[ESPREE]

I know many dealerships offer an extended warranty on used vehicles, and I was wondering if anyone knows of a good company to check out that would accept an Esprit?

For example, Sports & Specialists is offering an optional warranty on this silver Esprit (through a 3rd party company):
2002 Lotus Esprit V8 | Lotus Dealer in NJ | Sports & Specialist Cars

I'm sorely tempted to go for that one, but as most of you know I'm looking for an Azure Blue for my next Esprit.

AAA has extended warranties for used vehicles, but won't accept any Lotus cars at all.

Anyone have any experience with the company that S&S uses or have another company you would recommend?

Thanks for any thoughts!

 

[sleekgt]

"If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is..."

A 12 year old Esprit is even more of a risk to the company providing a warranty.

If the warranty coverage is a reasonable price, you KNOW it's not realistic to cover a high-cost Esprit repair. It is either likely a scam or a business that will go bankrupt.

There is a reason why a reputable company like AAA doesn't offer such coverage.

I would view any 3rd party warranty with a critical eye. And Edmunds.com agrees:

"A number of these third-party warranty companies are fly-by-night operations that go belly up within a few years, costing consumers hundreds of dollars and leaving them without coverage. When a member of the Edmunds Forums posted a note about her warranty company going out of business, she found out that she wasn't alone.

"Welcome to the club," another member wrote. "Many of us here have been burned by similar third-party warranty companies just like Continental. In my case, Warranty Gold did it to me. Your warranty company will or has gone bankrupt and you are fortunate to get anything back. I got nothing. That's why no regular here will recommend any warranty other than a manufacturer-backed one."

The entire article is at:

Third-Party Extended Auto Warranty Scams - Edmunds.com

 

[Docl]

There is no way you are going to find a "extended warranty" for a 12yr old Lotus. I've bought them before for my cars before the factory warranty expires. On my MB CLS500 I paid $1900 for a Mercury Insurance Platinum warranty with bumper to bumper coverage and a $0 deductible. When that warranty was going to expire at 85k/5yrs they wanted $7500 for a two year 20k miles warranty.

You can try to call Mercury Insurance and see what they'll say, but I am confident you can't get one, especially on an exotic car.

 

[ESPREE]

"If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is..."

A 12 year old Esprit is even more of a risk to the company providing a warranty.

If the warranty coverage is a reasonable price, you KNOW it's not realistic to cover a high-cost Esprit repair. It is either likely a scam or a business that will go bankrupt.

There is a reason why a reputable company like AAA doesn't offer such coverage.

I would view any 3rd party warranty with a critical eye. And Edmunds.com agrees:

"A number of these third-party warranty companies are fly-by-night operations that go belly up within a few years, costing consumers hundreds of dollars and leaving them without coverage. When a member of the Edmunds Forums posted a note about her warranty company going out of business, she found out that she wasn't alone.

"Welcome to the club," another member wrote. "Many of us here have been burned by similar third-party warranty companies just like Continental. In my case, Warranty Gold did it to me. Your warranty company will or has gone bankrupt and you are fortunate to get anything back. I got nothing. That's why no regular here will recommend any warranty other than a manufacturer-backed one."

The entire article is at:

Third-Party Extended Auto Warranty Scams - Edmunds.com

Thanks for the great info. Like any insurance company, just because they take your money doesn't mean they will be there when you need them!

But it does sound like the Edmunds article is mostly about fly by night telemarketer type companies. Are there no reputable companies that do this?

I did actually use a AAA extended warranty on my Jeep years ago and it worked out well - it saved me from some big repairs. Too bad they won't go Lotus.

 

[ESPREE]

There is no way you are going to find a "extended warranty" for a 12yr old Lotus. I've bought them before for my cars before the factory warranty expires. On my MB CLS500 I paid $1900 for a Mercury Insurance Platinum warranty with bumper to bumper coverage and a $0 deductible. When that warranty was going to expire at 85k/5yrs they wanted $7500 for a two year 20k miles warranty.

You can try to call Mercury Insurance and see what they'll say, but I am confident you can't get one, especially on an exotic car.

Besides the cost, did you actually have a good experience with Mercury Insurance?

 

[Turbo R]

I used to laugh and joke every time that US Fidelis auto warranty commercial came on TV. "Hey, I wonder if they'll insure the Lotus!" LOL!!!!!

Was watching the show American Greed on television and an episode featuring them came on. Totally blew my mind!!! Unreal, the lifestyle those two top people were living...building lavish mansions and screwing the general public.

US Fidelis to be featured on CNBC's 'American Greed' : News

Caution is definitely in order when picking the right carrier.

Roy

 

[LotusGuy48]

The sometimes jokingly phrase of Lots Of Trouble Usually Serious sometimes has a ring to truth to it. You would be better off in putting any warranty money into a savings account and use that for any repairs that may or not come up during your ownership.

US Fidelis was mentioned above and comes to mind as an out and out scam. There's another warranty company, I'm not going to mention their name, advertising on the Velocity channel featuring a busty blonde, I wouldn't touch them with a 10 foot pole either. If you read Consumer Reports magazine they advise not to go with any extended warranty even on brand new products.

 

[Docl]

Besides the cost, did you actually have a good experience with Mercury Insurance?

Yes. I have bought it on many cars and they always covered the repairs. I could bring the car anywhere, no questions asked. The last repair they did on my CLS500 was a new window regulator which cost $1900 at the MB dealer.

I would not hesitate to by one from them again.