Our 2005 S-Type 3.0 is under factory warranty until mid-July and currently has just under 24,000 miles on the odometer. I've done significant research over the past couple of months on whether or not to spring for an extended warranty for this car. I've never needed one with our previous vehicles but wanted to remain open-minded on this subject until I felt I had enough data to begin reaching a conclusion, and I targeted early June as my decision deadline since I need to allow enough time for an extended warranty to kick in should I decide to purchase one. Here are my early conclusions at this point:

2003-and-earlier S-Type owners typically benefit from purchasing an extended warranty. If you have the Ford transmission, your risk of transmission failure is much higher. Coil pack failures are numerous, expensive, occur multiple times per vehicle afflicted, and appear to have been a prominent design flaw. Window motors and regulators appear to be substandard with multiple failures occuring per vehicle afflicted. Water leaks, especially in the trunk, seem to cause electrical problems on a number of 2003-and-earlier S-Types.

By the 2004-to-2006 model years, the XF transmission (especially the 6-speed version) appears to have fixed the notorious transmission failure issue. The coil pack failure problem appears to have been addressed by Jaguar at least two different times and finally solved as well. Window motor and regulator failures have decreased dramatically. Water leak problems have vanished, perhaps due to the redesigned and higher rear end of the vehicle (meaning that the rubber seals protecting the trunk were probably redesigned and improved as well).

For the 2007-2008 model years, there is not enough failure history at this time to differentiate those two years from the 2004-to-2006 model years. I would expect that over time, 2007-2008 S-Types would prove to be as good and possibly even better than 2004-to-2006 S-Types from a component failure standpoint.

My overall conclusion at this juncture is that for my 2005 S-Type 3.0, purchasing an extended warranty is probably NOT a good investment. I would be better off to take that $2,500 or so and keep it in an interest-bearing account to draw from as unexpected, non-routine repairs surface from time to time. The engine is bulletproof, the 6-speed XF transmission is much-improved with almost no failures reported, and the various electrical motors and components within the car have apparently been upgraded as well. The complex electronic module system that runs throughout the vehicle remains the biggest potential to gobble money due to unexpected repairs, but with better rubber seals, water leaks are nowhere near the threat that they were in the 2003-and-earlier S-Types.

I'm interested to learn how many of you out there with 2004-and-up S-Types agree or disagree with my points and conclusions, as well as why or why not. I still have another three months to go before I have to make a final decision about an extended warranty on our car and I'm always looking for good information from knowledgeable owners that will help me make the best decision either way....

 

Have you asked your dealer if you can get the certified warranty? I insisted on that when I got my 05. I am now covered until June of 2011 or 100k. There are many items that I would rather the dealer replaced than do it myself. My biggest concern with non-manufacturer warranties is that many times you need to wait for a failure in order to exercise the warranty where you can usally get the dealer to replace a part that is "going" under a manufacturer's warranty. Just my 2 cents.

 

My 2005 S-Type is covered until 2010 or 100K which ever comes first. Most likely it will time out before the mileage. I got my extended warranty thrown into the deal as a condition of the sale. I just found it to be a piece of mind as even fairly minor glitches will eat up the $1500 cost of the warranty which is why I bargained the price down to include the warranty.

Mike

 

Talked to the dealer yesterday about the Select Edition warranty. Since I did not purchase it at the same time we bought the car, it is no longer available to me. But I think it is not a very good deal anyway. In our case, it would have been valid for only two years (mid-July 2009 until mid-July 2011) for $1,950. In that short period of time, we would put maybe 40,000 miles tops on the car so 100,000 miles would not even come close to being in play.

But on the open market I can buy a 5-year/100,000-mile warranty that starts at zero when my factory warranty runs out in mid-July for about $2,600. It is essentially identical in coverage to Jaguar's Select Edition warranty with no deductible. It would be a much better deal because it would run for 5 years, not 2, and it would give me a full 100,000 miles of coverage, not just until my odometer hits 100,000 miles. We have two other vehicles to share our driving load with so 100,000 miles is never going to come into play with us, anyway. But 5 years is a hell of a lot longer than 2 years.

My greatest concern with all of these extended warranties is that none of them cover the exhaust system, including Jaguar's Select Edition. Some portions of the exhaust system like the catalytic converter are covered by the emissions warranty (usually mandated at 80,000 miles by the government), but most parts are not. You can run into some serious expense if you have to do any exhaust replacement and none of these extended warranties will help you there.

So if I do decide to go with an extended warranty, I'll get the 5-year/100,000-mile deal for $2,600. But I'm still thinking that it will work out better to pass on it unless more folks on this forum can bring empirical data to the table and convince me otherwise....

 

i actually had a question on this....what type of modifications will void these? rear section exhaust? lowering the car on springs? HID conversions?

 

Typically, any performance modifications will void your factory warranty, and I would expect same for any extended warranty. That is why I've always believed that trying to tweak a car while it is still under warranty is a bone-headed thing to do....

 

Jon your years are wrong, 2003 was the start of the major mechanical update, the "trouble" years are up to and including 2002.

I think not buying the warranty is silly if you KNOW you will have the car for a long while after the factory is up. Just one visit to the dealer and it pays for it self. Parts might not be expensive but labor is. Just think if a minor $100 part in the dash breaks, they have to take the whole dash out and put it back in. There is a $1000 repair for a simple part failure. This can be duplicated all over the car.

Not sure why you feel the exhaust is expensive to repair. Maybe I mis-understood your point but That is one thing any half competent repair shop can do is to fit a new one. On my previous Jeep I tore my exhaust to shreds off-roading. Dealer wanted like $600 for it, took it to a muffler place did a better then factory job for $50. All in less then 30 mins!

My bottom line: BUY THE WARRANTY!

Also who is the $2600 coverage through? and for what level of protection? id like to look them up! As one of the other guys said, sometimes warranty companies want you to wait until the part is totally shot, not just on its way out, something to def. consider!

-Erik

 

i have the continental warranty gold or something like that. www.continentalwarrantyinc.com it covers mostly everything, and it is NOT the one in malibu, ca. This one is in delaware and about 15 min to their office from my house. Soooooooo if they try and screw with me, there will be a type R in their waiting room.

anyway it cost me 2000 for a 5 year 60k mile warranty w/ 100 ded.

 

I have a 04 STR with 30K when the warrante expired. Decided against the extended inspite of a $1K discount from the factory.

Largely for the same reasons you outlined above +
1) Have several modern cars so its not effective to extend warr. on all of them (say mine and wifes)
2) Have backup car (old beater) so fixing it is not urgent - can wait to shop around for multple quotes
3) Many issues under warrantee turned out to be software related - doesn't cost that much to have dealer update software
4) Price for extended warr. for cars with similar complexity and better rep. for reliability are similar (can try to get some quotes for a Lexus, Infinity, Acura to baseline industry risk - I am assuming that the ins companies pay attention to each model repair rate/cost and price according based on their cost and the business model doesn't include writing 100 policies for a toyota for each jag covered)
5) Ind. repair shops will have more experience with a given make from a given year after the factory warr. expires as an option for lower repair costs
6) My crazy logic, if 5 year/100K costs about $2.5K, say the business runs on 75% margin (profit for dealer, for ins company, for overhead, etc) - average car repair cost should be around $600 over 5 years or $120 per car per year. Figure if you have it, your going to use it and if small repairs are $1K, larger is say $8K, then either a lot of cars don't need any repairs or not much is really covered.
7) With Jag depreciation rates, I can buy a used car of the same model for the cost of a major fix (like new engine) 5 years from now.
8) Most complex items have low rel. in the beginning due to infant mort. of parts (what the factory war. covers), then gets better and then gets worse as the car gets older - so experience during factory war. cover doesn't mean the next 4 years will be similar. What this doesn't cover are design flaws and weak designs (like the ford transmissions) but one expects more of these items to be resolved towards the end of the product cycle like the new S-types.

Overall, it's a personal balance between peace of mind of bounded repair costs and risk tolerance.

 

bmw,

2003 may have been the beginning of the major mechanical update, but there continue to be numerous reports of transmission quirks and failures as well as plenty of coil pack problems for the 2003 model year. So it appears that Jaguar really didn't begin to "get it right" until the 2004 model year came out.

The aftermarket extended warranty offer still on my "possible" list is through Hal Moses, President of Auto Advantage Inc. in New York. You can reach him at (800) 933-9190. I last spoke with him in mid-January. He's a straight shooter who will answer your questions and not bombard you with multiple sales pitches. I told him that I was gathering information and quotes and would not make a decision until early June. He was fine with that but did tell me that once my car hits 24,000 miles, his quotes would go up slightly. We'll hit 24,000 miles within a week or two, so if I do decide to contact him in early June to purchase a warranty from him, I'll do my best to get him to honor his original quote even though our S-Type will probably be pushing 30,000 miles by then if our driving patterns continue unaltered.



ccc,

Very good synopsis of why you decided to forego the extended warranty. Your line of thinking is very similar to mine. We don't have to rely on our S-Type to get us around, so if anything does go wrong that I can't handle myself, I can shop around for repairs. I've already located and visited two independent Jaguar repair shops in our area and have been impressed with both of them. Both shops have admitted to me that they see very few non-routine repairs on the 2004-and-up S-Types compared to the earlier models as long as the cars are properly maintained by their owners. The vast majority of their work performed on the 2004-and-up S-Types is replacing the brakes (which is exactly what I would have expected). Maintaining our S-Type may not be much riskier than either my wife's 2004 Lexus RX330 AWD (turned 88,000 miles yesterday) or my 1999 Dodge Ram 5.9-litre V8 pickup (approaching 55,000 miles), both of which have required only routine maintenance that I've mostly done myself. Purchasing extended warranties on either one of those vehicles would have been an expensive, wasteful mistake. The S-Type could prove me wrong on this subject, but thus far I'm not seeing any empirical evidence to make me change my mind. I do continue to admit, though, that the complex electronic modules concern me more than anything else on this car. Fortunately, I still have nearly three months to continue to investigate and then make a final decision. I sincerely appreciate continued input on this subject, both pro and con. Constantly-increasing information leads to making the best decision, and that's what I'm after....

 

That really depends on the modifications. I changed exhaust, intake, wheels, and tires on a Accord while still under warranty and got confirmation in writing that my mods did not void the warranty on the vehicle, including the power train that they were attached too. Umm, if you look at just about any dealer's showroom there will be a whole assortment of performance parts that they will install on a new car and not void the warranty. Just a little homework makes it safe. And the last time I checked, I wasn't a bone head........

 

You certainly are not a bonehead because you very wisely obtained written confirmation that your modifications did not void your warranty. 99% of the heavy modders out there would never even think about doing that. So when they show up at their dealership with their heavily-modified street-rod in an effort to make a warranty claim for something they busted, the service manager usually says "Sorry, but you voided your warranty when you put that ______________ (fill in the blank) on your car, and we can't help you...."

And sure, if you buy a performance part from the dealership and they install it for you, they will have to cover that system under warranty. But hey, it's a huge profit margin for them so they are happy to sell and install just about anything you want to buy from them. But try purchasing it somewhere else and installing it yourself without obtaining prior written approval as you did - that service manager will deny your warranty claim before you can even get the words out of your mouth....

 

Jon,
I 'am in the same boat as you, my 06 is under factory warranty until Dec of this year so I will need to decide by Nov on the extended warranty.On my previous 01 s type 3.0 I did buy the 10 year 100,000 ext coverge for about 2800.00 with a $200 deductable.I will say that it did pay for itself over the 4 years I used it,one repair on the front end would have cost $2000 without warranty.The warranty was sold to me by the dealer and it is called Easy Care.If I do buy another one for the 06 it will be Easy Care again just for the ease of use and great service they provided(very easy to deal with)I tend to keep my cars for a long period of time so at the moment I will lean towards the purchase.Also when I sold my previous Jag the remaining warranty went to the new owner and this was a good selling feature for me to advertise with the car.

 

the only way you can void your warranty on a new vehicle, is to install something that CAUSES the part that broke to break or malfunction. Just because you put lowering springs on a vehicle, does NOT mean they can void your warranty of say a BCM. THINK PEOPLE, if that was the case, putting an air freshener in your vehicle would in theory be voiding your warranty.

And yes if a service manager tries to void your warranty because of wheels, tires, brake pads, whatever, you can sue him and the dealership, and win very easily. You think i havent been down this road already????? trust me i have had to be on both sides of this. I have even done vehicle theft investigations for insurance companies in the past. Also i spent some time with "ford advanced r&d" not too long ago.


DO NOT ACCEPT THE SERVICE MANAGER TELLING YOU ANYTHING LIKE THAT. If he tries to say anything even remotely close to that, you might want to advise him that you are aware of your rights as a vehicle owner, and to not go down that road. If he/she were wise. These service managers have got to stop thinking they are above the law. seriously.

 

Ah Men... phd... Thumbs Up. Just to add. The dealer actually sold me some of the stuff to modify the Accord's I've had. And that was with me installing myself. If I thought for one second that the service people were going to give me a hard time, off to another dealer I would have went. BTW, they were pissed when they found out I traded the silver one at the Jag dealer 'cause they wanted it. And also the service guys at my Jag dealer have talked with me about things to do to tweak my car and understand and help with the fact that I do almost everything myself. It's called "understand the customer" and "good business". They know if something happens to the car they are the one and only place it will go. Now if I could only dig up the cash for the things I want for it.... the kids have to come first you know..

 

MyBlackCat,

Keep in mind that your 2006 S-Type is vastly improved over your former 2001 S-Type. In fact, repair statistics are so much better for the 2006 that it is almost as if they are not even related....

How many miles on your 2006 S-Type, how long have you had it, and what if anything has failed on the car thus far? I realize that it is an STR and requires more maintenance than a 3.0 does....

 

It has 32,000 miles on it and I bought it in Jan with 29 on it.
I hope it is as good as you say. Since the S type and especially the R are out of production I might keep this car for quite some time since the number of R,s are very low it might be a car to hang on to. For this reason the extended warranty might be worth purchasing.I got this car for less than 1/3 the sticker price,I think it was a good buy.

 

I've got an extended warranty on my '06 3.0. I posted my repair work under the wacky gas guage thread and was told that without the warranty, it would have been around $900 to fix it. Just a couple more trips to the dealer could pay for it.
Mine is on a 4 year lease (leased it June last year.) and the warranty expires at 75,000 miles and/or when the lease is up.
The dealer also sprung for a rental car for the 2 days the Jag was in the shop.
Piece of mind is also worth a couple of bucks.

 

Thanks for your input. Has the gas gauge replacement been your only problem? And what is your current mileage?

 

You're welcome and yes, that's the only problem and I hope it's the last.
Current mileage is 47500 so I'm going to take it easy
The dealer stuck me with Easy Care warrantee with a $250 deductible. I didn't know it at the time and until I got some papers in the mail from Easy Care. I did some yelling at the general manager about it and they've agreed to do a complete inspection on the car about 500-1000 miles before the factory warrantee expires.
Right after the gas guage repair, I got a brief survey form from J.D Powers to fill out and send back. I gave high marks to the service dept. and I ripped apart the sales dept