reliability, reapir costs, warranty and real experience
Discussion
davek_964 said:
Yep - one of the things that puts me off renewing. When I bought my car in 2019, I was struggling to keep it under 1k a month. The last year has obviously changed things, but I've still managed 5k in the last year even though I haven't had to go to the office once and pretty much all car events were cancelled.
The warranty mileage is odd though. In the actual paperwork / confirmation you get when the warranty starts they seem to assume that you will do 12k a year. So in other words - if you were renewing for the year where the car would go from 5 years old to 6 years old - the paperwork will show that your warranty is valid as long as you don't exceed 72k miles. Very odd - but I suspect if you had an expensive claim and the service / MOT history showed you went over your 12k annual limit they wouldn't pay.
For info, I don't believe Thorney has the annual mileage limit.
The wording might have been changed.The warranty mileage is odd though. In the actual paperwork / confirmation you get when the warranty starts they seem to assume that you will do 12k a year. So in other words - if you were renewing for the year where the car would go from 5 years old to 6 years old - the paperwork will show that your warranty is valid as long as you don't exceed 72k miles. Very odd - but I suspect if you had an expensive claim and the service / MOT history showed you went over your 12k annual limit they wouldn't pay.
For info, I don't believe Thorney has the annual mileage limit.
It now states:
"The Extended Warranty is limited to 12,000 miles (20,000 kilometres) per 12 months of cover. Cover will cease to exist if the distance is exceeded before the expiry date shown."
Gunso said:
davek_964 said:
Yep - one of the things that puts me off renewing. When I bought my car in 2019, I was struggling to keep it under 1k a month. The last year has obviously changed things, but I've still managed 5k in the last year even though I haven't had to go to the office once and pretty much all car events were cancelled.
The warranty mileage is odd though. In the actual paperwork / confirmation you get when the warranty starts they seem to assume that you will do 12k a year. So in other words - if you were renewing for the year where the car would go from 5 years old to 6 years old - the paperwork will show that your warranty is valid as long as you don't exceed 72k miles. Very odd - but I suspect if you had an expensive claim and the service / MOT history showed you went over your 12k annual limit they wouldn't pay.
For info, I don't believe Thorney has the annual mileage limit.
The wording might have been changed.The warranty mileage is odd though. In the actual paperwork / confirmation you get when the warranty starts they seem to assume that you will do 12k a year. So in other words - if you were renewing for the year where the car would go from 5 years old to 6 years old - the paperwork will show that your warranty is valid as long as you don't exceed 72k miles. Very odd - but I suspect if you had an expensive claim and the service / MOT history showed you went over your 12k annual limit they wouldn't pay.
For info, I don't believe Thorney has the annual mileage limit.
It now states:
"The Extended Warranty is limited to 12,000 miles (20,000 kilometres) per 12 months of cover. Cover will cease to exist if the distance is exceeded before the expiry date shown."
When I was young I bought sports cars that in truth I could not afford to repair but just about pay the servicing costs
There is no fun in driving a car of this calibre if you are always anxious about the possibility of it going wrong, in my experience the danger is you are giving out a false image and presenting yourself as something you are not and that hinders progress in life. I know because I got caught up in it all.
Now I can afford to be more relaxed about such costs I am becoming rather cynical of the whole experience of owning high-end sports cars, my post about my 2017 NSX on the Honda side of this site will give you a flavour of what I mean.
In the next few years ICE cars will be in decline and many will hold on to them because of the break neck depreciation makes any other new ICE car not worthwhile and presumably greater servicing costs related to the age of the vehicle and exploitation from manufactures will follow so it will be interesting to see how servicing costs will pan out in the next few years. Electric cars have so fewer components to be serviced and with re generative braking making disc and pads go 100,000 miles most of the dialogue will be on battery life is supect
There is no fun in driving a car of this calibre if you are always anxious about the possibility of it going wrong, in my experience the danger is you are giving out a false image and presenting yourself as something you are not and that hinders progress in life. I know because I got caught up in it all.
Now I can afford to be more relaxed about such costs I am becoming rather cynical of the whole experience of owning high-end sports cars, my post about my 2017 NSX on the Honda side of this site will give you a flavour of what I mean.
In the next few years ICE cars will be in decline and many will hold on to them because of the break neck depreciation makes any other new ICE car not worthwhile and presumably greater servicing costs related to the age of the vehicle and exploitation from manufactures will follow so it will be interesting to see how servicing costs will pan out in the next few years. Electric cars have so fewer components to be serviced and with re generative braking making disc and pads go 100,000 miles most of the dialogue will be on battery life is supect
I don't really get all this should I should I not get a warranty and save a few quid BS, if you buy from a dealer you will get a warranty if you privately you may not in which case you factor the cost into the price.
If you want a McLaren have it inspected and buy it and enjoy it but it's pathetic to expect people to share their experience with you in the unlikely event you make a decision without having an anxiety attack.
If you want a McLaren have it inspected and buy it and enjoy it but it's pathetic to expect people to share their experience with you in the unlikely event you make a decision without having an anxiety attack.
davek_964 said:
It's always said that (in my ownership) and I agree that the limit is 12k. But I do have something from the warranty company somewhere which states the figures I mentioned.
"Warranty company" ? I thought that the McLaren warranty was by McLaren and not some insurance productbordseye said:
"Warranty company" ? I thought that the McLaren warranty was by McLaren and not some insurance product
No. The extended warranty is not provided by McLaren - Car Care I believe. Not that it really matters - it's still better than most other manufacturer extended warranties.davek_964 said:
bordseye said:
"Warranty company" ? I thought that the McLaren warranty was by McLaren and not some insurance product
No. The extended warranty is not provided by McLaren - Car Care I believe. Not that it really matters - it's still better than most other manufacturer extended warranties.I called the warranty company and went through the normal nause of connecting telephone numbers. A diabolical telephone connection including a 2 second delay and a huge language barrier. So first impressions of the “McLaren Extended Warranty” have not been favourable.
Gunso said:
I wanted the recorded mileage to be accurate for the start of my warranty. I will do at least 10,000 miles this year so there is not a lot of room for manoeuvre.
I called the warranty company and went through the normal nause of connecting telephone numbers. A diabolical telephone connection including a 2 second delay and a huge language barrier. So first impressions of the “McLaren Extended Warranty” have not been favourable.
I bought a second year warranty when I purchased my car. When the first year was expiring, I got a letter through welcoming me for the second year. But it still had the starting mileage of the first year - which is no good for the reasons you mention.I called the warranty company and went through the normal nause of connecting telephone numbers. A diabolical telephone connection including a 2 second delay and a huge language barrier. So first impressions of the “McLaren Extended Warranty” have not been favourable.
I called them, and they said they would sort it out - but I had to call them again, more than once if I recall. Turned out they couldn't change the starting mileage! So they had to cancel my second year and then start a new policy.
It does seem that the admin side is awful. But the actual cover seems pretty good.
Ferruccio said:
HIS LM said:
it's pathetic to expect people to share their experience with you in the unlikely event you make a decision without having an anxiety attack.
Isn’t that the whole point of a forum??The underwriter of an insurance product (of which a warranty is one) sets the premium with the expectation (and quite reasonable of course to do so) of making a profit. Therefore, it should be a bad deal from the consumer's point of view.
It does buy peace of mind. Therefore, if it is for an essential item, then logically there is an advantage in taking on such a policy, you have no choice as you would be wiped out without such cover in place
However, in the case of a warranty on a luxury car, the purchase of a luxury car it is a discretionary purchase and if you cannot handle the repair bills then taking out a warranty which is of course going to be a bad deal does not solve the problem
These thoughts are based on the mistakes I made when I was young when I could not really afford the repairs bills on what was considered in those day high-end cars ( i.e. Lotus Eclat, Porsche 928S)
It does buy peace of mind. Therefore, if it is for an essential item, then logically there is an advantage in taking on such a policy, you have no choice as you would be wiped out without such cover in place
However, in the case of a warranty on a luxury car, the purchase of a luxury car it is a discretionary purchase and if you cannot handle the repair bills then taking out a warranty which is of course going to be a bad deal does not solve the problem
These thoughts are based on the mistakes I made when I was young when I could not really afford the repairs bills on what was considered in those day high-end cars ( i.e. Lotus Eclat, Porsche 928S)
Your second sentence suggests that everything we buy is a bas deal, which is of course nonsense. But leaving that aside, I agree with you that the purpose should be peace of mind rather than buying a policy because otherwise you would be "wiped out". Thats why I am uncomfortable with the modern approach of buying exotic cars on credit.
I was simply curious as to why this issue was so strong on McLaren and not much mentioned on say Ferrari. Could it be because the buyers of McLaren are younger people buying on credit and for whome a 35k gearbox bill would be a disaster? Or is it that McLaren are unreliable by comparison and expensive to repair by comparison? The logic of your second sentence suggests that repair bills for a McLaren must average multiple thousands a year. Really?
I was simply curious as to why this issue was so strong on McLaren and not much mentioned on say Ferrari. Could it be because the buyers of McLaren are younger people buying on credit and for whome a 35k gearbox bill would be a disaster? Or is it that McLaren are unreliable by comparison and expensive to repair by comparison? The logic of your second sentence suggests that repair bills for a McLaren must average multiple thousands a year. Really?
bordseye said:
I was simply curious as to why this issue was so strong on McLaren and not much mentioned on say Ferrari. Could it be because the buyers of McLaren are younger people buying on credit and for whome a 35k gearbox bill would be a disaster? Or is it that McLaren are unreliable by comparison and expensive to repair by comparison? The logic of your second sentence suggests that repair bills for a McLaren must average multiple thousands a year. Really?
I suspect the answer to this is actually quite complicated. Ferrari owners do seem very protective of the brand, and - for whatever reason - are far less vocal about problems. But even more so - people who have never owned a McLaren seem very vocal about how unreliable they are (especially on here) - why, is something of a mystery. But that doesn't seem to happen with other marques.
It could even be related to the quality of the warranty. I've heard of may examples of the Ferrari warranty failing to pay for something (e.g. a convertible roof mechanism) whereas the McLaren warranty seems much more comprehensive. Despite the cost, and warranty that covers 95% of problems with the car probably does seem like a good thing to have, compared to one that covers much less.
I would say that the majority of McLaren owners I know - via the owners club etc - are not youngsters buying on credit (and even if they are on some kind of credit agreement, it doesn't mean they can't afford the car).
I am definitely towards the bottom rung of McLaren owners financial ladder. Would I be wiped out by a £35k bill? No - but I'd be pretty p****d off about it, and the car would probably be up for sale when it was fixed!
davek_964 said:
I suspect the answer to this is actually quite complicated. Ferrari owners do seem very protective of the brand, and - for whatever reason - are far less vocal about problems.
But even more so - people who have never owned a McLaren seem very vocal about how unreliable they are (especially on here) - why, is something of a mystery. But that doesn't seem to happen with other marques.
I wonder if this is part of our tendency to knock things British. Rover cars for example were always way better than anything from FIAT or Renault but that doesnt stop people damning them. Same with modern JLR vehicles. Same with "British" motorbikes even though they arent actually British. We like to moan and knock.But even more so - people who have never owned a McLaren seem very vocal about how unreliable they are (especially on here) - why, is something of a mystery. But that doesn't seem to happen with other marques.
bordseye said:
davek_964 said:
I suspect the answer to this is actually quite complicated. Ferrari owners do seem very protective of the brand, and - for whatever reason - are far less vocal about problems.
But even more so - people who have never owned a McLaren seem very vocal about how unreliable they are (especially on here) - why, is something of a mystery. But that doesn't seem to happen with other marques.
I wonder if this is part of our tendency to knock things British. Rover cars for example were always way better than anything from FIAT or Renault but that doesnt stop people damning them. Same with modern JLR vehicles. Same with "British" motorbikes even though they arent actually British. We like to moan and knock.But even more so - people who have never owned a McLaren seem very vocal about how unreliable they are (especially on here) - why, is something of a mystery. But that doesn't seem to happen with other marques.
He said “Oh that’s easy, Range Rovers”.
bordseye said:
davek_964 said:
I suspect the answer to this is actually quite complicated. Ferrari owners do seem very protective of the brand, and - for whatever reason - are far less vocal about problems.
But even more so - people who have never owned a McLaren seem very vocal about how unreliable they are (especially on here) - why, is something of a mystery. But that doesn't seem to happen with other marques.
I wonder if this is part of our tendency to knock things British. Rover cars for example were always way better than anything from FIAT or Renault but that doesnt stop people damning them. Same with modern JLR vehicles. Same with "British" motorbikes even though they arent actually British. We like to moan and knock.But even more so - people who have never owned a McLaren seem very vocal about how unreliable they are (especially on here) - why, is something of a mystery. But that doesn't seem to happen with other marques.
Just watch Thorney's youtube "5 million miles in McLarens". https://youtu.be/92MItt_DEys
djangoW said:
Just watch Thorney's youtube "5 million miles in McLarens". https://youtu.be/92MItt_DEys
It may be coincidental but since that video appeared and current Mac availability (stock) is low in numbers, the keyboard warriors have been a little quieter of late.Gassing Station | McLaren | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff