Chrysler Lifetime Powertrain Warranty

[FMSPEED49]

Anybody for a new dodge?

http://cgmedia.daimlerchrysler.com/newsrelease.do;jsessionid=26285B57A75A1F40E1584191625566D3?mid=1&id=7045

[Christopher]

Lets lobby for retro active,, Say 60 years or more,,, Christopher,, from the high and lonesome...

[Norm's Coupe]

Since Damiler is trying to unload Chrysler anyway, they won't have to stand behind the warranty. Whoever buys Chrysler will. Plus, at least in most states you have tons of salt on the roads that eats up the body. So.........they are probably counting on not that many people keeping their Chrysler that long. So...again, the second owner doesn't get the warranty and Chrysler again doesn't have to stand by it.

Third possibility. Damiler makes a killing on new car sales right now. Next year, no buyer for Chrysler, so........Damiler just shuts it down altogether and the warranty becomes only good as wall paper.

Not a bad gamble when you plan on getting rid of the company either way.

[TodFitch]

From the web site/press announcement:

The new powertrain warranty is limited to the first registered owner or retail lessee.

I don't have any statistics to back it up, but my guess is that most new cars are now leased. And most people don't buy out the lease at the end of the term. So most cars will have a new "retail lessee" or owner by the 5 year mark.

This probably won't cost them much if any more than a 5 year warranty but they get to have bragging rights.

[greg g]

Here on some on line statistics;

Of the new vehicle sales in 2000, 2.3 million or 18.4% of the 12.5

million were leased, according to the BTS. More recent estimates by

CNW Market Research put the lease estimates at 23-26% of new car

sales:

The Credit Research Center at Georgetown University did a study in

1979 that put nationwide repossession rates for cars at 2.37 percent.

There doesn't seem to be readily available information to update this

number, though at least one commercial credit company, Credit

Concepts, reports similar numbers in its Annual Report/Form 10K.

It is generally agreed that new cars are kept an average of 5+ years.

The best statistical analysis available on the web seems to be a study

of the Salt Lake City market by the local newspapers. It shows that

53% of buyers expect to keep a car longer than 5 years; 42% longer

than 6 years. The statistical average in the survey was 5.5 years.

Newspaper Agency Corporation

"Motor Vehicles" (2002)

I believe that repossesions are up following a similar trend in defaults in the housing market. This seems to apply in greater numbers to the entry level Asian makes whose dealer network subscribes to the same predatory lending procedures that have the housing market putting people in houses they cannot afford. Recently here in CNY our local automall dealer ship had a sale in June where they sold 1900+ new Hyundais, and 500 used units. Their big boast is that they can get financing for any one. The result being that customers are shelling out 300+ dollars monthly for an Accent, some paying interest rates of nearly 20 percent. These folks are immediatly in an upside down condition (dealer slang for owing more that the cars is worth) and it gets worse montly with the notoriously poor resale value of these brands.

My guess that many of these cars end up at repo auctions before two years are gone.

I guess I fit the statistics above, in that my wife's car is a 2000 (80K miles)

my car 2002 will soon be 5 years old (39K miles) So I guess the lifetime warranty is for 5 years in reality.

What it boils down to is "What ever is needed to make a sale"

[Plymouthy Adams]

Good stastics Greg...I for one will not have to worry about this for I have only bought one new car in my life (1973) and of the cars I have bought, most have been with me for better thann 5 years...

I will be more apt to buy into the theory that in the period of time, 5 year mandatory inspection cycle..items that will be found that command documented owner cost routine maintenance performed at a participating dealerships to continue said warranty will by far outweight in cost to you a lot more than anything the boys from Germany will ever shell out. And as this appears non-transferrable..it is of no value to an owner looking to sell or a buyer looking to get a pre-owned vehicle..back to square 1...

[garys_bc]

Ceberus has already bought Chrysler... Daimler has washed it hands of the company. Official day one activities are scheduled for Aug 15th announcing "The New Chrysler". The deal finalizes end of Sept. This warranty is a bold move trying to give the "New" company a good start. Looks like Chrysler will be around a while, so we should all be happy its back in US control.

[Plymouthy Adams]

refreshing news..we can only hope...now if the new buiness is to kick out the French connection that led to cars without balls..we might get the recognition the company had always commanded in the past...