What Are The Different Extended Warranties You Can Purchase?

A prime reason to select a new car over a used one is the warranty and the confidence that once you have made your down payment and have your monthly payment covered, you won’t have any surprises in the way of repair bills for a while. Repair bills may have driven you to car shopping in the first place. 

Cars last longer than they used to, and people hold on to them longer. If you, like many people, plan to keep your car beyond the warranty period, that confidence of being free from repair bills ends. And now that the vehicle is several years old, the need for repairs may be more common. That is where extended warranties come in. Extended warranties can be purchased through Chevrolet directly or by third parties. Which should you consider? McFarland Chevrolet is here to help you find out. 

Chevrolet New Car Warranty Coverage

The natural place to start is by reviewing Chevrolet’s standard new car warranty. Every new Chevrolet has the following coverage:

• Bumper-to-bumper: 3 years/36,000 miles
• Powertrain: 5 years/60,000 miles
• Anti-corrosion: 3 years/36,000 miles
• Rust-through: 6 years/100,000 miles
• Electric and hybrid components: 8 years/100,000 miles

If you plan on keeping your new Chevrolet for under five years, you may not want to consider an extended warranty. However, many are transferable, which provides a significant selling point. If you keep your cars longer than five years and don’t like financial surprises, an extended warranty is worth looking into.

Chevrolet’s Extended Warranty Plans

Chevrolet offers three different plans with corresponding levels of coverage. One extended the powertrain warranty, another is close to bumper-to-bumper coverage, with a third in between. All three plans have the same term of 8 years / 100,000 miles starting from when the car was new.  That effectively means the powertrain coverage adds another three years or 40,000 miles, while the other two cover items for an additional five years or 64,000 miles, more than doubling the original coverage.  Here are the three available Chevrolet extended warranties:

• Powertrain Plan: Covers the mechanicals that move the car, including engine, transmission, drive axles, and motors in the case of EVs or hybrids.

• Silver Plan: Covers both powertrain and chassis components. So, in addition to the powertrain components in the Powertrain plan, it would cover repairs for front and rear suspension, climate control, electrical, steering, and brake components.

• Platinum Plan: This adds electronics to the drivetrain, specifically Audio, Navigation, and Technology features such as sensors and ECUs for safety and driver assist technology.

Additional features of the Chevrolet warranties include: 

• Roadside Assistance: Provides free towing (up to $100 per occurrence), battery jump-starts, flat tire assistance, emergency fuel and fluid deliveries, and lockout assistance.
• Rental Car Coverage: While your car is in the shop for covered repairs, you will be reimbursed for up to $40 per day for up to 10 days.
• Trip Interruption: For a breakdown that occurs over 100 miles from your home, the warranty reimburses up to $200 per day for a maximum of five days to cover emergency travel expenses.

As with any other warranty, Chevrolet has exclusions on both its standard and new car warranties, whereby coverage will not be offered. These include:

• Routine Maintenance – oil changes, wiper replacement, etc.
• Accidents
• Maintenance neglect
• Aftermarket part installations
• Theft or vandalism
• Natural disasters like floods and fires
• Misuse, like off-roading or street racing
• Pre-existing conditions

Third-Party Extended Warranties

Other warranty providers are also ready to cover your Chevrolet beyond its standard warranty term. Many of these offer a wider selection of plans with different terms of coverage and deductibles. Like Chevrolet’s extended warranties, these are transferable, and many have coverage periods of up to 8 -10 years or more and up to 200K – 300K miles. Costs will be consistent with the coverage.

Another key distinction between Chevrolet and 3rd party warranties is who does the repairs and what parts are used. Chevrolet extended warranties operate through the Chevrolet dealership network of service centers and only use original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts, and Chevrolet OEM parts come with their own warranties.  3rd party plans will use a network of independent shops. Some limit their network to Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certified shops, but very few, if any, mandate OEM parts. 

Extended warranties are akin to insurance policies, and their value is based on probability.  Chevrolet and 3rd party companies are weighing the odds that you won’t need repair costs exceeding the warranty price. You are protecting against the opposite case. 

This post has given you at least a basic understanding of extended warranties. Talk to McFarland Chevrolet sales and service professionals for specific information regarding the cost and coverage of Chevrolet and 3rd party extended warranties.