BMW 4 Series Warranty help
Discussion
Hi all,
I have after many years bought myself a used BMW 4 series 420d with only 20k but 4 years old car.
I bought it through Cinch, which was great - but i am worried as to whether to buy their warranty, one from someone different or not to bother.
I'm a 50 year old who knows very little about cars, and though i had company cars for 20 years, the last few years have been tough so been running older cars.
All help much appreciated.
PS. This is my first ever discussion board post too.
I have after many years bought myself a used BMW 4 series 420d with only 20k but 4 years old car.
I bought it through Cinch, which was great - but i am worried as to whether to buy their warranty, one from someone different or not to bother.
I'm a 50 year old who knows very little about cars, and though i had company cars for 20 years, the last few years have been tough so been running older cars.
All help much appreciated.
PS. This is my first ever discussion board post too.
Hammer666 said:
it costs almost double the Cinch one, at over £720/year though...
That sounds like the BMW fully comprehensive (100k limit) including wear and tear with 0 excess including roadside assistance. That’s £720.You won’t get the same cover, wear and tear to 100k miles on any other policy (in my experience)
You can remove breakdown and increase the excess.
Like anything it’s a peace of mind insurance. You could just save that amount for anything unforeseen.
If you won't be servicing with BMW or using BMW genuine parts than the warranty means little as far as I know - someone else can confirm.
I have recently purchased a BMW Approved Used. The car is turning 3 years old in 2 weeks time. Knowing that I have an BMW approved used car warranty until next August is a peace of mind.
I will be renewing mine when my approved used warranty comes to end next year and going to also purchase a service pack but via a dealership as we can pay full amount monthly with them (unlike BMW direct). I worked out the costs for me and it just isn't worth the headache if something goes wrong on these cars...
If you want to go for cheaper option than Cinch care is OK also (better than nothing). It is not as comprehensive as BMW. I believe a free servicing is included with the Cinch care once a year which can be done at Halfords or any of their other garages.
I have recently purchased a BMW Approved Used. The car is turning 3 years old in 2 weeks time. Knowing that I have an BMW approved used car warranty until next August is a peace of mind.
I will be renewing mine when my approved used warranty comes to end next year and going to also purchase a service pack but via a dealership as we can pay full amount monthly with them (unlike BMW direct). I worked out the costs for me and it just isn't worth the headache if something goes wrong on these cars...
If you want to go for cheaper option than Cinch care is OK also (better than nothing). It is not as comprehensive as BMW. I believe a free servicing is included with the Cinch care once a year which can be done at Halfords or any of their other garages.
There is a reason why the BMW Warranty is expensive.
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
Sir Bagalot said:
There is a reason why the BMW Warranty is expensive.
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
Read keys?There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
Sir Bagalot said:
There is a reason why the BMW Warranty is expensive.
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
Clocking?
Sir Bagalot said:
There is a reason why the BMW Warranty is expensive.
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
You’ll have to explain that last point. A copy of your cars data / current car errors are stored in the keys. Why wouldn’t they be able to read it? Why would he want to check it can be read? There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
Personally I choose to run the gantlet after 3 years and just build up a war chest / pay for repairs if required at a good Indy.
Had warranties in the passed - if they are ever needed the issuing company does everything it can to avoid paying and it becomes a battle / negotiation.
So IME not worth the hassle. But it's all about your attitude to risk I guess,
Had warranties in the passed - if they are ever needed the issuing company does everything it can to avoid paying and it becomes a battle / negotiation.
So IME not worth the hassle. But it's all about your attitude to risk I guess,
I have historically not bothered with warranty after the initial one expires on all sorts of cars.
But I did take a BMW insured warranty out on my 4 series (albeit an M4) when it turned 3 (with 12,000 miles on it). It’s now a month shy of turning 4 with 16,000 miles on the clock, and has had nearly 4K of warranty work in this last 11 months. It’s expensive, and they still try to wriggle out of stuff, but I think it worthwhile.
But I did take a BMW insured warranty out on my 4 series (albeit an M4) when it turned 3 (with 12,000 miles on it). It’s now a month shy of turning 4 with 16,000 miles on the clock, and has had nearly 4K of warranty work in this last 11 months. It’s expensive, and they still try to wriggle out of stuff, but I think it worthwhile.
Just this morning pressed the button on a warranty extension on a 4 y/o 440i.
Last year at OEM warranty expiry, I did the £522 policy (so fully comp, roadside assistance, £100 excess) but this year I upped excess to £250 which brought the policy down to £422. I’m only doing 4K miles / year.
Have never had any need to claim on any such policy in the past but reviews here and elsewhere are very good and I plan to keep the car for 3+ more years so I figure it’s around years 4/5/6 (which I’m just entering) that stuff can start to go wrong, even though it is fully BMW maintained.
Ps I have called to try to bargain a la regular car insurance (“surely you can do better, I’ve been with you for ages blah blah”) even with their customer svc manager (found out his details as I wanted to ensure my mods were covered) but no joy at all and price is all centrally set and applies consistently.
Last year at OEM warranty expiry, I did the £522 policy (so fully comp, roadside assistance, £100 excess) but this year I upped excess to £250 which brought the policy down to £422. I’m only doing 4K miles / year.
Have never had any need to claim on any such policy in the past but reviews here and elsewhere are very good and I plan to keep the car for 3+ more years so I figure it’s around years 4/5/6 (which I’m just entering) that stuff can start to go wrong, even though it is fully BMW maintained.
Ps I have called to try to bargain a la regular car insurance (“surely you can do better, I’ve been with you for ages blah blah”) even with their customer svc manager (found out his details as I wanted to ensure my mods were covered) but no joy at all and price is all centrally set and applies consistently.
It all depends on what your attitude to risk is and your financial position.
Overall a warranty is a type of insurance and all insurance premiums are guaranteed to make an overall profit for the insurer.
Personally I’ve never bothered over many years and a number of cars but only you can decide what works for you.
Overall a warranty is a type of insurance and all insurance premiums are guaranteed to make an overall profit for the insurer.
Personally I’ve never bothered over many years and a number of cars but only you can decide what works for you.
vrtrooper said:
Sir Bagalot said:
There is a reason why the BMW Warranty is expensive.
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
There is a reason why others are cheaper.
Read the T&C's. You'll find the former covers a lot more. An awful lot more.
BTW Pop into a BMW dealer service centre and ask them to read both your keys, if they can great, if they can't then ask why
Clocking?
To me a 4 year old BM on 20K miles screams a 5K pa lease deal. Fair enough if it hasn't had a haircut.
Of that vintage it's most likely if clocked then the keys will be blocked and fail to read. If they do then you can investigate a bit more.
Do you not get a warranty included when you bought the car from Cinch, or is it a short-term warranty? I know their monthly one is provided by Repair and Maintenance Plans Limited (RAMP).
Maybe one of the benefits of buying an AUC car from a dealer for a bit more is the peace of mind of the year's AUC warranty?
For me - on the basis of 25,000 miles a year - the options are no warranty or BMW insured warranty...wouldn't bother with any of the others...and of course the premium you'd pay on a non-BMW product to have it fixed (at a BMW dealer of your choice) is already factored into the price of the BMW product.
If I was doing 5000 miles a year I'd keep the cash.
Maybe one of the benefits of buying an AUC car from a dealer for a bit more is the peace of mind of the year's AUC warranty?
For me - on the basis of 25,000 miles a year - the options are no warranty or BMW insured warranty...wouldn't bother with any of the others...and of course the premium you'd pay on a non-BMW product to have it fixed (at a BMW dealer of your choice) is already factored into the price of the BMW product.
If I was doing 5000 miles a year I'd keep the cash.
I set up a fully comp BMW warranty with breakdown cover this week. As mentioned, the cost reduces significantly with increasing the excess (£1.3k to £800 with £250 xs for a GTS).
Make sure the service history is spot on though and they were happy to put me in contact directly with BMW underwriters for peace of mind to ensure all claims would be valid.
Also, fully transferable if you sell privately (SOR etc).
Make sure the service history is spot on though and they were happy to put me in contact directly with BMW underwriters for peace of mind to ensure all claims would be valid.
Also, fully transferable if you sell privately (SOR etc).
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