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natinsky

Ugh Should we buy a Extended Service Plan

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I am posting on Service contracts again. We are buying a 2017 Entegra. I am familiar with diesels and Rvs in general but considering the purchase price (I realize it is not a toaster oven) maybe a extended plan for coverage would be advisable. I have reviewed Xtraride, Campers Edge and Wholesale Warranties.  Prices range from ^k to 10K for 5 years. Some with no mileage limits. Any input or experiences good or bad would be appreciated.  

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Personally I think they are a waste of money. Yes a few will say it paid for itself but I think you’ll find most never get their money’s worth.

if you are concerned about expensive repairs, instead of paying all that $$ up front, start your own savings account and put that money aside.

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Never had one, just another healthy investment account.  Been putting $4,700 in an account for 17 coaches over 52 years! 

If you really feel you got to have one, scan the papers to an atty & have them read the fine print.

Entegra?  What model?

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Agree with the above posters.  The only people coming out ahead are the guys selling the policy..

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5 hours ago, natinsky said:

Prices range from ^k to 10K for 5 years.

I would put the $10,000 in the bank. In the last 6 years I have replaced a convection/microwave and a refrigerator. Well it was  a upgrade to a residential. Total out of pocket about $1,200.00. With a 2017 coach I would expect fewer problems. If you do your maintenance I don't/wouldn't expect many problems. 

Bill

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An ESC worked for us the first 3 yr term, after that we didn't have any claims. A man on irv2.com has a 650hp ISX engine that just dropped #6 cylinder valves for the 3 time in 4 years, he doesn't have an ESC. The first time Cummins chipped in $10,000 on the $30,000 repair bill, none on subsequent repairs.

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It's like any insurance, be happy to have it when you need it and be darned if you don't have it and need it.  Our last MH was very costly for us and the ESP people.  For us 'cause we had to pay the premium. Costly for them because we had a lot of repairs.  The problems most will have of squirreling away money in case of a break down is the availability of that money for a rainy day.  Five years from now that cruise to the Bahamas could come up and then say, "What the heck, I have never needed it and I can build it up again."  Well it's a 50/50 chance that something will or will not go wrong.

Personally, I have one and it includes gaskets and seals.

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New coach, getting the bugs (aka defects) out should be covered under the base warranty. I cannot stress this enough, before you leave the dealership make certain everything works, this includes flowing water through every faucet, water heater etc then look for leaks! I know it seems like a waste of water but better that than get 300 miles away and observe the leak that wasn’t properly connected at the factory. 

If you are mechanically inclined I would bank the money. If you are not mechanically inclined you might want to weigh out a warranty. At a minimum I would get a great warranty on the engine and emissions system, that’s where the bleeding will occur, minor stuff on the coach compared to that.

To put it into perspective, if I bought a new coach, I would put a powertrain warranty on it that covered every little sensor and diagnostics! The rest of the coach I wouldn’t be that concerned with other than the electronics. I would also make darn sure you can access the engine with ample space for repairs and service. I have worked at places that refused to repair a stranded RV’r due to poor engine access by the manufacturer.  

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Gosh thanks folks. The Entegra Aspire 44b with 24,000 miles. The original owners have pretty much records shaking the bugs out. Cummins says it came with 5 years $100 deductible. The Spartan chassis is the same. I think going forward roadside/tire assistance is pretty much the basic plan to have in place. Yes, for 10k that buys quite a few of the small stuff. The bigger items would be leveling, aquahot, transmission issue, and electronic items.  Like it has been said wish you had it for the knowledge and peace of mind or just bite the bullet when repairs occur. Insurance companies know the numbers and they are not rich because they lose in the end.  :) 

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Aqua Hot, Jacks, AC, Allison, all have their own warranty!  At 5 years, I paid $850 for 3 more years of Cummins  Warranty, thru Cummins...that's worth the $$$...10k is not.

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Just joined today so not sure I can chime in or if I need to start a new post.  In process of buying a 40'  2012 Tiffin Allegro Bus with 29K miles and will soon become full time RVers.  The dealer highly recommending we research and purchase an extended warranty as the rig is being sold (I think) with a 90 day warranty.  The wife & I don't recall him making a particular recommendation but that they would help in getting it set up.  We are getting multiple quotes from an insurance broker that specializes in RVs and looking into roadside assistance coverage from either FMCA or Coach-Net.

Any thoughts on the extended warranty for an 8 year old Allegro. 

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36 minutes ago, blinddog said:

...Any thoughts on the extended warranty for an 8 year old Allegro...

Start at the second post, and read on....

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The post started about a 2017 Entegra which seems to still be within the manufacturer warranty periods.  I just wanted to know if the opinions carried over to one that is out of the original warranties. Especially for a newbie.  I was an Electrical Engineer in the medical equipment industry who never worked much on automobiles or engines in the past, but I am a fast learner.  Maybe I just need to be able to tell my wife I asked the question.  Thanks. 

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Welcome to the forum. Let's start with more information on your RV age type etc. Just a suggestion but if you add that information to your signature it will help you to get better answers faster.

Bill

 

 

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Natinsky --

Welcome to the forum!   The many members of the forum are always willing and able to provide excellent help and advise.

I purchased an extended service plan from XtraRide when I purchased my 2007 Damon Astoria three years ago because it had very little use by the original owner and I was concerned about expensive items needing repair due to lack of use.   My concerns came to fruition and I was very glad I had the extended service plan which saved me a good chunk of money versus "self insuring".  When the XtraRide plan expired I shopped other providers and decided on Wholesale Warranties who gave a very attractive plan for a ten year old coach.  Wholesale Warranties was very easy to work with and very customer focused.  Shorting after getting the Wholesale Warranties plan the motor, gears and switch quit on my entry steps.  Wholesale Warranties covered the full cost of repair less my $200 deductible.   I came out "ahead" on the $5600 cost I paid for the XtraRide service plan.

After purchasing my "new to me" 2016 Newmar Ventana LE a month ago, Wholesale Warranties transferred my existing plan, which was already six months old, and for a nominal fee provided a new, three year extended service plan.   The cost for the new three year plan was $5300.   My simple mind says the high complexity of a huge, complex machine justifies the cost of the extended service plan.  And given the fact that I still have a 60 hour per week career and can't handle RV maintenance beyond oil and filter changes also for me justifies the one time cost of an extended service plan.

Also keep in mind that XtraRide and other extended service plans are sold through dealerships and are usually more expensive.  Wholesale Warranties plans are not sold through dealerships and thus are lower cost for the same coverage.    I've had excellent service from both XtraRide and Wholesale Warranties.    

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Bill,

Blinddog is in the process of buying a used 40 foot, 2012 Tiffin, Allegro Bus with 29k miles on it.  Post is above FIVE's answer, not below! 

Mike.

If I had no experience with a DP and fixing to go full time, in a 7 year old coach, with less than 30k miles on it...I totally agree with you!  

I just hope, we did not run blinddog off with BS comments!

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natinsky

Extended Service Contracts (ESCs) are a hard call. We used to NEVER buy them. However today's vehicles and RVs vehicles are extremely complex so ESCs should at least be considered especially if you're buying used. They have lots of complex options/features that can be costly to repair when they fail mechanically or electronically. Think about it RVs of the early 1990's and older had no slides, mechanically injected diesel engines without complex emission systems. They had manual patio shades. No networks to control lighting, cooling, and heating systems. Manually operated window blinds/shades... etc.

Look at today's luxury diesel rigs - they have heavy full-side slides and multiple other slides. These slides have complex sensors and electro-hydraulic systems to operate them. Ours has no less than 18 motors to control shades and blinds - via a network no less, with no manual back operation.  Passenger vehicles are no less complex, the average vehicle has over 120 microprocessors in them. Complex emission systems with sensors feeding the main computer called the engine control unit (ECU) run the engine/transmission via a Controller Area Network (CAN bus). These can be costly to repair when sub-systems fail.  Simple getting physical access to failed components can be a challenge due to tightly packed components and equipment adding to repair costs (shop rates and time).

So back to Extended Service Contracts (ESC)  (they are technically not warranties). They are a form of insurance. You're betting something major WILL go wrong with your RV over the years of ownership, maybe several times, the Service Contract Company is betting it won't of the often restrictive terms of the contract will preclude them for having to pay for repairs.

Depending upon the terms of the ESC, the ethics, and customer service level of the company you have your contract through, you will have to press your case on coverage items and it becomes a battle of will, time, and legal terminology. We generally own and operate our vehicles and RVs, for 20 years for best value.  We did all of our maintenance and repairs on these simpler, older systems ourselves.  Unfortunately with the passing of time and for economical reasons reluctantly retiring older vehicles, we now own operate several new, highly complex vehicles. We have reluctantly  purchased ESCs for all of them due to their excessive complexity. Today you have to have extensive electronic test equipment beyond basic OBD II readers to diagnose, adjust, and work on these vehicle systems. You have to have TPMS computers to program and replace modules in passenger and light  truck tires, or else have a tire shop do it. 

So the question is how new/complex is your RV or other vehicle, and what are your personal repair/maintenance skills/intentions? E.g. Do you want to pay for removal and replacement a failed 90-100 pound roof a/c unit, do it all yourself to save shop labor and disposal rates, or have an ESC cover it with potential hassles that entails?

Presently we have a (no longer available after Dec 2018) "Lifetime Maximum Care" ESC on a Jeep Rubicon towed through Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA),  a 6 year/60K mile ESC through Zurich on a high-end 1-ton diesel dually, and  a 6 year/60K StarRV, Diamond level ESC on a 2017 luxury diesel pusher. Fingers crossed ESC coverage pays out if needed on any of these complex, costly, vehicles. The RV coverage included two additional option coverage "luxury electronics" and "consequential damage" options, administered through Interstate National Dealer Services, Atlanta, Georgia. We'll see how well Interstate performs and report back to this forum on customer service. 

One common 'gotcha' is you do have maintenance responsibilities for equipment/systems and your specific ESC coverage can be denied if you have not maintained your systems in accordance with manufacturer guidelines.

Bottom line is it's your call, we shared our ECD details albeit w/o info an performance/problems. Your chassis and engine have separate coverages with the possibility of extensions on original warranties as others have mentioned. These are expensive components to self fund if failure occurs. 

Finally don't buy an ESC under pressure at the RV dealership, first do your homework and research your ESC company carefully and read the detains of the coverage contract (ask for a copy). As others have said, above the cost of these contracts can range from $6K-$9K. A $10K savings repair account as others have mentioned is another option.

For those buying new, plan to use the RV extensively during your manufacturer warranty coverage period, to shake our any problems while you are still covered under original RV, RV component system manufacturer, chassis and engine warranty.

If you have a fully optioned $500K and up motor coach, you certainly have a lot of expensive systems sub-systems than can break/fail over the years. As they say, it's the worst of a house and heavy-duty vehicle all in one package.  Good luck and happy RVing.😉

 

 

Edited by Pragmatic
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Purchased an Eagle Vision RV warranty for $6400 for 5 years. The $1200 per year piece of mind is worth it on a 2013 Itasca DP.  $100 deductible for all repairs at once. Dealer wanted twice that amount financed over 20 years.  So far, I like the warranty and even better, haven’t had to use it yet. But for $1200 a year, no Financial harm done.

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2 hours ago, Pdestefano said:

Purchased an Eagle Vision RV warranty for $6400 for 5 years. The $1200 per year piece of mind is worth it on a 2013 Itasca DP.  $100 deductible for all repairs at once. Dealer wanted twice that amount financed over 20 years.  So far, I like the warranty and even better, haven’t had to use it yet. But for $1200 a year, no Financial harm done.

Welcome to the forum. Congratulations on the new to you RV.

Bill

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