Having read the threads about aftermarket warranties / perils of used ownership, thought I'd share my experience.

Bought my '08 on November 6, 2015, with about 61,700 miles. Simultaneously purchased an aftermarket warranty / service contract underwritten by Assurant Solutions, purchased through USAA. 3 years / 36000 miles, cost about $4500. It's an exclusionary policy.

Car had just been serviced by MB dealership I bought it from (fluids, belts, new tires, transfer case leak, software updates).

About 2 weeks after owning the car I noticed a steering wheel vibration at idle, etc. Took it in and the dealer replaced 2 motor mounts. Free of charge (clearly were shot when they sold it).

December 24, 2015 with about 63,100 miles took the car in with some new drivetrain vibration, driver seat bottom not heating, inflatable side-bolsters not holding air / dynamic seat function not working.

All was submitted to Assurant and they have covered it (new seat cushion for seat heater; new side bolster bladders; new transmission mount) to the tune of $2,690 (parts $1500 / labor $1220).

I was concerned about the warranty company covering the seat cushion: "seat cushions" are excluded, but seat heaters / heating elements are not excluded. But, because MB only sells the "heater" portion of the seat with the cushion, the warranty covered the cushion. As they should.

Take aways for me so far: Get a warranty, or DIY or be ready to spend some money. Only great things to say about Assurant Solutions as a service contract provider. Since I bought my ~60,000 mile, fully serviced car, it's needed about $3500 worth of work; as has been said, I don't think they are expensive cars to keep running but they are expensive to keep running perfectly (nothing I've had fixed was required to keep the car going, stopping, heating and cooling).

 

 

Good Write-up, what's your deductible if any?

 

Keep track of your warranty claims...maybe you'll be able to do a video like this soon

:-)

 

Your lucky. When I had my S63 I purchased a warranty from Autogard here in Toronto. Worst company to deal with. They showed me a brochure when selling me the warranty and explained that its like a factory warranty. When I started to make claims they kept telling me refer to the contract and in the fine print the items I am claiming is not covered.

 

OMG that video is EPIC! Prime example to purchase warranty and also to research reliability. He clearly has a lemon.

 

It's a zero deductible policy.

The Assurant service contract company was one of the few that seemed to have solid real world reviews, from what little information I could find. That lack of information was one of the reasons I'd thought to post. There are some exclusions that could rear their head, but nothing that I've found makes me think those things are likely to break.

Funny about the Doug Demurro video - that was my inspiration for getting into another used "premium" European car. I had 2000 740il that cost me about $17k in 2 years, not including the price of the car. I can pay the bills without having to skip Christmas, but my money would still serve me better elsewhere. So, wasn't going in without a warranty. Looked for used S550's on Carmax (to get their warranty), but they didn't come across as particularly loved. Inquired about warranty options at the dealer I bought from, and was offered an EasyCare warranty, for 2 years, drivetrain only, $5500. And, EasyCare doesn't get great reviews. Also, since my warranty with Assurant was bought through USAA, there were no brochures or sales pitches; I saw the full contract and only the full contract.

I do plan on keeping a record. I'm curious. And, as has been said, as these cars age and hit a price point that a wider spectrum of people have ability and/or willingness to swallow, I figure there are guys out there like myself thinking "yeah, yeah, expensive to repair, blah, blah, but what am I really looking at, as an average ownership experience".

 

Curious, how did the new leather of the seat cushion come out? Is it nice and tight with no wrinkles? Lol, Mike is going to respond to that...

I had to have it done twice and it still doesn't look as good as the passenger side.

 

I've not picked it up yet, but will report back when I do.

I did get the invoice though:
Seat cushion*: $665
Labor: $532
*Designo interior. Not sure if that's more costly than standard

Side/dynamic bladder/adapter: $720
Labor: $369

Tranny mount: $112
Labor: $198

 

Ok, for some reason, dealers have issues getting the leather to look like new and tight.

 

Got the car. Seat looks exactly the same, minus one corner of the new bottom cushion that is not completely tucked under. Very minor though.

Interesting, I think the dealership discounted some items based on what the warranty company would pay. As it was a third party warranty, I don't think that's something they had to do. Doubt it would have been done for an individual payer.

 

I regularly check my USAA account when I'm looking at vehicles to buy and they will cover an S65 but not an S8! I am looking at an S8 now and best coverage for 5 years is over 7k with a $100 deductible with Carchex. I am really disappointed USAA don't cover the S8 as I would imagine the Benz is more costly to repair.

 

Never, ever, ever buy a third party warranty on the S Class. You are simply tossing your cash down the toilet. Always buy the extended MB warranty from any MB dealership.
If you purchased your car from a private owner or a NON MB dealer and the car is still under warranty, you can extend the existing plan out another 2 or 3 years @ 75 or 100 k miles, your choice. I just extended mine YESTERDAY for two years more or 75k as I only drive 4-5k miles per year. It's also transferable, refundable and no deductible. Covers everything except break pads and normal wear items. I paid 3200 + tax in FL.
In some states you have to pay a surcharge of 15% if the car has been in service 30+ days. If that's the case, do it in a state that does not have that surcharge. CA has surcharges, FL does not. Policy is good nationwide, no matter what MB dealer sold it. You can also pay for it on your credit card over the phone or e-mail. If you want me to connect you with the guy I used here in FL, let me know.
The next day your online car profile will be updated :
Model2015 S550V4
Warranty Information
Expires on Jul. 18, 2020 or 75,000 miles
(Extended Limited Warranty Purchased)

Prepaid Maintenance Plan

Active until Oct. 18, 2020 or 65,000 miles

 

Completely contrary to my and others experiences. The point of my post was that my third-party warranty (Assurant) covered $2700 of seat repairs 3 months into my ownership, no questions asked, no deductible, paid directly to the dealer. Just have to do the research and read the contracts

 

You sir, are completely uninformed. There are some excellent aftermarket warranties out there. I have one of them. They've paid on every single claim with no hassles whatsoever. In fact, they paid on a claim that my SA stated than no CPO warranty would ever pay on (when my wife broke the shifter off). I've had my car for 14 months and they've already paid out more than triple what I paid for the coverage....and I have 6 years and 68k miles to go. They also cover the S65 and S63 for the same price. It's difficult to find anybody who will cover AMG cars, but mine does.

In most cases, the people who had trouble getting their warranties to pay claims didn't do the proper research about exactly what their policies covered prior to purchase. You must always read the full service contract, not the brochure that you find at the dealer or online....prior to purchasing coverage.

So before you go spouting off about something you obviously know nothing about, you might reconsider opening your mouth.

BTW, I paid what you did and I got 7 years and 75k miles of coverage (from purchase date of warranty, not in service date) on an S600.

 

What is your aftermarket warranties company??

 

I purchased it through my credit union. Where do you live?

 

Always an exception. Update us back in a few years and share this great news with other members shopping. Always respectful.........


Of course if you have a specialty car or one that even the manufacture will not extend, you would have no choice but third party. That's a "No brainer".

 

Others have had great luck with after-market warranties too. WHPH28 comes to mind immediately. In fact, there have been several threads regarding this very thing.

For us guys whose cars were too old to be CPO'd, there really aren't any other choices. In my case, I did very well with my company as it was much cheaper than a CPO warranty and I got a lot more years of coverage. I had the same warranty on my M5 and it worked out great on that car too.

 

land of the political criminal? chicago for sure, what credit union?

 

Baxter. If you're looking for a warranty on your 65, let me know by PM and I'll hook you up with my guy over there.

 

I also have the Assurant Solutions Warranty purchased through USAA. No Deductible YES!! Cover everything/ Nonexclusionary YES!! I purchased my s550 with about 60,000. I didn't get the warranty until a year later at about ~~80,000. I'm good until 108,000. I have already had enough repairs to more than double the cost of the warranty. Biggest repair was the Airmatic blew out. They repaired struts, control arms, and whatever goes with all that (I'm not a mechanic and don't know the lingo). And also a bearing of something along with the suspension.


Moral of the story ----- If you are not US Armed Forces affiliated and can't get the warranty through USAA then just try to contact Assurant Solutions directly to purchase the warranty. It is better than the Factory Extended Warranty and also you don't have to worry about dealerships trying to "skate" warranty work by intentionally misdiagnosing to avoid an expensive repair cost.


WHY??? They get to charge someone else full price. So best believe they will fix what needs to be fixed and more, Expect above and beyond service when the dealership has a blank check to charge the warranty company and its non deductible so no cost to the customer/YOU.

 

yes, I've seen this guys vid's too........his recent Aston Martin adventures are good too haha, he makes me laugh and is good at his vid's IMO