Extended warranty vs Lifetime Warranty

[fltoyo]

I was notified by a friend last night that if I buy from Wesley Chapel Toyota vs 'the other' Toyota dealer I may be able to get their Lifetime Warranty. Apparently certain dealers have this program for new and some select used. The price is a bit more at this dealer and perhaps that is what I'm paying for at Wesley Chapel. No time frame or mileage caps with this program, service at any dealer in North America as long as scheduled maintenance is adhered to.

Anyone here purchased from one of these participating dealers with Lifetime Warranties and used it? I have no reason to doubt they wouldn't, but not having owned a Toyo in close to 20 years I'm just out of the loop a bit.

Thanks for any input.

 

[shadow247]

I used to work for one of the dealers here in Hampton Roads offering the lifetime warranty. From what I understand you only pay a $100 deductible on any repairs that would normally be covered by the factory warranty. The factory warranty still applies and then the Lifetime warranty takes over.

The only stipulation is that you perform all scheduled maintenence. So that means doing flushes when recommended, oil changes etc.... You don't have to go to the dealer you bought the vehicle from, but it has to be an actual repair shop and not your buddy's shop behind his house. It seems like a good deal if you plan to keep your vehicle for a long time, and it doesn't add anything to the cost of the vehicle in the short term. In the long run, it could get quite expensive paying a shop to do every bit of scheduled maintenence, but as long as you do, you are covered by the Lifetime Warranty.

 

[fltoyo]

Hey there thanks for the input. As far as keeping it.....I drive mine until they don't make sense to drive any longer economically. I did buy a 2010 from then and traded my '98 Lexus on it.

I hope to get 10-15 years out of this one so sounds like a good plan to participate in the program. Only thing I'm not sure of is how if at all exorbitant the Toyota pricing is....not sure. Once my Lexus was out of warranty I went to Toyota for all service and was very please, especially on cost per hour of labor. Not sure if I was till overpaying or if I was simply desensitized from being skewered by Lexus.

Thoughts on cost over lifetime with service done by Toyo vs another garage?

 

[shadow247]

Most Toyota dealers will only use Genuine Toyota Parts, so you have to factor that in when going to the dealer. They usually charge a higher labor rate, but you get what you pay for when it comes to service. I would rather pay 10-15 more per hour to someone who is actually trained to work on the vehicle, vs Joe-bob's garage or meineke where they have little to no vehicle specific training. The other advantage of going to a Toyota Dealer is that you can track everything through the Toyota Owner's website, which is great when you go to sell/trade in the vehicle, as you can just pull it all up and print it out for a potential buyer.

In the long run, you will probably pay 10-15% more going to Toyota for service, but you also have peace of mind that if there is a problem with the work, the dealership is more likely to stand behind their work, and you also have Toyota corporate to lean on.

 

[Meherg]

I just purchased a 2020 4runner with LifeTime Warranty, I was under the impression that I could do the maintenence myself, as long as I saved receipts and had documentation to prove it. Am I wrong ! I keep my vehicles 20 years...Just sold a 1999 Tahoe because the transmission went out...