Warranty No Guarantee

When buying a new car you’ll probably be invited—and possibly feel coerced—into purchasing an extended warranty. Be sure that you understand exactly what you’re getting for the extra money.

According to a Consumer Reports reader survey, 75% of the 8,000 respondents said that the extended warranty they bought had not been valuable to them. Most dealerships will try and convince you that the warranty will “pay for itself” with the first costly repair you have to make, but Consumer Reports argues that cars are so well made these days that you probably won’t incur any serious problems before the warranty is up. The choice is yours. You can drop about $1,000 on the warranty, or spend it on…well, gas, probably. [Consumer Reports]