What Are The Different Extended Warranties You Can Purchase?

There are many reasons to desire a new car. You may be attracted to the latest features or styling. The absolute cleanliness of a new car vs. an old one could be the attraction. And, of course, it could be the new car warranty – the idea that once you have your down payment paid and your monthly payment covered, there won’t be any surprises in the way of repair bills. It is possible that repair bills on a current vehicle brought you car shopping in the first place. 

If you plan to keep your car beyond the warranty period, you are in a situation where you are no longer covered for repair bills on a vehicle that is getting to the age where repairs may become common. The answer to this is the extended warranty. Extended warranties can be purchased through Chevrolet directly or by third parties. Which should you consider? Find out more from Barry’s Chevrolet. 

Chevrolet New Car Warranty Coverage

We should start by reviewing Chevrolet’s standard new car warranty. Every new Chevrolet has the following coverage:

• Bumper-to-bumper warranty coverage: 3 years/36,000 miles
• Powertrain limited warranty: 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 don’t plan on keeping your new Chevrolet longer than five years, there is little reason to consider an extended warranty. However, if you keep your cars for over five years and don’t like financial surprises, an extended warranty is something to consider.

Chevrolet’s Extended Warranty Plans

Chevrolet offers three different plans with three levels of coverage. One is essentially a powertrain warranty, another is close to bumper-to-bumper coverage, and one is in between. All three plans have the same term of 8 years / 100,000 miles. That term begins when the car is new, so the powertrain coverage adds another three years or 40,000 miles. 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.

Like almost any other warranty, Chevrolet has a list of exclusions on both its standard and new car warranties, whereby coverage will not be covered. These exclusions 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

There are other warranty providers 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. The more the coverage and the longer the term, the more expensive the plans will be. 

Two other differences between Chevrolet and 3rd party warranties are who does the repairs and the parts used. Chevrolet works strictly through its own dealership network of service centers and only uses original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts. 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. 

There is always a bit of a gambler’s weighing of odds regarding the choice of getting an extended warranty. Both Chevrolet and 3rd party companies are weighing the odds that you won’t need repair costs that exceed the warranty costs. You are protecting against the opposite case. 

Now that you’ve gotten an overview of extended warranties and what they can do for you, talk to Barry’s Chevrolet sales and service professionals for specific information regarding the cost and coverage of Chevrolet and 3rd party extended warranties.