When is a warranty not a warranty?
Discussion
As mentioned previously on here, I had problems with my engine management light coming on and the accelerator doing all sorts of weird and (not so)wonderful things. I got over this on a temporary basis by resetting the throttle as per Nigelo's thread.
It was diagnosed as a faulty throttle potentiometer but after passing on advice from here, the following fault was found "high resistance found through connector block for throttle potentiometer" This was fixed and seems to have cured the problem.
My concern was that at one point I was told by the dealer that the throttle pot (price £950 plus labour) was not covered by the warranty - similarly, the £52.88 that I've paid for the above repair wasn't covered.
Now I've gone through the warranty booklet over and over again and cannot see why either of the above were not covered. I can understand brakes, clutches, lights and tyres not being covered but electronic components? Why pay £3000 for a warranty that is subject to the whims of some person in Slough?
I'm obviously going to write to Trident warranty about this but I wondered if anybody else had similar experiences?
It was diagnosed as a faulty throttle potentiometer but after passing on advice from here, the following fault was found "high resistance found through connector block for throttle potentiometer" This was fixed and seems to have cured the problem.
My concern was that at one point I was told by the dealer that the throttle pot (price £950 plus labour) was not covered by the warranty - similarly, the £52.88 that I've paid for the above repair wasn't covered.
Now I've gone through the warranty booklet over and over again and cannot see why either of the above were not covered. I can understand brakes, clutches, lights and tyres not being covered but electronic components? Why pay £3000 for a warranty that is subject to the whims of some person in Slough?
I'm obviously going to write to Trident warranty about this but I wondered if anybody else had similar experiences?
You paid £3000 for an extedned warrenty! That is way too much cash. I would have put it in a bank than pay that kind of cash out. Very rare you get bills like that in a year.
Mine was £900 ish and there fitting a new steering rack on the 15th. Too much play in the steering. Can't say i noticed it before. Think it got damaged on the recall myself, but thats another thread.
Most wireing is not covered under warrenty. It can degrade over time. BUT electrical components should be. Also i have a specific list of what is covered and it coverts quite a few things. Including the turbo units! My warrenty is one provided by the dealer and managed by "car care plan".
I would question the cover on the warrenty.
Mine was £900 ish and there fitting a new steering rack on the 15th. Too much play in the steering. Can't say i noticed it before. Think it got damaged on the recall myself, but thats another thread.
Most wireing is not covered under warrenty. It can degrade over time. BUT electrical components should be. Also i have a specific list of what is covered and it coverts quite a few things. Including the turbo units! My warrenty is one provided by the dealer and managed by "car care plan".
I would question the cover on the warrenty.
That is poor, you pay that sort of money you have a right to expect a "no-quibble service". The whole point of spending that sort of money is so that you have peace of mind.
If you have a serious issue that is not covered by the additional warranty you still have statutory consumer rights against the dealer.
If you have a serious issue that is not covered by the additional warranty you still have statutory consumer rights against the dealer.
chris_Crossley said:
You paid £3000 for an extedned warrenty! That is way too much cash. I would have put it in a bank than pay that kind of cash out. Very rare you get bills like that in a year.
3k is a lot for a warranty, but glad my warranty was there earlier this year - if I hadn't been covered then it would have cost me more than double that at my 3 year service...
mr_tony said:
You paid £3000 for an extedned warrenty! That is way too much cash. I would have put it in a bank than pay that kind of cash out. Very rare you get bills like that in a year.
3k is a lot for a warranty, but glad my warranty was there earlier this year - if I hadn't been covered then it would have cost me more than double that at my 3 year service...
Got my service done a few weeks before the man warranty ran out. Had a small list of stuff that got done under Maser warranty. Still got the extended cos i didn't think what i paid was that bad.
I've tried to buy my last couple of dealer sourced cars without warranty at a lower price but they're not intetested. You should have tried "OK, take 3k off and I'll take it without a warranty" just to see the priceless look on the dealer's face. Just before he said no.
Warranties seem to come in two kinds, at random - expensive and useless, expensive and worth it. You also get the impression that dealers are in bed with the warranty co's. Maybe my risk tolerance is higher than normal but I'd take an inspected and test driven car without a warranty every time if the dealers would take its inflated value off the ticket.
Warranties seem to come in two kinds, at random - expensive and useless, expensive and worth it. You also get the impression that dealers are in bed with the warranty co's. Maybe my risk tolerance is higher than normal but I'd take an inspected and test driven car without a warranty every time if the dealers would take its inflated value off the ticket.
It depends on the dealer. All warrantys are underwritten by dealers or interested partys looking to make money. The dealer pays into a pot. This fund can be network wide or just dealer base. Once the pot is gone then they have to put in more. So they don't like claiming if its the pot. Private dealers tend to have there own pot. People like "CAR CARE PLAN" are in effect a fund manager and just take a cut. 
P.S.
Worked on car warranty systems for the past 6 months.
P.S.
Worked on car warranty systems for the past 6 months.
The current situation is (I'm told)
1. customer with warranty reports fault to Maserati dealer
2. dealer contacts Trident Warranty,
3. Trident look at a list known only to themselves and tell the dealer whether or not the problem is covered by the warranty.
Here's the list of Exclusions, direct from the warranty booklet.
a) consumable materials and maintenance costs
b) exhaust system, shock absorbers, windows and headlight housing
c) changes or deterioration of the paint, chrome, carpets and interior coverings due to normal wear or inappropriate conditions of use
d) faults not due to material or construction defects but due to incorrect use, negligence, accidents or inadequate maintenance, use in competition or not conforming to the instructions provided by Maserati
Where, in the above, would you be able to exclude a throttle potentiometer?
BTW - despite the daft name I use on here, I'm a very reasonable person and just cannot work out how this part (which it seems I don't need anyway) cannot be covered by warranty.
1. customer with warranty reports fault to Maserati dealer
2. dealer contacts Trident Warranty,
3. Trident look at a list known only to themselves and tell the dealer whether or not the problem is covered by the warranty.
Here's the list of Exclusions, direct from the warranty booklet.
a) consumable materials and maintenance costs
b) exhaust system, shock absorbers, windows and headlight housing
c) changes or deterioration of the paint, chrome, carpets and interior coverings due to normal wear or inappropriate conditions of use
d) faults not due to material or construction defects but due to incorrect use, negligence, accidents or inadequate maintenance, use in competition or not conforming to the instructions provided by Maserati
Where, in the above, would you be able to exclude a throttle potentiometer?
BTW - despite the daft name I use on here, I'm a very reasonable person and just cannot work out how this part (which it seems I don't need anyway) cannot be covered by warranty.
If that is all the exclusions then i can't see why it would not be covered?
The same exclusions apply to my warrenty and as you would expect any wear n tear items are excluded. The pot must be faulty before they can replace it.
By the sounds of it, it's ok at the moment so don't worry about it. The resetting could be considered wear n tear in the same was as tracking.
The same exclusions apply to my warrenty and as you would expect any wear n tear items are excluded. The pot must be faulty before they can replace it.
By the sounds of it, it's ok at the moment so don't worry about it. The resetting could be considered wear n tear in the same was as tracking.
Ferrari group warranties (I assume Maser's are done by the same bunch at the moment) are exactly what your title suggest in my opinion.
I had a speedo sensor fail (twice!) which wasn't covered. And poor workmanship/design of a part which almost caused catastrophic failure, that I had to argue for months for to even get partial cover on.
In the Ferrari warranty book, "suspension" is actually in the "covered by this warranty" section. But guess what. It isn't (or at least not the parts that one would ordinarily regard as suspension).
There's barely a part on these cars that doesn't have electrical contacts on it. So that argument means nothing's covered.
I think it would be a good idea if these guys were forced to give a full list of every component, broken down into sensible sections, and have a tick box against as to whether it's covered (or, on the daring assumption that the list is shorter, a definitive list of what isn't covered). It'd be a long list, but at least it would prevent the bs you get from them as they try to squirm from the majority of claims.
I'm sure there are better value warranties out there. Trouble is, the whole myth around the factory ones, as perpetuated by the dealers (how else could they guarantee getting customers coming back to them for servicing at outrageous rates), is ingrained and any newbies to these marques usually covet the dealers as a safe option.
I, for one, did. Never again.
Good luck getting it sorted out.
I had a speedo sensor fail (twice!) which wasn't covered. And poor workmanship/design of a part which almost caused catastrophic failure, that I had to argue for months for to even get partial cover on.
In the Ferrari warranty book, "suspension" is actually in the "covered by this warranty" section. But guess what. It isn't (or at least not the parts that one would ordinarily regard as suspension).
There's barely a part on these cars that doesn't have electrical contacts on it. So that argument means nothing's covered.
I think it would be a good idea if these guys were forced to give a full list of every component, broken down into sensible sections, and have a tick box against as to whether it's covered (or, on the daring assumption that the list is shorter, a definitive list of what isn't covered). It'd be a long list, but at least it would prevent the bs you get from them as they try to squirm from the majority of claims.
I'm sure there are better value warranties out there. Trouble is, the whole myth around the factory ones, as perpetuated by the dealers (how else could they guarantee getting customers coming back to them for servicing at outrageous rates), is ingrained and any newbies to these marques usually covet the dealers as a safe option.
I, for one, did. Never again.
Good luck getting it sorted out.
turbobloke said:
At the prices charged by dealers warranties should be bumper to bumper. Sure, obvious wear and tear (brake pads) apart, but bumper to bumper nothing less and no small print.
Agreed.
But sadly those ones only exist in a world where there are no wars, beer's free and supermodels lust after fat Northern blokes.
How strange, always thought my warranty covered everything (except tear and wear eg brakes, tyres etc).
I had engine management / throttle problems a few times too many and in the end it was discovered that it was caused by a simple wiring problem; an extra earth wire was placed between the computer system and the body of the car - a very easy fix and the car seems better than expected - it does not pulsate as much as expected.
And, covered by Maserati Trdent Warranty. Perhaps because the first wire was faulty? Ask them to check the earth wire and or place another one to see if your car will run better.
I had engine management / throttle problems a few times too many and in the end it was discovered that it was caused by a simple wiring problem; an extra earth wire was placed between the computer system and the body of the car - a very easy fix and the car seems better than expected - it does not pulsate as much as expected.
And, covered by Maserati Trdent Warranty. Perhaps because the first wire was faulty? Ask them to check the earth wire and or place another one to see if your car will run better.
The sooner this country follows the US lead on car warranties the better......you have a choice of cover when you buy the car.......from the best 100% bumper to bumper cover (cover everything apart from pads etc) to a 50%-50% warranty where the dealer covers 50% and the customer does the same..........I am all for dealers been bonded like in the USA too, you pay a bond to the local authorities, then if you are selling tricky warranties with cars there is proper redress for the customer........
I underwrite my own warranties...........
I'd say the majority of people think, like I did, that most things are covered and should be.
It's no use extolling the virtues of buying from a dealership to have the 'peace of mind' of having a warranty only to find that the warranty is subjective.
I will write to Trident and let you all know the reply I receive.
It's no use extolling the virtues of buying from a dealership to have the 'peace of mind' of having a warranty only to find that the warranty is subjective.
I will write to Trident and let you all know the reply I receive.
How well a warranty works seems to depend so much on the specific manafacturer/individual dealer. Just to make you sick, the alternator failed on my Isuzu Trooper. Replaced with new at no cost at all to me under the extended Isuzu warranty scheme. The car is 6 years old and has covered 125,000 miles. Pretty impressive I thought!
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