To warranty or not?

[redrook]

Ok so I'm picking up my MY13 163ps TDIe avant tomorrow (excited!) and my only concern now is whether or not to go for the dealer's (Carstore, formerly Evans Halshaw) warranty or to do the timing belt. They want £495 for two years warranty, which isn't too bad.

However, the car also (imo) needs the timing belt done. The car is only on 52K and the service book says 114k miles to get the "toothed belt" replaced - it makes no mention of years, but I would rather be safe than sorry and I believe the rule of thumb is 5 years. It'll be around £400 from an indy. The dealer can't do it for me as they do things per the service book, and so can't authorise it, which I completely understand, since why would they do something which isn't in the service book.

So my question is really, should I get the warranty and just go with it for a year or so and then get the belt done, or should I get the belt done and take my chances without a warranty? The car has full Audi history and seems well cared for (a full set of Continentals is a good sign, as people who skimp on their cars skimp on tyres).

 

[IRONy_MAN]

Turbo failure at 52k in Middle of Germany...bill for new turbo plus bits: over £1800 lucky That I got an extra warranty for less than 400 per year from Audi (reimbursed straight away) so I would go with their offer. It s well worth it as these cars can be super expensive to fix. Good luck. Adi

 

[redrook]

Turbo failure at 52k in Middle of Germany...so I would go with their offer.

Thanks Adi, that's kind of what I'm thinking - stump up for the warranty now and treat myself to a new cambelt in a few months.

Not heard good things about these types of warranties though, might be better paying £500 for the Audi named parts warranty (which includes electrics and turbo)

 

[IRONy_MAN]

I had mine done at 58k as the water pump failed and again used the extra warranty and they ve said(Audi Wimbledon)to pay just for the parts £270 otherwise it s like £650 at Audi but follow up around here and may get an offer or a discount. It s five years or 60 k so there must be evidence that your new ride should have it done once if not I would do it quite in a matter of urgency. Adi

 

[redrook]

According to the service book it's 114K, but I will get it done asap as I agree it should be done at 5 years. The car has been fully serviced at Audi and they have no record of it being done, so I assume it has not.

I really have to just decide whether to go for the dealer warranty or Audi's extended named parts one.

 

[redrook]

Ok so I read the service book wrong and it's actually 133K miles, no mention of years, but it's still booked in at Audi Edinburgh on Friday - they have a deal on at the moment, cambelt and water pump done for £495!

I didn't take the Evans Halshaw warranty as I doubt it's worth the paper it's written on, however I'll probably get the Audi named parts warranty in a couple of months.

 

[IRONy_MAN]

Ok so I read the service book wrong and it's actually 133K miles, no mention of years, but it's still booked in at Audi Edinburgh on Friday - they have a deal on at the moment, cambelt and water pump done for £495!

I didn't take the Evans Halshaw warranty as I doubt it's worth the paper it's written on, however I'll probably get the Audi named parts warranty in a couple of months.

That s a really good price glad for you and the cam belt is quite important you can get warranty later on and also you can pay monthly mine is ~£33/month. Regards. Adi

 

[redrook]

I had mine done at 58k as the water pump failed and again used the extra warranty and they ve said(Audi Wimbledon)to pay just for the parts £270 otherwise it s like £650 at Audi but follow up around here and may get an offer or a discount. It s five years or 60 k so there must be evidence that your new ride should have it done once if not I would do it quite in a matter of urgency. Adi

That s a really good price glad for you and the cam belt is quite important you can get warranty later on and also you can pay monthly mine is ~£33/month. Regards. Adi

Cheers Adi, and thanks for your advice. Definitely confirmed for me that it's a priority job, and I'll snap up the warranty asap - I'll prob mention it on Friday and see if I can wangle a deal out of them.

I'm absolutely loving the car too

 

[DickoB8]

Nice one on getting booked in for the cambelt and waterpump, 133k on a piece of rubber!!! That’s ridiculous and you do right not paying for the warranty as you say they are not worth the paper they are wrote on. They will do their up most to get out of every claim as my dad found out with a TT he purchased might I add not from Evans halshaw but they all seem to use a similar warranty.

 

[redrook]

Nice one on getting booked in for the cambelt and waterpump, 133k on a piece of rubber!!! That’s ridiculous and you do right not paying for the warranty as you say they are not worth the paper they are wrote on. They will do their up most to get out of every claim as my dad found out with a TT he purchased might I add not from Evans halshaw but they all seem to use a similar warranty.

Totally agreed, 133K seems ridiculous, at average mileage of 10K that would be 13 years!

Yeah I'm sure they are all probably the same with their warranties, and would weasel their way out of anything major. They weren't pushy on it to be fair and it was actually a good buying experience (other than the pitiful part-x price I got). Since they became Carstore they seem to be improved, although we'll see if I bought a lemon when Audi do their "health check" on Friday haha. Seems like a solid car tho, very well maintained so I'm confident it's all good.

 

[Jon B]

Never bothered with a warranty. Better off spending more money maintaining the car more regularly and pop £500 in a savings account for a rainy day.

Having had company cars that have all gone to very high mileages, I’ve never had an issue that would cost a fortune and would be covered by any warranty.

Obviously, you pays your money and makes your choice - but out of all insurances (which this is all it is) this is probably the most pointless for me.

In fact the difference between the cost of maintaining at an Audi dealer and an independent specialist could be siphoned away as “protection”. You’d probably have £1000 pretty quickly!!! Although a good deal you have at Audi for Cambelt, it’s still £100 more than an Indy. The parts used would still have been Audi if you specified.

 

[rum4mo]

Ok so I'm picking up my MY13 163ps TDIe avant tomorrow (excited!) and my only concern now is whether or not to go for the dealer's (Carstore, formerly Evans Halshaw) warranty or to do the timing belt. They want £495 for two years warranty, which isn't too bad.

However, the car also (imo) needs the timing belt done. The car is only on 52K and the service book says 114k miles to get the "toothed belt" replaced - it makes no mention of years, but I would rather be safe than sorry and I believe the rule of thumb is 5 years. It'll be around £400 from an indy. The dealer can't do it for me as they do things per the service book, and so can't authorise it, which I completely understand, since why would they do something which isn't in the service book.

So my question is really, should I get the warranty and just go with it for a year or so and then get the belt done, or should I get the belt done and take my chances without a warranty? The car has full Audi history and seems well cared for (a full set of Continentals is a good sign, as people who skimp on their cars skimp on tyres).

Were you meaning that Audi Edinburgh were saying that they could not replace that cambelt etc as it was not due?? I've never ever heard of anything like that happening, if a customer, for any reason, wants a life limited part replaced early then why not just accept the task, Audi AG will never suggest that it can't be done.
What you really do need to consider is, as AVW is in Edinburgh, and fully up to date with VW Group procedures and diagnostic equipment, why don't you get them to do all your servicing and repairs as it will be acceptable to Audi warranty.

Edit:- dealing with an official Audi dealership might tick all your boxes if you want welcomed, mugged and charged lots of money, I and others might like some of the cars they sell, but would rather not get charged too much as they need to charge these rates to maintain their staff other than workshop staff and the condition of the building other than the workshop, so really that extra money is only to keep up appearances which should not be something that a used car buyer/owner should be too bothered with?

 

[redrook]

Were you meaning that Audi Edinburgh were saying that they could not replace that cambelt etc as it was not due?? I've never ever heard of anything like that happening, if a customer, for any reason, wants a life limited part replaced early then why not just accept the task, Audi AG will never suggest that it can't be done.
What you really do need to consider is, as AVW is in Edinburgh, and fully up to date with VW Group procedures and diagnostic equipment, why don't you get them to do all your servicing and repairs as it will be acceptable to Audi warranty.

Edit:- dealing with an official Audi dealership might tick all your boxes if you want welcomed, mugged and charged lots of money, I and others might like some of the cars they sell, but would rather not get charged too much as they need to charge these rates to maintain their staff other than workshop staff and the condition of the building other than the workshop, so really that extra money is only to keep up appearances which should not be something that a used car buyer/owner should be too bothered with?

No, as I stated I did not buy it from Audi. When I said dealer I meant the dealer I bought from - Carstore (basically Evans Halshaw). I asked if they would replace the cambelt for me for free if I bought the car and they said no because that's not what the service book says, which is entirely true and exactly what I expected. I may get repairs (if there are any neede) done at the Audi garage because they will price match indies as long as OEM parts are used, but consumable stuff will probably get done at my usual local garage for convenience.

With regards to your 2nd paragraph, all I've done is organise to get the cambelt replaced by Edinburgh Audi because they had a deal on, which brings it close to indy prices and means it'll be recorded on their system and therefore covered by their warranty if I decide to get one in a few months. I'm well aware of the pros/cons of going to a main dealer, and I've not been "mugged" yet.

 

[redrook]

Never bothered with a warranty. Better off spending more money maintaining the car more regularly and pop £500 in a savings account for a rainy day.

Having had company cars that have all gone to very high mileages, I’ve never had an issue that would cost a fortune and would be covered by any warranty.

Obviously, you pays your money and makes your choice - but out of all insurances (which this is all it is) this is probably the most pointless for me.

In fact the difference between the cost of maintaining at an Audi dealer and an independent specialist could be siphoned away as “protection”. You’d probably have £1000 pretty quickly!!! Although a good deal you have at Audi for Cambelt, it’s still £100 more than an Indy. The parts used would still have been Audi if you specified.

Generally I would agree, and I'm definitely glad I didn't buy the warranty offered when I purchased. But, since it's a car I don't yet know very well, having a warranty for the first year to cover things like the turbo might be nice, so I am considering it, but I'm in no rush. Like all insurance you hope that it is indeed wasted money. Regular maintenance didn't stop the ton of problems I had with the car I've just got rid of, which was becoming a money pit (it was not an Audi).

And yep, I will be using an indie for everything else other than probably inspection services, but the cambelt was a good deal and I'd rather get that done at Audi. Plus it means it's recorded on their digital service record.

 

[rum4mo]

No, as I stated I did not buy it from Audi. When I said dealer I meant the dealer I bought from - Carstore (basically Evans Halshaw). I asked if they would replace the cambelt for me for free if I bought the car and they said no because that's not what the service book says, which is entirely true and exactly what I expected. I may get repairs (if there are any neede) done at the Audi garage because they will price match indies as long as OEM parts are used, but consumable stuff will probably get done at my usual local garage for convenience.

With regards to your 2nd paragraph, all I've done is organise to get the cambelt replaced by Edinburgh Audi because they had a deal on, which brings it close to indy prices and means it'll be recorded on their system and therefore covered by their warranty if I decide to get one in a few months. I'm well aware of the pros/cons of going to a main dealer, and I've not been "mugged" yet.

Proper VAG indie places will only use genuine parts for jobs like cambelts as there is really no point in them trying to cut corners by using the exactly same parts but from another source, same for normal servicing and I would expect them to be linked up to the Audi digital service recording system. My daughter's late 2009 Ibiza has just been into AVW for a cambelt/water pump/aux belt change and none of the local VAG dealerships that have fixed price menu servicing inc cambelts would budge on price as they all only quote a very basic cambelt change price and add on a large chunk of money to include the water pump while replacing the cambelt and again for replacing the auxiliary belt. She saved £150+ by using a VAG indie - these places would not exist if the VAG dealerships were actually offering to price match, that is just, in my experience a feeble attempt to sway you on who you use, and the warranty is only on parts fitted and will not cover damage caused by their failure! That indie, AVW does though tend to use aftermarket brake parts which again are from a supplier that supplies VAG but not in VAG packaging, I don't mind that as that is what I tend to use when working on the brakes on my cars.