Extended Service Agreement... Should I???

[Grizz]

Title says it all. I have a Dec 2014 P85D, 33k miles

Previous issues:
-Drivers side triangle glass replaced (wind noise)
-Rear suspension link replaced (minor clunk noise, probably just a bad bushing)
-Mobile Charger (replaced twice)
-Rear chrome fascia replaced (taillight moisture)

Things I'm worried about:
-Smart Air Suspension
-Panoramic Sunroof
-Anything electronic
-I also feel like once i'm out of the bumper/bumper warranty, my service center experience will degrade.

If it weren't for the $200 per visit deductible, i'd probably jump on it.

Thoughts?

 

[Tam]

...Thoughts?

1) Don't buy ESA:
If you know your car is reliable and won't break down anymore.
If you have no problem to pay out-of-pocket yourself
If you don't believe in pooling risks like some people who are bothered by paying health insurance so others can benefit it:

Republican Rep. John Shimkus (Ill.) “What about men having to purchase prenatal care?”...“I’m just . . . is that not correct?” ... “And should they?”

Rep. Renee L. Ellmers (R-N.C.)
"Do men not have to buy maternity coverage?” ...“To the best of your knowledge, has a man ever delivered a baby?”"

2) Do buy ESA:
If you know your car has been unreliable and it will continue to be so.
If don't like the idea of paying out-of-pocket yourself for any potential unexpected repairs.
If you prefer to know in advance how much you'll pay even if there will be unexpected repairs.
If you believe in pooling risks: even if you won't get the benefit of Tesla paying repairs because your car won't break down, you still feel good about it because your car is healthy and someone else can enjoy Tesla paying for the repairs.

 

[PhilDavid]

You can always consolidate a few issues since the deductible is per visit.

Also don't forget you will have an easier time selling your car with warranty left over compared to a car that is completely out of warranty.

Also for what it's worth, Tesla has increased the cost of the ESA warranty about 3 times now, presumably because each time they found that their own warranty expenses ended up being higher than they anticipated.

Personally I would not dream of owning our car out of warranty but it's all up to your personal level of risk.

A few additional things o add to your list of worries
+ MCU failure
+ MCU screen yellowing/fluid leakage
+ Expensive half shaft repairs
+ HVAC issues
+ Charger issues

 

[Tam]

...deductible...

My 2012 Model S' 3 problems were fixed under ESA during 3 different scheduled annual inspection visits and Tesla did not charge me any deductible each time (without ESA it would have cost me about $9,100 for those 3 problems.)

 

[RAW84]

I'm a December 2014 P85D owner like yourself. I had decided not to get the warranty as any repair that would most likely arise I could afford to fix, so I didn't see the point in "insuring" with an ESA

Took my car into the 4th annual service at 49,970 mi. Picked it up 1.5 weeks later. Got it home and the HV battery died. Although this would've been covered by the battery warranty, I took this as a sign that I should get the warranty. In the first four years of ownership I've been unexpectedly left without the services of my car 3 times (12V battery, power steering fell apart, and now the HV battery), not to mention the other failures that didn't prevent the car from driving. I have no reason to believe that I won't have issues that'll exceed the warranty cost, so I bit the bullet and purchased.

Plus I am not clear how roadside and towing disabled vehicles work out of warranty.

 

[Daniellane]

I have bought it twice now, just within 180 days for additional discount. When I upgraded my 90D to a 100D, I received a full refund on the ESA for the 90D. I would’ve received a prorated refund had I entered the extended period.
I like the idea of having peace of mind, and feel more comfortable if the car ends up with family or a friend, in terms of it still being under warranty. My son has ended up with 2 of our Prius’ still in extended warranties.
But it’s more likely that the Tesla will end up back with Tesla for the next one and in that situation I would get my refund or prorated refund again.

 

[bishoppeak]

You are gambling that the cost of repairs will be more than the cost of the ESA, Tesla is betting the other way. Who do you think is better at this?

 

[Grizz]

Good point on potentially avoiding the deductible by bringing up issues during the annual service. I'm leaning towards purchasing the ESA.

 

[Daniellane]

The contract has changed over the years from a deductible for each repair item to a deductible for each visit. So it pays to wait and collect needed repairs if possible to reduce visits.

 

[1375mlm]

My son has ended up with 2 of our Prius’ still in extended warranties.

Poor guy

 

[Tam]

You are gambling that the cost of repairs will be more than the cost of the ESA, Tesla is betting the other way. Who do you think is better at this?

I agree with your understanding 100% but my actions may be different from yours:

I approach the ESA as if it's a risk pool system.

Thus, the gamble that I gladly pay with no regret here is: It's the price to pay in the hope that the system can be profitable and survive.

Because if it is not profitable and does not survive, it cannot cover any owner who needs their cars fixed for a well known pre-determined pricing formula.

It's not just in ESA, also in healthcare insurance (I don't regret if I don't get cancer), car insurance (I don't regret if I get zero accident), home insurance (I don't regret if it never catches fires)...

 

[PhilDavid]

My 2012 Model S' 3 problems were fixed under ESA during 3 different scheduled annual inspection visits and Tesla did not charge me any deductible each time (without ESA it would have cost me about $9,100 for those 3 problems.)

This is why I would always want extended warranty coverage to own the car.

I may change my mind when there are independent Tesla mechanics who can work on the car but until then I would rather pay for a warranty than cough up whatever they quote for a repair. They can quite any increment of thousands of dollars fora repair and you have no recourse than to pay if you are out of warranty.

 

[xyeahtony]

The repairs you listed probably added together still costs less than the ESA. Extended warranties by nature are designed to make money for the person selling it, not saving money for the person buying it.

Its basically you paying for piece of mind and the very minimal chance of saving a chunk of change. The most expensive parts of the car (battery/drive unit) have 8 years unlimited warranty. Theres not much else i'd imagine that would be fixed under warranty that'd cost more than $4k.

 

[PhilDavid]

The repairs you listed probably added together still costs less than the ESA. Extended warranties by nature are designed to make money for the person selling it, not saving money for the person buying it.

Its basically you paying for piece of mind and the very minimal chance of saving a chunk of change. The most expensive parts of the car (battery/drive unit) have 8 years unlimited warranty. Theres not much else i'd imagine that would be fixed under warranty that'd cost more than $4k.

Same can be said about car insurance, health insurance, disability insurance, and any other forms of insurance.

As @Tam said, it's about paying for a pool of individuals so no one is stuck with unexpectedly huge bills as well as knowing anything that goes wrong will be fixed. Many older cars will need MCU repairs and some will need half shaft repairs and they are both expensive and the cost of those repairs can be whatever Tesla decides to charge.

Tesla themselves had underestimated the cost of out of warranty repairs about 3 times now based on how the cost of the ESA has been increased...

 

[Tam]

...cost more than $4k.

The below were what Tesla covered with no additional cost (deductibles waived for repairs during annual checkups)

1) $600 Mobile Connector bundle: There were signs of overheat at connections and it was pre-emptively replaced.

2) $4,000 whole MCU (17" display & its computer): There were bubbles on the screen but still useable. it was pre-emptively replaced.

3) $4,500 Cabin Heater: It never snows where I live so I don't actually need a heater but it was pre-emptively replaced in case.

It's a good thing that the A/C didn't break down because although it is cheaper than the heater but it would still cost around $4,000.

I could actually save money by not paying for ESA because I don't think I would be willing to pay that much for those 3 items above. I could continue to use the mobile connector bundle until it got worse as long as it won't ever burn my whole house down.

Nevertheless, I am glad I could afford the ESA and I didn't have to hesitate to debate whether to repair those above 3 problems at all.

 

[FURY]

Hi All!

I have to make my decision in a few days to reup the ESA/Warranty currently available for $4.2K or pass on it, seemingly forever. My S has almost 30K miles , 2014 85. I apologize for asking a question, without a full effort to research the following.

Anyone have any real world documentation on resales, beyond year 4 for Teslas with and without an ESA/Warranty, I realize those have changed over the years, so contemporaneous, comparative sales would be most useful. I am contemplating a 2 to 3 year hold, with 5-7K miles per year BTW.

My presonal experience has been 2 MCUs already, all sorts of other smaller items and the driiver door hanle two weeks ago..ALll sorts of ways to look at that Hx and risk reward going forward, as noted, partially above, in this thread, of course.

Thank you very much

FURY

 

[Tam]

...real world documentation on resales...

I haven't heard any report on private sales with and without ESA.

But I've heard reports of trade-ins with Tesla and Tesla has been refunding a prorated rate on ESA as well as Pre-paid checkup plans (which now disappears from the menu).

 

[Galve2000]

How late can you purchase the ESA. is it until right up to the 4 year mark or is there some sort of grace period beyond that?

my car turns 4 years old at the end of June 2019 so I have a to start thinking about this.

i'm leaving towards getting same b/c I have had a bunch of door handle replacements over the past few years and at the time my out-of-warranty costs would have been $1000 a pop.

and if my MCU goes, i'd hate to replace that out of pocket.

 

[Tam]

...How late...

Extended Service Agreement

What is the eligible purchase period for Tesla Extended Service Agreements, and what do they cover?
You may purchase the Extended Service Agreement no later than 30 days or 1,000 miles past the expiration of your New Vehicle Limited Warranty.

-----------------------------

Logically, it should be "before" and not "past" the expiration of your New Vehicle Limited Warranty.

What do you interpret it as before or after the expiration of standard warranty?

 

[Rockster]

FWIW, my March 2015 Model S has experienced the following out of warranty failures:

• Failure of front passenger door handle (just out of warranty): Replaced free by Tesla as good will.
• Failure of both rear door handles: I fixed these myself using the superior rebuild parts from evtuning.com
  
• MCU failure: Replaced free by Tesla as good will.
• Onboard charger failure: $2000+ repair that I paid.

By repairing the two door handles myself I've come out ahead (thus far) for not having bought the extended warranty. If I had the extended warranty; however, I would have had them repair the door handles and would now be telling myself that I broke even.

With 83,000 miles on the S I'm still worried about the air suspension. Or maybe the air conditioner. Or possibly another MCU.

Like virtually all insurance, the extended warranty is a gamble. It could go either way for you.