I did some searching and couldn't find much info on this.. but to make a long story short I ended up getting talked into a service contract for everything (including brakes) except for tires for 4 years. Windshield, lost key, normal maintenance all included at any JLR dealership. It wasn't cheap (I think around $4k) I did get the Defender for MSRP which is rare and they were able to get JLR Finance to beat USAA's rate I was ready to use (60 months at 1.89% if anybody is wondering).. so I figured, fine, I'll indulge and do the prepaid service plan.

It's been a couple of weeks and I have a little bit of buyers remorse.. I usually end up keeping cars for 2-3 years, but wanted to know if anybody had any experience with theirs. If so, did they have any issues getting service done or has it been a positive thing?

I can cancel in writing up to 60 days if needed.. it added a little over $50 a payment. Not a huge deal.

 

Consider that required maintenance is a ~$200 oil change once every two years. Unless you drive well more than average and wear your brakes and other items out during that time you're going to have a hell of a time breaking even.

That's why they sell these things.

 

Windshield? Do you mean wipers maybe? You see the threads on all the spontaneous front windshield cracks? Surely it wouldn't cover that.

Brakes are around $3k so depending on that, maybe not too bad.

 

Take a look at the fine print and see if it’s really any JLR dealership. I suspect it is not.

I bought prepaid service for the annual service, oil changes, etc. because it was cheaper to prepay it.

However…

I purchased my Defender from an AutoNation owned JLR dealer but their service department has proven to be just dismal. So, I scheduled a service appointment with another JLR dealer who is closer to where I live. When I took my Defender for the service appointment, I quickly figured out they wouldn’t honor the service contract because they are Sonic Automotive owned.

When I purchased the Defender and the finance person did the hard sell for all the extra crap, I specifically asked if the service contract travels with the vehicle so long as I own it and can any JLR dealer honor the service contract. The answer was resoundingly yes.

I know no one can believe they would lie to sell add ons when you buy a vehicle but I’m contemplating what options I might have a year later.

Net-net, I won’t prepay stuff like this ever again.

For those of you in the Houston area, it was JLR West Houston that sold the lie on the service contract. It’s fine if you want to exclusively use them for service. If you do, make sure your vehicle tracking is turned on and you watch where your vehicle goes. They took my Defender out to fetch breakfast at McDonald’s and got caught by their own technology. All I got was a half assed apology from the service manager. If it happens again, I’m having the police treat it as a stolen vehicle.

 

@woo90 - No need to read the fine print: NONE of them are "Extended Warranties". They are all technically "Extended Service Contracts". All the Sales folks call them Extended Warranties to give the impression that they are extensions by JLR of their manufacturer warranties. They are not. You can go anywhere (usually) to have the Service taken care of. JLR does not validate the work against their warranty unless it is during the original warranty coverage and for items covered. Anything else, you have to show the Dealer/any Dealer/any service company the Warranty coverage and hopefully they will file - or you will. The local Dealer you purchased this from will take care of all the communications for you. Go to any other Dealer in the country (if not owned by the same Owner) and you will find out that it is not backed by JLR. All the concern about something covered under warranty or some mod not being covered or some part installed - yada yada yada: those concerns are for the original JLR Manufacturer warranty. Most of the BS comes from the "Service Contracts" that Sales Consultants convince people to get.

You should note that the local dealer gets a cut of the contract, the Sales Consultant gets a commission, and all the profits goes to the 3rd party that packages the Extended Service Contract. That's all on top of the cost it would have taken you had you done the repair on your own at the probability of said Extended Service Contract being needed. That paying off is about on par with putting the same amount of money on a single number of the roulette wheel and giving it a spin. Personally, I'd rather take my money to Vegas!

BTW - Everyone has a different risk profile. If you got an Extended Service Contract, I am sure it gives you the peace of mind that it should. You may need it, but I hope you don't - because losing a vehicle for a while is a PITA. Personally, I've spent decades in the vehicle dealer space and I would never purchase one.

 

Thanks for the response. Not sure I fully understand.

What I purchased was intended to prepay the cost of scheduled service intervals such as oil changes, etc. based upon the recommended service schedule from Land Rover. When they showed the cost of oil changes and other scheduled service which is not part of the warranty, it was far less expensive to prepay it. It’s the theory of money today is more important than maybe having money at a later date.

When I took my Defender in Friday for some service items that would be covered under warranty (the infamous A pillar flapping noise and a faulty coolant sensor), they said it was time for the recommended annual service. That was going to run $706 and I told the advisor I had a prepaid service contract. He asked where I bought it (JLR West Houston) and he said they couldn’t honor it because they are Sonic Automotive owned. When I asked at the time of purchase, I made it clear by asking if the prepaid service traveled with the vehicle to any JLR dealer and the answer was yes. However, according to Land Rover Central Houston it does not. This, my dilemma.

 

What annual service?!?

This is the crap I've observed in this industry that makes me distrust dealers.

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Scheduled service such as recommended oil changes, etc. Since that isn’t included in the LR warranty, it’s like Porsche and Mercedes. They are crazy expensive. That’s what I prepaid.

 

I'm suggesting you read your maintenance schedule.

They're making up BS services and charging too much for it.

 

Not following your logic.

I’m talking scheduled service items such as oil changes, etc. that follow LR’s recommended schedule. If you pay for those service intervals according to the recommended schedule, they are expensive. This allowed prepayment at a reduced price. That’s it. It’s not BS service; it’s recommended according to the manufacturer.