Hello, I’ve recently purchased the 2021 Mazda CX-5 GT. They offered me an extended factory warranty saying there are lots of electronics in the GT trim so it is the best for me to purchase it. They offered $2433 to extend the warranty to 7 years and if the warranty wasn’t used, they will return $1800. Should I purchase it? Is it worth it?

 

If they are really going to refund you 1800 at the end if not used I would say yes, buy it. I have never heard of such a deal.

 

The refund deal is interesting indeed, you want to make sure that it is real. In my case, I purchased the extended warranty here in the US for 6 years and it was non-refund and about USD 1200 as far as I remember. I had some sensors going bad on our previous (non-Mazda) SUV after the factory warranty expired, so this time I wanted some peace of mind since the electronics in these car are not getting any cheaper. If your budget allows it and the deal you are describing is real, I would go for it.

 

I recommend carefully reading (and rereading) every word of that warranty. It wouldn't surprise me if there was significant required stealership maintenance attached as a condition of this warranty, which if not performed would void the warranty.

 

Correct, regular maintenance is required for the warranty to be valid but for the CX-5 it is mostly oil changes anyways for the first 6 years or so (I think there is an additional change in spark plugs around the 6 year mark).

 

I wasn't referring to normal required maintenance, as described in your owner's manual. The type of thing I'd be looking out for is anything that mentions a schedule of required maintenance visits, every quarter or X number of months. These stealershp maintenance 'plans' are totally unnecessary owner wallet flushes, and will (way) more than make up for any reimbursement you might eventually receive.

 

I did purchase an extended warranty but they did not force me into their maintenance plan. By the way, their maintenance plan is not that bad and reasonably priced in my opinion. It might be different from region to region, but I had a pretty good experience with my local Mazda dealership.

 

My post was just attempting to alert the OP to something that he/she might not have been aware of, and I'll concede that not all of these outfits try to fleece their customers. However, I have read many stories on these forums over the years of owners being charged outrageous amounts of $$ by dealerships (irrespective of auto make), and I always try to alert people who are unaware of these activities, as to what's happening to them. Fortunate for you that it sounds like you have one of the good ones.

 

Totally agree that some dealership experiences can be pretty negative, I had a few as well. The issue is that they usually have a very low profit margin on new car sales and hence, try to add on as much extras as possible. My advice is not to go into full combat mode, listen to them and negotiate with respect. They usually negotiate on these maintenance plans and extended warranties and depending on your vehicle usage can offer you some good deals.

 

Yes, for certain they rely on service to bring up their bottom line. I'm a DIYer and am very fortunate to not have to deal with any of this $hit myself. And for the wealthy owners it doesn't matter either, because they can afford to donate to the dealer new boat fund. It's the middle class owners who have a family and big auto loans who are the most impacted by this service ripoff stuff. And it's that group that most benefits by knowing that an honest independent shop can be a great alternative to dealer service. But this is getting quite a bit away from the topic of the thread, and I've had my say and will call it a wrap on this subject.