Law and Rights
It's about time.
Warranties are about confidence. They are the manufacturer's way of proving to the customer that they built it right and they'll stand behind it if something goes wrong. When you think about the price of a new car or truck nowadays, that's only fair.
In the 1980's Hyundai was the laugh of the auto industry with cheap cars and lousy quality. It was so bad they almost pulled out of the US market. Then they upped the quality but Hyundai also realized that quality alone wouldn't get them invited into the American buyer's garage, so they backed their vehicles up with a 10 year - 100,000 mile powertrain warranty. The result? It took a little time, but buyer's bought and other manufacturer's took notice as their market share started to erode.
Now GM has joined the warranty stretch game. In July Ford increased its powertrain warranty to 5 years - 60,000 miles, in an effort to boost consumer confidence and take market share. It was only a matter of time before GM had to go them one better.
On Sept 7 GM announced that all new 2007 model year vehicles future sales (in all 8 GM lines) would come with a 5 year - 1000,000 mile power train warranty. That's a logical step if GM wants to boost confidence in their product lines again. Just matching Ford would only make GM look like "Johnny come lately" to the warranty party. They had to go one better.
What is curious in all this is DaimlerChrysler. Where are they?
Years ago they were the first Big 3 company to give a longer powertrain warranty, 7 years - 100,000 miles. In their zeal to cut costs everywhere they could, no doubt, they cut the warranty too, eventually all the way back to 3 years - 36,000 miles. Now it's time for them to play catch up, and they probably will.
So if you are bound and determined to buy a new Chrysler, we suggest you wait it out. Sooner or later Chrysler will have to match (or beat) the longer warranty coverage everybody else seems to be offering. Why? Because they know that smart buyers always take reliability over style and a longer warranty promises better reliability.
After all, nobody wants a great looking car that is just another lemon. To find out more about the Lemon Law in your state, click here.
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- Rv Warranties And Their Dirty Little Secret
When you buy a $30,000 new car and it turns out to be a lemon, you get your money back. Why doesn't it work that way with Rv's costing more than $100,000? Because most new rv warranties have a dirty little secret buried in the fine print. And...
- Are You More Loyal To Your Car Brand Than Your Hyundai-owning Neighbor? Data Shows They Are More Loyal Than Anyone
When Hyundai shipped their cars to the US for the first time, they hoped folks would come to like them. Well, it may have taken a while to get there, but there they are. New data on sales and service is reported to show that Hyundai owners are more loyal...
- Chrysler Selling Viper ?
Rumor has it that Chrysler is looking for a buyer for its Dodge Viper division. The hand-built sports car attained a lot of high praise since it's debut at the 1989 Detroit auto show and Chrysler has made about 25,000 of the hot sports cars since...
- Quality Is Job 1 At Ford Again
Years ago Ford's advertising slogan was Quality is Job 1. Well, maybe quality is coming back to Ford. But in an ironic twist, the best manufacturing plant in America, the one with the lowest defect rate, is the one Ford just shut down in Wixom, Michigan,...
- Extended Warranty Ripoffs
Extended warranties have been one of the highest profit customer ripoffs ever seen in the auto industry. Worse yet, with little regulation, they are likely to stay that way. So, what can you do to avoid being ripped off by one? First, don't buy one....
Law and Rights
GM Warranties Get Longer
It's about time.
Warranties are about confidence. They are the manufacturer's way of proving to the customer that they built it right and they'll stand behind it if something goes wrong. When you think about the price of a new car or truck nowadays, that's only fair.
In the 1980's Hyundai was the laugh of the auto industry with cheap cars and lousy quality. It was so bad they almost pulled out of the US market. Then they upped the quality but Hyundai also realized that quality alone wouldn't get them invited into the American buyer's garage, so they backed their vehicles up with a 10 year - 100,000 mile powertrain warranty. The result? It took a little time, but buyer's bought and other manufacturer's took notice as their market share started to erode.
Now GM has joined the warranty stretch game. In July Ford increased its powertrain warranty to 5 years - 60,000 miles, in an effort to boost consumer confidence and take market share. It was only a matter of time before GM had to go them one better.
On Sept 7 GM announced that all new 2007 model year vehicles future sales (in all 8 GM lines) would come with a 5 year - 1000,000 mile power train warranty. That's a logical step if GM wants to boost confidence in their product lines again. Just matching Ford would only make GM look like "Johnny come lately" to the warranty party. They had to go one better.
What is curious in all this is DaimlerChrysler. Where are they?
Years ago they were the first Big 3 company to give a longer powertrain warranty, 7 years - 100,000 miles. In their zeal to cut costs everywhere they could, no doubt, they cut the warranty too, eventually all the way back to 3 years - 36,000 miles. Now it's time for them to play catch up, and they probably will.
So if you are bound and determined to buy a new Chrysler, we suggest you wait it out. Sooner or later Chrysler will have to match (or beat) the longer warranty coverage everybody else seems to be offering. Why? Because they know that smart buyers always take reliability over style and a longer warranty promises better reliability.
After all, nobody wants a great looking car that is just another lemon. To find out more about the Lemon Law in your state, click here.
Subscribe in a reader- Rv Warranties And Their Dirty Little Secret
When you buy a $30,000 new car and it turns out to be a lemon, you get your money back. Why doesn't it work that way with Rv's costing more than $100,000? Because most new rv warranties have a dirty little secret buried in the fine print. And...
- Are You More Loyal To Your Car Brand Than Your Hyundai-owning Neighbor? Data Shows They Are More Loyal Than Anyone
When Hyundai shipped their cars to the US for the first time, they hoped folks would come to like them. Well, it may have taken a while to get there, but there they are. New data on sales and service is reported to show that Hyundai owners are more loyal...
- Chrysler Selling Viper ?
Rumor has it that Chrysler is looking for a buyer for its Dodge Viper division. The hand-built sports car attained a lot of high praise since it's debut at the 1989 Detroit auto show and Chrysler has made about 25,000 of the hot sports cars since...
- Quality Is Job 1 At Ford Again
Years ago Ford's advertising slogan was Quality is Job 1. Well, maybe quality is coming back to Ford. But in an ironic twist, the best manufacturing plant in America, the one with the lowest defect rate, is the one Ford just shut down in Wixom, Michigan,...
- Extended Warranty Ripoffs
Extended warranties have been one of the highest profit customer ripoffs ever seen in the auto industry. Worse yet, with little regulation, they are likely to stay that way. So, what can you do to avoid being ripped off by one? First, don't buy one....