The finance guy in Tucson who talked me out of the extended plan I came in to buy
He pulled up the actual exclusions list and showed me my car's AC compressor was already covered under a recall for 7 years, so I walked out with a $0 deductible instead of the $2,400 plan I had picked out online, and I still wonder if I just got lucky with one honest guy or if I should go back and get the plan anyway.
That recall on the AC compressor only covers that one part though, and only if it actually fails in that 7 year window. The thing is, a $2,400 plan is usually bumper to bumper type coverage, so you're paying for way more than just the compressor. That finance guy did you a solid by being upfront, but walking out with nothing means every other repair is now on you. Transmissions, water pumps, sensors, all that stuff adds up fast and none of it is cheap. The real question is whether you can afford a surprise $3,000 repair out of pocket, because that's what the plan is really protecting you from.