother with it. It's a big money make for them. I do my own servicing and such anyway. I'd buy performance upgrades with the money, but that's just me.

 

The extended warranty is usually set up such that the dealer gets half the cost as a profit. the rest goes to HD as insurance in case you have a problem.... What does that tell you?

 

An extended warranty works on the same principle as insurance. Insurance companies wouldn't be in business if they weren't making money. And very few of us would be willing to forego insurance on a new car or on our homes, even if weren't a condition of the loan.

If you're financing your bike, I think the important question is if in 2 years + 1 month something goes catastrophically wrong and you are faced with a $6000+ repair bill that you can not afford, do you want to be in a position of still making payments on a bike that is broken down and you can not afford to fix? Now, that's unlikely to happen, which is why dealers profit from the extended warranty, but if this isn't a situation you want to be in under any circumstances, then it might be worth it to you.

For me, the small upfront cost of the warranty was worth it.

Another bonus of the extended warranty, and this is something you should talk to your dealer about and get in writing, is that some dealers will cover you even with certain performance modifications under the extended warranty that would not be covered under the manufacturer's warranty, as long as they do the work, and you use only the parts they recommend.

 

Yes they said that anything that is installed at time of purchase is included in the extended warranty as well. Since I am doing so many add on s and mods I thought it would be worth it plus it covers tires and roadhazard. For a period of 5 years I was quoted a $1053. It worked out to a few dollars a month extra to my payment. I normally dont believe in them but I did it this time. OH WELL I was also told it is transferable if I sell the bike.

 

Worth every penny. Max out the years if you can afford it. I have an 2001 FLTRSEI2.Under warranty: 2brake calipers, fuel pump, fuel gage, front wheel bearings, right side air shock. If I had had it another year I could of got speakers andthe other gages......I think it cost me 1800 for 5years. You will apprieciate it down theroad...50 dollardeductable on repairs.

 

Extended Warranties are just like a Good Insurance Policy...

You hope you'll never have to use it..... But if you do need it... It's there...

 

That's how they hope you look at it. What you should have done is the math to determine what it really will end up costing you over the life of the loan, including the interest you will pay on the extra charge. Making purchase decisions on big ticket items, cars, bikes, boats, etc., by focusing on the monthly payment is exactly the wrong way to do it and exactly what the salesman hopes that you do.

As to the specifics of extended warranties, they are never a good deal for the consumer.

Extended warranties and insurance policies are entirely different animals and are certainly not analogous.An insurance policy protects you from financial lose due to an accident; you ruining into something or someone running into you. They are priced based on well know criteria determined by where you drive, your driving record, and the value and intended use of the vehicle being insured. An extended warranty is basically a pre-paid service contract that only pays if the product fails, after the initial factory warranty, under normal usage, and is priced by the manufacturer of the product, although many times sold and administered by a third party.

GAMBLING ANYONE?

What is an extended warranty? A wager between two parties. Look
at what each party brings to the table:

The manufacturer, with all his collective experience, design specs,
intimate knowledge of assembly techniques, tolerances, quality
control, etc., is betting that the product will not fail in any
manner specified in the warranty during the warranty period which
will cost more than the price of the warranty to repair (note who
writes up the terms of the warranty).

You, withlimited knowledge of the product, have only a vague fear that
it will catastrophically break down during the warranty period and
that repair of such failure will cost far more than the price of the
warranty. On what do you base this opinion? Are you intentionally
buying what you consider to be junk?

Cars, motorcycles, computers, etc., are all
manufactured using statistical sampling techniques for quality
control. The normal warranty that comes with each is an admission
of that it is entirely possible (eventually, inevitable) that an
individual product will not live up to the quality of the group. It
allows the manufacturer to catch the odd substandard product and
bring it up to his standards of quality, without having to
exhaustively test each step of each product throughout its
manufacture. Once the product makes it through the initial warranty
period (whether it required service under that warranty or not), the
manufacturer knows that it is "up to snuff," i.e., conforms to his
specs, quality, etc. At this point, he *knows* how long it will
last. An *extended* warranty is not a safety net for the
manufacturer, it is a chance to make money, by making a wager with
the customer concerning the performance of the product -- *his*
product. He knows it better than you.

Do you wanna bet?

 

Good write up but the question still remains: Can you afford an expensive repair down the road? An ULTRA for example has lots of things that can go wrong.I also have the tire /wheel package. Once while traveling on a sunday I had a flat I could not plug. Tow truck picks up me the bike and wife and take us to a hotel. Next day they pick us up and off to the HD shop where they replace the tire. The hotel night ,damaged wheel(I have the 9 spoke $825.00 ones},tire 3 meals each in the hotel all came to almost 1400.00 because of the damaged wheel mostly. It cost me zero. No deductable on the tire/wheel and it is effective immediately when the bike is put into service. Yes ,we make money as a dealer but it is not 50%. It is more like 30% and the warranty is set by HD and while we wont negoiate it ,it could be. Some dealers will. It just depends as the man said if you want to gamble.I also had a broken tour -pak rack one a bad voltage regulator and once needed a new cruise control module. I am way ahead of the game. Probably wont happen to you but what if it does? I personally would not be without one especially on an Ultra.

 

It is a gamble to get the extended warranty, but it comes down to comfort level of the equipment. I have been buying the extended warranty on most equipment, depending on the warrant. Unfortanately, most equipment built will fail prior after the standard warranty but still in extended warranty.

examples:

Several years ago, I purchased a new chevy truck. I got the extended warranty at the time of purchase. I went through 6 transmissions, gears mangled, shafts broke, etc. Until they finally found an oil relief valve stuck open, which is whyI took the truck in several times (oil leaks) prior to mangling. The reason they found the valve was a recall. Extended warranty paid itself off.

I hada fordcrown victory. standard warranty ran out, but i had the extended warranty. Wiper moter failed, windshield started leaking, speedo-meter/odometer, and the turn signal staff failed. All under extended warranty, which paid itself off.

Dodge intrepid: new car purchase with extended warranty. Numerous tie rods breaking, engine sensors failed, and several other things. Again, warranty paid itself off.

Craftsman push mower. extended warranty purchased. less than 6 months after standard warranty expired, engine ate itself. oil leaked everywhere (even in my now dead grass). engine replaced. warranty paid for itself.

So, with my apparant bad luck... YOU BET I GOT IT on the bike.