and you can deduct the tax credit from the hybrid cost!

 

I'll echo the comments of others before me.

There are plenty of opinions about whether an extended warranty is EVER a wise move, especially on a reliable make such as Honda and Toyota. My thoughts are that if you plan to keep the vehicle to near or thru 100K miles, then it's worth it for the "insurance" factor. For the hybrids, it's worth it to nullify a worry over short hybrid battery life. I won't worry at ALL until I get well over 100K miles on my car. I do believe that the Toyota battery life seems to be longer than the Honda's - but the Honda's should still last over 100K, and surely are designed to last 150K or longer (as that's how long they must be warrantied for in the few clean-states).

Get a genuine HondaCare warranty - and don't get it at the dealer unless they give you a similar deal to what I got. I got a 8yr/120K/$0 deductible for $980 from Saccucci Honda. They are a genuine Honda dealer in Rhode Island. Another option is Bernardi.com. If you search on this site you'll find discussion about the HondaCare extended warranty. And it DOES cover the Hybrid components.

 

All this warranty talk - I'd be VERY surprised if I had a repair of more than $500 on my HCHII. I'd be VERY surprised if I had more than one of them (repairs that is). My wife's 97 Civic with 134k miles has never had a significant repair - sure brakes, battery - probably not warranty issues. I've had several Japanese cars and there are occassional issues but very few expensive ones in the first 100k.

I can only imagine how long things will last in the HCH. Brakes - 250k miles. Engine -500k miles. The only variable for me is the CVT. I've never had one before so it is just a variable. But that is the only component I worry about in the first 200k miles.

 

I worry about CVT and IMA system, especially the battery. I know it's designed for 150K or more (as that's how long it's covered in CA, and several other states), but...

This is an all-new design, I do have the first year of that design, and the hybrid components and the little gas engine are new. It all was new. And, as you may know, there HAVE been a number of oversights with this new Civic release, most things are Civic generic, not hybrid-specific.

To each his own. I've owned a number of foreign vehicles. Mostly Japanese, Honda, Nissan, Infinity, Mazda, but also Jaguar and Mercedes. Once you hit 90K, some things go on some of them. Usually it IS small things, like an alternator, catalytic converter, or electrical control modules (these can add up!). The heat of Texas takes its toll on electronics. For my HCH2, that may include the IMA control modules and battery. There HAVE been some issues with the HCH1 battery longevity in the "hot states."

I'm figuring that "something" will go after the factory warranty expires, but before 120K, that will be covered. Then, my net cost is lowered by this covered repair amount. The rest is just insurance.

IF the CVT tranny goes... IF the hybrid battery goes.. I'll be very glad to have had the extra warranty time. If not, oh well.

For me, the price ~$1000 is reasonable insurance. For some, it may seem like money down the drain. It gives me NO worries on this new technology for 8yrs and 120K miles, and I made my decision after much thought.