Extended warranty on new motor

[Manitowish1]

What are the groups thoughts on adding an extended warranty on the motor? I have the 250 Mercury Verado, and since they are very complicated motors I thought about adding the extended warranty. I even asked the dealer to sell me one, but never heard more about it. Is this something I can go directly to Mercury Marine to obtain?

 

[Shawn]

Our Mercury 115 Opti Max is two years old and i just received an extended warranty offer in the mail today. It's the Platinum Plan - priced as follows: 1 year - 596.40; 2 year - 905.25; 3 year - 1160.85; 4 year - 1416.45. Seems pretty pricey to me. I think I will pass...

Shawn

 

[TomS]

Merc will charge you a "list price". Just call them with your serial number and they'll give you figures. You can also buy it from any Merc dealer including mail order, who will potentially discount. Just ask your dealer to match their quote, as it's gravy, all profit, for them.

My dealer included an extension from 3 year Platinum to 5 year Gold. This was a boat show season promotion from Merc provided to dealers. Unfortunately, the Gold excludes electrical stuff, including the power steering, which is a big deal. For about $450 they'll upgrade those 2 years to full Platinum. Years 6 and 7 get very expensive and I'm on the fence about those myself.I may see how the Verado does in the first couple years and make a decision later.

 

[Bamaman]

The Verados are wonderful motors. The initial cost of the motors is okay, but dealers want a fortune ($3K-$4K) for "plug'em up" installation. And the price of the fly by wire binnacle and SmartCraft tach/gauges are simply out of sight.

And they want wonderful prices on their Verado parts. For example, a supercharger runs $5K list price.

I just prefer simple motors with regular cable style controls and analog gauges on our inland lake. I don't want to worry about having to get a second mortgage on my house to pay for an engine repair 10 years from now on my tritoon boat.

I usually don't purchase ESP's, but on a Verado it would be a piece of mind. Now if you could just find a dealer willing to sell you a Mercury ESP for less than the list price--a 100% markup is common.

 

[wchasioux]

I have the 250 Verado too, and my dealer said it is only $30/ month. That can't be much.....right? I took a pass for now too. My only experience with an extended warranty was on my Mastercraft and in the end it left me completely unsatisfied. Never seem to cover what was broken or wrong with the boat. I must say that the Merc 250 Verado Pro is one incredible motor. So far we couldn't be any happier with an outboard engine.

 

[TomS]

I have the 250 Verado too, and my dealer said it is only $30/ month. That can't be much.....right? I took a pass for now too. My only experience with an extended warranty was on my Mastercraft and in the end it left me completely unsatisfied. Never seem to cover what was broken or wrong with the boat. I must say that the Merc 250 Verado Pro is one incredible motor. So far we couldn't be any happier with an outboard engine.

I have to agree on the Pro. I knew it was good from my test drive but so far it has been amazing. I took my neighbor for a ride, and as we backed out, he asked me when I was going to start the motor. Then, when we took off he was talking about a barefoot run when the water's warmer.

 

[DJMbrooks]

I bought our Bennington used. It was originally purchased new in 2009, and I purchased in 2012. The original owner had purchased an extended warranty on the Yamaha F250 ... extra two years. It definitely made a big difference to me in deciding to buy the boat. It only had 56 hours on it when we bought it but you never know. About 3 months after we bought it, right after the original 3 year Yamaha warranty would have expired, we had a complete meltdown and essentially ended up with a rebuilt motor (replaced almost everything) and it was all covered. I typically never buy warranties myself, but I'm sure glad the original owner did. If (strike that!) WHEN I buy another Bennington, I'll likely buy the warranty on the motor!

 

[TomS]

That's really great input to know especially given the F series Yamaha's are known to be fairly bulletproof. I generally shy away from extended warranties too, as it's just another form of risk/insurance to me, and I can decide whether to take my lumps. Resale is an entirely different matter, and with these engines becoming so complex, it's an important consideration for many.