I, too, had a good warranty experience. Five years ago, when I bought a
'95 Camry, I bought an extended warranty. A little while later, I began
feeling like I had made a mistake...why would anyone buy an extended
warranty on a Toyota, I thought. But I just tried not to dwell upon it.
I figured I'd write it off as "piece of mind." About a year later, on
New Year's Eve, I threw a rod. It was ugly. But because I had the
warranty, I got a new engine. That engine would have cost more than the
warranty cost me. I also had a few other minor issues that were covered,
and this drove the total value higher.

I understand the idea of putting money in the bank as a hedge against
car issues. However, I also believe that human nature--if not life
necessities--will take over at some point. I can see how many people
will look at that bank account, burgeoning with money, and think to
themselves, "I'll just take a little loan from that and pay it back
right away." Of course, we all know that "right away" turns into "soon,"
and "soon" turns into "some day." Then, before we know it, we have car
problems AND no emergency fund.

I'm not going to sit here and insist that everyone should buy a
warranty. I'm just saying that I had a good experience. So much so, that
when I bought my Forester, I bought the extended warranty. Yes, I know
Subaru's rep and I'll probably take a bath on it, but I feel more
comfortable and, as a result, I feel better about my car
ownership...particularly since my warranty covers the period of time
that I've financed plus a little extra.

"Hal Whelply" <whelply (AT) cox (DOT) net> writes:

My Subaru, as much as I'd love to tell everyone it's been the most
reliable car I've ever owned and prove how smart I was to purchase
one... well, hasn't been. I bought the extended insurance. Time will
tell whether the gamble pays off.

--
Todd H.
2001 Legacy Outback Wagon, 2.5L H-4
Chicago, Illinois USA

I can understand that. So far my first Subaru (nearing two happy years with
her) has been perfect. I'm not planning at this time to get the extension.

Our '01 Volvo S60 is another matter. Yet I know a couple of people with '01
S60s who say they've had no problems. One person even says we must have a
car made on a Monday or a Friday. Maybe the day of the week a car was built
is as good as any indicator of whether to buy an extended warranty or not!

HW

"Todd H." <subaru (AT) toddh (DOT) net> wrote

Is it possible to determine from the Subaru VIN the day of week the car was
assembled? I suppose Subaru could, but is there a resource somewhere on the
web that would help me to decode the VIN?
Timo

"Hal Whelply" <whelply (AT) cox (DOT) net> wrote