What was your experience with warranties and other options at time of sale?

[dirtwheeler]

They always act like they have all the leverage. You have the ultimate leverage. You have the money, they want the money. Never forget that

True - In the long term I will decide where to put my money based on the experiences I have. In the short term, in situations like this, the dealership knows they have a list of people waiting to buy these vehicles. It hurts the dealers reputation if they have seedy practices, but dealership employees might be focused on short term profits rather than long term repeat customers from reputation. However, I am definitely willing to walk away from this sale if the terms change. I'd just be very disappointed in not getting a 4Runner!

 

[Nodak]

you can buy a toyota oem vsa extened warranty on a new purchased vehicle before 3yrs or 36k miles. all you have to provide is vin, current pic of mileage and signed payment contract (which they will provide if you are using JJ)

right now we are in yr 2 of ownership of our tundra and i have until feb-2026 to buy a toyota oem extended vsa (mileage is a non issue since we only have 12k on our tundra.


who ever you are dealing with (there is two main guys that do out of state oem toyota extended vsa platinum zero deductible) they will email you a cost matrix.


they usually start at 5yr/60k and go up to 10yr/125k

i think i have a copy of a 2018 matrix but if i remember the 10/125k was like 2k back then, it probably has gone up since then

but usually its a huge jump from 10/100k to 10/125k in pricing, $500+

i think i paid $1450 for my 2014 4runner limited 10/100k oem toyota extended vsa back in 2015/2016

paid like just under $700 for a 7yr/84k mile one on our 2018 tundra, since i knew we were getting a 3rd gen tundra when it was annoucned

just remember 10/100k you have to subtract the oem factory warranty period from it.

so that 10/100 starts at 3yrs/36k whichever comes first and goes up to 10/100k

 

[dirtwheeler]

Instead of paying for something you may never need, invest those funds and earn Internet on that money and if you need money later on in life for a needed repair for your 4Runner that is not covered by the factory warranty or after that has expired, well then.... problem solved, tap into the investment. If you are financing an extended warranty and paying interest on that purchase, making it even more expensive, again for something you may never need, well.......hmmm, to each his own.

Yep, I've thought about this - it's a good point.

Unfortunately, it's "difficult" (impossible?) to do a financial analysis upfront without knowing at least some details - for example, if you are replacing the cost of the warranty (which I don't know for sure yet) as an assumed initial investment.

I wanted to get a potential price range for Toyota 4Runner warranties and understand what those warranties cover. After looking over what the actual warranties cover and learning about a fairly wide range of what those warranties "might" cost, I can at least look at some scenarios (still a lot of guess work involved with a first model year in a new generation, along with a lot of other factors, but still more information than I had a few days ago).

This helped me to develop a "breaking point" (dollar amount) for the warranty I would consider - the cost at which I will make the warranty purchase, versus not. It's still a little arbitrary since nobody really knows what will go wrong with their vehicle. But I've owned a lot of vehicles over the years (including two Toyota's, one of which was a 4Runner) and I know that very expensive things do go wrong with vehicles - even 4Runners. So, I'm armed with a little more information before the dealership starts asking for signatures. I'm also asking for these costs upfront (right now) from the dealership, but I don't know yet what they're going to share before they have me captive in their office the day I purchase the vehicle.

I'm tempted to share my thoughts on what the warranty could/should cost based on what it covers and what I'm willing to pay. But this is a subjective analysis based on my personal situation and risk tolerances. I'm not looking to start an argument with anyone on warranty value or how much I think will go wrong with my 4Runner in the coming years! FWIW, my guess is that the warranty cost will be over my breaking point. I'll let the dealership know my breaking point on the cost, but I assume they will not come down to it. I'm OK with that and I'm happy if I get the warranty at what I believe it is worth (to me). Oh... and I'm fine "wasting" the money on a warranty at my breaking point cost if my 4Runner never has an issue. Never gamble more than you're willing to lose!

 

[ModernDay4Runner]

Once you complete your analysis and you determine how much money you're willing to spend on a warranty, put that money in an investment that pays a return. If you need the money for one repair you will have it. If you never need to pay for a uncovered repair then you still have all your money plus the interest earned. You are basically betting that your vehicle is going to break down after the standard warranty. I think you should be betting that it is not going to break down or if it does, it will not be an overly costly repair.. You're not buying a Jeep. And I'm not trying to disparage any Jeep owners. I'm just pointing out. Those are very unreliable vehicles whereas the Toyota is not in. But in the end, whatever you feel comfortable doing obviously you should do that but it seems the whole purchasing process is going to be a lot more nerve-wracking for you because of this warranty you are contemplating.

 

[BG1]

Are you saying "Internet based offers" for the official Toyota extended warranty or a third-party warranty?

I was talking of the official Toyota warranty. As noted by another poster, your local dealer hates it when someone offers such a deal (normally out of state) but they aren't prepared to lower their profit.

 

[BG1]

Yep, I've thought about this - it's a good point.

Unfortunately, it's "difficult" (impossible?) to do a financial analysis upfront without knowing at least some details - for example, if you are replacing the cost of the warranty (which I don't know for sure yet) as an assumed initial investment.

I wanted to get a potential price range for Toyota 4Runner warranties and understand what those warranties cover. After looking over what the actual warranties cover and learning about a fairly wide range of what those warranties "might" cost, I can at least look at some scenarios (still a lot of guess work involved with a first model year in a new generation, along with a lot of other factors, but still more information than I had a few days ago).

This helped me to develop a "breaking point" (dollar amount) for the warranty I would consider - the cost at which I will make the warranty purchase, versus not. It's still a little arbitrary since nobody really knows what will go wrong with their vehicle. But I've owned a lot of vehicles over the years (including two Toyota's, one of which was a 4Runner) and I know that very expensive things do go wrong with vehicles - even 4Runners. So, I'm armed with a little more information before the dealership starts asking for signatures. I'm also asking for these costs upfront (right now) from the dealership, but I don't know yet what they're going to share before they have me captive in their office the day I purchase the vehicle.

I'm tempted to share my thoughts on what the warranty could/should cost based on what it covers and what I'm willing to pay. But this is a subjective analysis based on my personal situation and risk tolerances. I'm not looking to start an argument with anyone on warranty value or how much I think will go wrong with my 4Runner in the coming years! FWIW, my guess is that the warranty cost will be over my breaking point. I'll let the dealership know my breaking point on the cost, but I assume they will not come down to it. I'm OK with that and I'm happy if I get the warranty at what I believe it is worth (to me). Oh... and I'm fine "wasting" the money on a warranty at my breaking point cost if my 4Runner never has an issue. Never gamble more than you're willing to lose!

You don't have to sign up for extended warranties on the day you take delivery, that's just another pressure point from the dealership.

 

[Nodak]

as someone has said, take the money for the ext warranty and invest it?

well if on rough broad scale, you get a $2000 10/125 ext vsa. so take that 2k and divide by 7 (remember 3 yrs are deducted since the original 3/36 takes precedent)

so that comes out to roughly 290 year coverage. so your investment has to pull at least that much per year

now i know on 2k invested you maybe getting 4% APR currently which means you will make maybe $500 in 7 years compounded.

and yeah $500 might cover the cost of you insurance deductible much less the cost of the part/labor.


the real downside is if you never use the ext vsa in its lifetime, then the investment you really come out ahead and dont lose the $2000 on the ext vsa.

but hey each person has a different level of risk they are willing to take.

i mean i lost $1500 on my 14 4R ext vsa, but during that 10 yrs, i didnt worry about anything going bad, it was covered.

and i am pretty sure i blew more than $300 per year on more useless stuff than that ext vsa warranty.

 

[ModernDay4Runner]

as someone has said, take the money for the ext warranty and invest it?

well if on rough broad scale, you get a $2000 10/125 ext vsa. so take that 2k and divide by 7 (remember 3 yrs are deducted since the original 3/36 takes precedent)

so that comes out to roughly 290 year coverage. so your investment has to pull at least that much per year

now i know on 2k invested you maybe getting 4% APR currently which means you will make maybe $500 in 7 years compounded.

and yeah $500 might cover the cost of you insurance deductible much less the cost of the part/labor.


the real downside is if you never use the ext vsa in its lifetime, then the investment you really come out ahead and dont lose the $2000 on the ext vsa.

but hey each person has a different level of risk they are willing to take.

i mean i lost $1500 on my 14 4R ext vsa, but during that 10 yrs, i didnt worry about anything going bad, it was covered.

and i am pretty sure i blew more than $300 per year on more useless stuff than that ext vsa warranty.

You are the only one on this forum claiming to be able to purchase your 4Runner at invoice price. You got extra money to waste so you should buy the extended warranty. Lol. I am just kidding you. Again, I will repeat if you're buying an unreliable vehicle pay for the extra warranty. If you're worried about the uncertainty with the new 6th gen, consider sitting it out for one year to see what happens. Just food for thought.

 

[Nodak]

You are the only one on this forum claiming to be able to purchase your 4Runner at invoice price. You got extra money to waste so you should buy the extended warranty. Lol. I am just kidding you. Again, I will repeat if you're buying an unreliable vehicle pay for the extra warranty. If you're worried about the uncertainty with the new 6th gen, consider sitting it out for one year to see what happens. Just food for thought.

meh i dont mind, but i usually dont buy them until about 1-2 yrs after purchase and never from a dealer, they always upcharge way to much for them. sometimes i get lucky and get my money worth from them, sometimes i dont. its gamble either way. for the cost of maybe $200/yr for the cost (i usually only get 10/100k vsa's since we dont put many miles on them) i see it as good investment overall vs the cost per year, but thats just me, like i said, each per has a different level of risk aversion.

its not that the vehicle is not reliable, its the cost of a random high ticket item going bad and the cost/labor of replacing that item after the 3/36 warranty.

the minor stuff i dont sweat the cost, its the $1000+ item going randomly bad. it happens no matter the brand. more so now with all the computers and screen integrations that worries me now than before.

as far as invoice, once i get my paperwork done i will post it minus any personal data blanked out.

and i have no qualms about posting my previous 2023 tundra paperwork deal ive had if you want to see them. this 4R will be from the same dealer again. they are pretty transparent with me about the whole process and i documented all that on the 23 tundra. i would have to go find the paperwork on the 2018 tundra since i cant find a online posting of my deal on the tundra forums.

but my 23 deal is posted in this tundra forum

https://www.tundras.com/threads/202...te-www-markups-org.99185/page-23#post-3097862

post # 684

 

[ModernDay4Runner]

I believe you about your invoice deal. You don't have to prove anything. Just saying you got some extra money lying around, LOL. Congratulations!

 

[Nodak]

I believe you about your invoice deal. You don't have to prove anything. Just saying you got some extra money lying around, LOL. Congratulations!

yeah im afraid the wife is starting to eye my 4R since this brutal cold snap a lot harder lately. yesterday and today we were -30F and -33F ambient this morning and she has to park her tundra outside 24/7 while i get to park my 14 4R in the garage.

so i may end up losing my 4R and have to buy another one.

 

[dirtwheeler]

FWIW, I bought my 4Runner today and there was some warranties offered, but I just persisted that I didn't want to purchase one today. The whole sales experience was actually pretty good. I was surprised. They did try to tack on some kind of tinting service but I asked them to remove it and they did with no objection. There was some additional fees I wasn't expecting, but I got a good trade in value and everything worked out well.

 

[ModernDay4Runner]

FWIW, I bought my 4Runner today and there was some warranties offered, but I just persisted that I didn't want to purchase one today. The whole sales experience was actually pretty good. I was surprised. They did try to tack on some kind of tinting service but I asked them to remove it and they did with no objection. There was some additional fees I wasn't expecting, but I got a good trade in value and everything worked out well.

Congratulations. I am glad it was less stressful for you. Personally, I think you did the right thing by passing on the extended warranty offerings. Other people will purchase those, the salesperson can make more money on those deals. The sales people know that every deal is different. Hopefully they didn't tell you that they expect this new 4Runner of yours to likely breakdown in the future (and you're gonna wish you bought the extended warranty) as did the Honda finance guy did when my wife bought her Civic.

 

[Nodak]

never take a dealer offered ext warranty. its always for benefit of the dealership F&I to get you to sign one.

if they can match the fd-warranty website cost then fine, but otherwise 99% of them cant and will say they are losing money if they sell the ext warranty at half price.