Honda Care protection?

What’s the cost on it?

I looked at the web pages about it and was put off by the repeated fine print line of “Limitations and exclusions apply” or some such. I didn’t click through to read the fine print!

From what I’ve read, it can make sense to get them on brand new models; OTOH, Consumer Reports generally cautions against them — see their website for a discussion about them.

I know that on the Clarity forums, several people have written about their availability from non-local dealers who sell them at large discounted prices, yet they still must be honored by all Honda dealers nationwide. They were reporting 30-40% discounts, IIRC.

Frankly, I’m probably going to skip it if we get Insight because it’s based on proven designs. — the Civic platform, the Accord hybrid engine, etc.

Update: In some cases College Hills Honda was offering a 50% discount!

J. Bond said:

What’s the cost on it?

I looked at the web pages about it and was put off by the repeated fine print line of “Limitations and exclusions apply” or some such.
...
I’m probably going to skip it if we get Insight because it’s based on proven designs. — the Civic platform, the Accord hybrid engine, etc.

Click to expand...

Very true and I agree on those points. Thanks for this. It was around $700 but I took a pass on it. I feel I can use that money and a couple hundred more towards fog lights, all weather mats and maybe the spare tire.

Honda Care

Did anyone purchase with the car? I was thinking of purchasing but not sure. I'm not familiar with hybrids so I thought the small price to pay and not have to worry about anything breaking for 8 years is worth it.

cloudyy said:

Did anyone purchase with the car? I was thinking of purchasing but not sure. I'm not familiar with hybrids so I thought the small price to pay and not have to worry about anything breaking for 8 years is worth it.

Click to expand...

What's the cost of the extended warranty?

I've been mulling this too. Hyannis is quoting $1125 for 8 yr/120k.

You have the standard 3 yr/36k bumper to bumper warranty already, plus the 5 yr/60k powertrain warranty. So Honda Care is paying for years 3 - 8, or $225/year. My VW Passat would have come out way ahead on this deal. But I'm not nearly as sure about the Insight.

The dealer quoted me ~$1k just to replace the console, but how would that even break?

Sure, this is a new generation, but Honda is no newbie to hybrids, they seem to have a record of long support in case of recalls, and Insight is based on Civic, a very mature platform.

The roadside assistance with Honda Care is a possible mitigator, in that it could replace my AAA membership. But in my case I'd want to keep AAA because they have the least expensive auto insurance, by several hundred dollars.

I feel like $1125 is the cost of two major repairs, which I have trouble imagining needing in 8 years, given that it's Honda.

mgldan said:

I feel like $1125 is the cost of two major repairs, which I have trouble imagining needing in 8 years, given that it's Honda.

Click to expand...

Isn't Honda's 2-Motor Hybrid System only 4 years old? I remember them introducing it in the 2014 Accord Hybrid. We have another 4 years left to see if the hybrid powertrain and parts can last the second half. I heard Honda is known for reliable engines, but not transmissions, even though this is an E-CVT. My 98 Accord tranny started slipping around 100k and I took decent care of it and drove it like an old lady. Bought it used though at around 80k miles, not sure if the previous owner(s) treated it like crap.

I was searching used Honda hybrids. Someone managed to get a 2014 Accord Hybrid up to ~114,000 miles. I'm sure they had it serviced but not sure about any major repairs.

I heard previous Civic Hybrids had a lot of problems... Not sure if it's true though.

iflylo01 said:

Isn't Honda's 2-Motor Hybrid System only 4 years old? I remember them introducing it in the 2014 Accord Hybrid. We have another 4 years left to see if the hybrid powertrain and parts can last the second half. I heard Honda is known for reliable engines, but not transmissions, even though this is an E-CVT. My 98 Accord tranny started slipping around 100k and I took decent care of it and drove it like an old lady. Bought it used though at around 80k miles, not sure if the previous owner(s) treated it like crap.

I was searching used Honda hybrids. Someone managed to get a 2014 Accord Hybrid up to ~114,000 miles. I'm sure they had it serviced but not sure about any major repairs.

I heard previous Civic Hybrids had a lot of problems... Not sure if it's true though.

Click to expand...

Well, the Insight doesn’t have a transmission. Not sure about Accord hybrid, I think it’s CVT.

Rhino said:

Well, the Insight doesn’t have a transmission. Not sure about Accord hybrid, I think it’s CVT.

Click to expand...

Well, I assumed you already knew all of Honda's 2-Motor Hybrid cars had an E-CVT a.k.a. no real transmission.

I purchased 1 7yr/100K extended HondaCare Warranty. I wouldn't have done this, but my 2006 Odyssey was a disaster, and the 2019 Insight is a new model. If I were basing it on a tried and true model, like by 1999 and 2000 Civics, I would have passed. I plan on keeping cars forever, so it made sense.

I'm leaning now towards Geico's mechanical breakdown insurance (MBI). It's available on new cars as long as you buy MBI before 15 months / 15k. $38 premium every 6 months. In return, after a $250 deductible, all electrical and mechanical failures, except for wear-and-tear items, are fully covered. So this is basically as good as Honda Care. In NJ it is valid up to 7 years / 70k, but in other states I think it is valid up to 7 years / 100k.

I can buy it right before I hit 15k and come out pretty far ahead of the 8 year / 120k Honda Care quote of $1125.

I still have to go through the warranty booklet and see what the coverages are. Beyond the 3 yr / 36k bumper to bumper and the 5 year / 60k powertrain warranty, I know for sure that the hybrid battery is 8 yr / 100k and certain emissions-related items are 15 yr / 150k.

I looked at the Honda Care website and found the different plans confusing -- maintenance, vehicle care, etc. In each case, there was fine print or footnotes indicating that there exceptions.

Perhaps I was tired when I read through it, but I found it a tad to process and the summaries didn't list much that would be covered that would cost much of anything. Clearly, I'll have to look again.

What is strange is why Honda doesn't highlight the hybrid battery system warranty! I realize it varies by state, but it's usually 8 years, 100,000 miles or 10 years, 150,000 miles, which is incredible and would reassure prospective buyers!

Curious what you paid for that, hasarad? I bought my Insight last week and am debating adding an extended warranty.

hasarad said:

I purchased 1 7yr/100K extended HondaCare Warranty. I wouldn't have done this, but my 2006 Odyssey was a disaster, and the 2019 Insight is a new model. If I were basing it on a tried and true model, like by 1999 and 2000 Civics, I would have passed. I plan on keeping cars forever, so it made sense.

Click to expand...

I purchased my extended warranty from https://collegehillshonda.com They charged me $1,000 vs the dealer wanted $3,000.

AMCooper63 said:

I purchased my extended warranty from https://collegehillshonda.com They charged me $1,000 vs the dealer wanted $3,000.

Click to expand...

What terms did you select (year and mileage)?

My dealer wanted me to drop $2600 on their own package, which wasn't Honda Care. Yeesh.

I bought 8yr/100K. Here is what I got from College Hills Honda. For details and any questions feel free to contact Tauni who handles all of our HondaCare purchases. [email protected]

5yr/60 $540
5yr/100 $815
7yr/100 $965
8yr/100 $1060
8yr/120 $1185

For all who have purchased or researched Honda Care, just what extra coverage are you getting with it?

When I looked through the information pages on it, I saw only a handful of extra things, none of which looked very costly. As I mentioned, Imwas surprised to discover that the STANDARD WARRANTY thst comes with the car already seems to cover the hybrid system for 8 years, 100,000 miles or 10 years and 150,000 miles.

What am I missing here?

mgldan said:

Hyannis quoted me $905 for 7 years/100k, and $1125 for 8 years/120k. Attached are the price tables. You have until 6k on the odometer to buy at the cheapest available rates. Saccucci was a little more, as was College Hills Honda. This quote is from September 30; things may have changed.

Click to expand...

I'm almost at 9k miles (I drive ~120 miles a day to and from work). I am wondering if I should sign up for a Honda Care plan.