Hello all... FNG here... well new to the CLK 350, but also own an ML 350. I have the normal question about extended warranty deals.
My new-to-me car is an '07 with only 28K miles. Apparently well taken care of but no proof of that. Carfax is clean. I read a lot of expensive sounding posts on this and other forums and am considering an extended service contract.

My insurance company is USAA and they have a plan from Assurant Solutions. The price looks pretty good round numbers 1 year at $1500, two years at $2213. Do these numbers seen good/bad/no opinion? Plan looks good and no deductible.

First of all, anyone with experience with USAA/Assurant?

Car is low mileage you think 2 years is enough? Likely will keep it that long. When do most failures seem to happen? Is it an infant mortality thing or is it an an older age thing?, or totally random?

Any other extended service vendor that should be called?

Thanks and I hope to be an active and helpful member of the forum.

Any reasons NOT to get such a plan?

and... one other question... any source for more current navigation version than the one it came with which seems to be out of date? My ML 350 Navigation seems fresher... can I use the disk from the ML for the CLK?

 

Some people swear by extended warranties, others don't ever buy them. I never buy them. I always give the same anology to a bet in Vegas. What are the odds of say $2,000 in repairs next year on that car? 10%? If in Vegas, would you place a $1,500 bet on a 10% chance at $2,000? Not me.

 

I'm with Yidney, but I will qualify that. First of all, I am pretty much willing and able to tackle almost any problem with my car, so other than the cost of parts (and maybe some ibuprofen and/or Johnnie Walker) I can save a lot. Now, the flip side of that is that the 3.5l V6 M272 engines may have a serious flaw in the timing gear that is a forged part of the balance shaft. It's repair is probably not a DIY and it will cost over $4k is not under warranty (post your VIN and I can check for you if you engine falls in the range). Oh, and when at the blackjack tables, I NEVER buy insurance!

 

Thanks for the offer of the VIN check. I ran across the checker yesterday but today cannot find it...

My VIN = WDBTK56F57F231417

thanks

Bob

 

I wouldn't bet on 10% but how do you came up with 10% chances? If anything, it would be 50/50 chances. They said the moment you sit down at the gaming table, you got a 50/50. I bought extended warranty on all AMG cars I owned. The CL 55 repair over $10K and $2K so far on the Slk55 and still got another 3/40k miles to go.

 

WDBTK56F57F231417 has M272 engine #629615, which is well out of the affected range :thumbsup:.

 

While having a claim during the extended warranty vs. not having a claim, just like winning vs. losing at the tables, is an outcome with binary possibilities, but the odds are not 50%. Flipping a coin has an outcome that is a binary possibility, and the odds of heads are 50%, but that's not the case with warranty claims or winning at the tables. The reason is because there are other factors. Think of it this way: instead of flipping the same coin over and over where each flip has a 50% chance of heads, imagine that each flip is made with a different coin, drawn blindly from a bag, and the bag may contain coins that have heads on both side, tails on both sides, blanks on both sides, may be weighted differently or have normal heads and tails. There is no way to know the distribution of these coins in the bag. That now changes the odds of flipping and getting heads.

That's how things are with vehicle repairs. While it is a binary possibility of whether or not you will need repairs, the chance of needing repairs is not 50%. It's based on a survey of the number and cost of repairs for cars like your over time. What Yidney is trying to say is that if, as an example, if the warranty costs $1500 for two years, then you need to have 100% chance of $1500 in repairs in two years to meet that value proposition. The reality is that most cars won't need $1500 in repairs during that time period. That's a fact. How can I prove it? I don't need to - the warranty companies' bean counters have already done that for me! If the payout was higher, they would be charging more for their warranties!

 

A car with 28k having a 50/50 chance of $2,000 warranty repairs in the next 12 months? I seriously doubt that. I'd bet on $0 dollars before I'd bet on $2,000 in the next year. Unless he puts a whole lot of miles on it.

 

Thanks for the conversation guys. That is exactly what I was hoping for.

Rudeney... your chat about probabilities was refreshing. I was/am a student of serious statistics and it is good to hear your thoughts and explanations, with which I agree completely.

I visited a dealer yesterday to enter my information into the "mothership's" big computer in the sky so they know who owns this one. The person I dealt with was kind enough to print out the vehicle history of service and I am pleased to report that the previous owner had his service done on schedule. The most serious "repair" aside from various light bulbs was something listed as "Closing cover camshaft oil los."

I don't know what this translates to but it does not sound serious.

I did notice that on two occasions there was brake system flush... which is important... but also a Ts filter insert. Do you assume this is a transmission part?

Thanks again.

 

I'm pretty sure closing cover camshaft oil loss is a $5 plug at the back of the head - very common oil seep point.

 

I have a degree in economics, only because I wanted a degree in stats, but my college didn't offer it, so it was economics (BTW, don't ask me about the economy, you probably won't like my answers. ). As for the "Ts filter insert" part, I doubt that's transmission - there would be other service/parts listed if they did the fluid & filter change. It's more likely the cabin air filter. I strongly recommend a transmission fluid & filter change every 39K. If you're over that, and don't know for certain that it's been changed, then DO IT!

 

Thanks to all.

Your chat has been helpful... well at least thoughtful. Off on our first long-ish trip tomorrow... Heading North from Salt Lake City up toward northern Idaho and probably Canada. Looking forward to the trial run and cooler weather.

Trip report when we return.

Bob