Is the CPO warranty worth it?

[EVBob]

After looking at the "What is not covered" list for the CPO warranty...it doesn't seem like that great of a value?

http://cpo.bmwusa.com/Content/docs/BMWCPOWhatIsNotCovered.pdf

It seems like it doesn't cover much of anything for this list:

WHAT IS NOT COVERED

The BMW Certified Pre-Owned Protection Plan and the BMW Certified Elite Protection Plan provide specific
coverage against defects in materials and workmanship. There are various items that are not covered by these
warranties for enrolled vehicles retailed on or after January 1, 2014.

Vehicle Maintenance
Brake pads and rotors (discs), brake shoes and drums; filters; fluid replacement of a component by itself;
scheduled maintenance services; spark plugs; wiper blade inserts, blade assemblies/beams.

Upkeep
Adjustments; batteries (as a stand-alone repair); driveshaft flex disc (guibo coupling); engine drive belts; exhaust
systems (including the gasoline engine catalytic converters, and the diesel engine “SCR” catalytic converter and
particulate filter); flywheel, ring gear and clutch disc contact area; fuses; manual and “SMG” transmission clutch
assemblies; oils, lubricants, fluids, refrigerants and coolant (except as required in the course of performing a
covered repair); rubber engine and heater coolant hoses, vacuum hoses (including clamps and connectors); tires;
tire balancing and rotation; wheel alignment.

Suspension
Ball joints; bushings; center tie rod; coil springs – sagging (except for leveling system pneumatic/hydraulic springs);
control arms and brackets; idler and pitman arms; stabilizer bar links and supports; strut elements/shock absorbers
(dampers); tie rod ends and adjusting sleeves; trailing arms, thrust struts; wishbones.

Body
Air leaks; body carriers, cross members, supports, braces and mounts; body panels, body shell, walls, partitions
and chassis sheet metal; body noises, squeaks and rattles; body seals and gaskets; bulbs - incandescent, Xenon
and LEDs; convertible top (except for electrical/electronic components); damage due to rust, corrosion or
contamination; door brakes and checks; door handles and carriers (except for electrical/electronic components);
exterior moulding, trim and fasteners; gas pressurized springs/struts; glass - side, sliding roof, rear and mirrors
(except for electrical/electronic components); latch and lock mechanisms and their related components (except for
electrical/electronic components); paint finish; water leaks; wheels and valve stems (except for electrical/electronic
components); windscreen (including the sliding roof); windshield (except for the front rain sensor); wind noises.

Interior
Bulbs – incandescent and LEDs (except for the instrument cluster); carpeting; floor and trunk mats;
headliner/sliding roof liner panel; interior noises, squeaks and rattles; interior dashboards, consoles, panels, covers,
vents, grills, trims and fasteners (except cup holders); seatbelt extender arm assembly (except for
electrical/electronic components); sunblinds (except for electrical/electronic components); sun visors (except for
electrical/electronic components); upholstery (except for seat heating elements and seat occupancy sensor mat).

Accessories (Standard and Optional)
All non-original equipment parts, components and accessories.

Especially if to add a 6th year is $2,500 dollars....

It seems like the better idea may be to just get a used i3 with a clean carfax history and holding the difference between that and the CPO for future repairs?

 

[fritzner]

wondering the same ... following thread.

 

[billinjax]

I did buy a CPO 2015 i3 two days ago. I'm in Jax, FL. A Chevy dealer had a 2014 with about the same options but not the full leather like I have and it had 5k more miles. I think they both had adaptive cruise control too. I paid about 6k more. The CPO could have been financed at 0.9 for 60 months but I went with 2.49 for 72 months. The CPO gets 2 extra years of roadside assistance, in my case until 11/24/21. The CPO gets 1 year free Quick Charging at participating EvGo stations. One is near me even though I'll probably just charge at my house. Not sure what all of these are but I got eMobility Services, E-Call, Remote Services, TeleService until 2025. I get the balance of Connected Drive Services and Real Time Traffic until 11/24/18. Not sure if this will save me anything but I also got the BMW Assist Vehicle Recovery Service until 11/24/25. New Car warranty expires 11/24/19 and then get the additional 1 year more limited 0 deductible coverage.

 

[sipabit]

In the Bay Area, maintenance warranty is not transferable to new owners w/o paying $700 first. All the dealers here I've spoken with offer 14 days of a loaner car from their fleet in case you temporarily need a long range car. Park your car in their lot and take any of their loaners. 14 total days. If you buy a new car as opposed to CPO, you get to do this twice. So 14 days a year for two years. That's quite the perk if you think you might need it.

CPO's get 1 more year of warranty than what it would be if bought new. So 5 years instead of 4 (from the initial purchase date) and unlimited miles (not whichever comes first).

Dealers here let you use their Charge Point quick DC charger whenever you want assuming it's available. I don't think the dealership even needs to be open. As long as access to the charger isn't blocked by a gate or whatever, I'm pretty sure we can use it anytime.

The battery is the thing we're all worried about. The manual says it's warranteed for 8 years from the purchase date. Covered if it completely fails within that time period or if it drops in charing capacity by more than 25%.

 

[alohart]

The battery is the thing we're all worried about. The manual says it's warranteed for 8 years from the purchase date. Covered if it completely fails within that time period or if it drops in charing capacity by more than 25%.

I don't worry about i3 battery packs which seem to be holding up well. I'm pretty certain that the capacity degradation warranty is 30%, not 25%. I've not read of any i3 owner having battery pack degradation anywhere near 30% even with more than 100k miles having been driven. But with the modular design of the i3 battery pack, it's not clear to me whether a battery pack with less than 70% of its nominal new capacity would have all modules replaced under warranty or just enough modules to restore more than 70% of its nominal new capacity. I doubt that many battery pack warranty claims will be made.

I worry much more about the failure of the i3's very expensive electronic modules, A/C compressor, charging port (broken locking pin), early motor mount, etc. In a few years, the cost of replacement of some of these parts could exceed the value of the car due to BMW's high parts and labor costs and the difficulty independent mechanics have working on an i3.

 

[sipabit]

Agreed with everything you just said.