Filed under: Car Buying, Maintenance, GM
GM adds 12-month/12,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty on certified used vehicles
Now that leasing seems to be going through a slow phase-out, shoppers looking for a good deal on a newish vehicle may take a harder gander at certified pre-owned models. GM realizes this and has responded by GM hopes that this increased coverage has a corresponding effect on its CPO sales. What's more, the automaker also believes that this action will have a desirable effect on its vehicle's residual values.
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]
PRESS RELEASE
GM Adds 12-Month/12,000-Mile Bumper-to- Bumper Warranty on GM Certified Used Vehicles and Saturn CPO Vehicles
Program Enhancements Provide Buyers Added Value, Peace of Mind Assurances
DETROIT - General Motors today announced that it will provide consumers with a fully transferable 12-month/12,000-mile* "bumper-to-bumper" warranty with no deductible on all GM Certified Used Vehicles and all Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold in the United States. The announcement was made by Brian McVeigh, general manager, GM Fleet and Commercial Operations, and Jamie Hresko, GM North America vice president of quality.
GM also announced it has extended the age and mileage eligibility standards for GM Certified Used Vehicles and Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles to include models six years old or newer, with up to 75,000 miles.
In September, GM Certified Used Vehicles, the industry's top-selling manufacturer-certified used vehicle brand**, will mark the sale of its 3-millionth vehicle, making GM Certified the first OEM certified pre-owned program to reach that milestone.
"This is a clear indication of our confidence in the quality and value of our cars and trucks," said McVeigh. "We're pleased to now offer that same level of confidence with every GM Certified Used Vehicle from Buick, Chevrolet, GMC and Pontiac, and every Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicle. As we reach the 3-million sales milestone, this warranty enhancement adds a real point of differentiation for our program, enabling our dealers to offer customers a range of peace-of-mind assurances that compare favorably with any other manufacturer-certified program in the industry. GM Certified and Saturn Certified do an outstanding job of bringing in new GM customers, and this enhancement will only add to that."
The fully transferable 12-month/12,000-mile* bumper-to-bumper warranty, which begins on the date of purchase of the GM Certified or Saturn Certified model, is standard on all GM Certified Used Vehicles or Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles purchased from participating dealers after September 13, 2008. The warranty covers the vehicle from bumper to bumper on any vehicle defect related to materials or workmanship, including all but standard wear-and-tear components on the vehicle. All body and sheet metal components are warranted against rust-through corrosion for six years/100,000 miles***.
GM Certified and Saturn Certified also provide buyers a five-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty*** with 24-hour roadside assistance and courtesy transportation, free vehicle history report, a comprehensive 117-point vehicle inspection and a three-day, 150-mile customer satisfaction guarantee.
"We upped our game and made great strides in quality," said Hresko. "We take care of our customers by standing behind our cars and trucks. With a five-year/100,000-mile transferable powertrain warranty plus roadside assistance and courtesy transportation, we already provide the best coverage in America and now we're making that coverage even better."
Cadillac Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, Saab Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles and Hummer Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles operate separate programs - each of those programs has a 6-year/100,000-mile bumper-to-bumper comprehensive warranty (whichever comes first), effective from the vehicle's in-service date.
Consumers can go to www.gmcertified.com to learn more about GM Certified Used Vehicles, locate the closest GM Certified dealer or search the industry's largest available certified pre-owned inventory, with 60,000-plus vehicles. Consumers can visit www.saturn.com to learn more about Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
bwi443 8:27PM (8/19/2008)
I'd like to see GM sell their used cars under a new house brand name, fresh new trade dress and all, and I'm not just saying that to try out the new AOL comment system.
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SPG 8:29PM (8/19/2008)
Never a better time to pick up a used G6 convertible.
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Steve 10:26PM (8/19/2008)
Too bad on the other hand they destroy used car values by slashing prices on new cars (why buy old when you can buy new for same price?). Does anyone at GM have a coherent plan to keep everyone on the same page? I feel like my GM car is a mcmansion out in the boonies... it keeps losing value by the second (in excess of depreciation).
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tim 10:47PM (8/19/2008)
I just don't trust these warranties. When they go bankrupt will shops still honor this warranty? I think not. Similarly a bank about to go under can promise 10% interest in CD because they have nothing to loose if new deposits help them stay open longer why not??
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Brent 12:29AM (8/20/2008)
GM is too big to fail.
adrenalnjunky 1:39AM (8/20/2008)
Figures, I bought the wife a CPO '08 G6 GT a month ago that only had 12,000 miles on it - 1st payment isn't even due yet. The factory warranty was only bumped to 39mo/39K miles from original date of sale, which was only last Nov, but still. More free warranty is always a good thing.
Timing fail.
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adrenalnjunky 1:39AM (8/20/2008)
Wait now that I re-read it, since the wife's ride has ~24K left on the factory warranty, and they bump that with an additional 3months/3Kmiles, I'm better off than what this offered since I basically have 30months/28K miles left on the factory warranty from now. Plus the 5yr/100K powertrain.
Oh well, they had a nice financing rate too.
BoxerFanatic 3:13AM (8/20/2008)
Interesting to read this.
My brother just bought a "certified" Chevy Venture, and after one day, found out that the AC wasn't working, among other oversights.
And when brought to the dealer's attention, they were met with an estimate for hundreds of dollars to repair...
I'll believe it when I see it. Maybe it is GM, maybe it is the dealer specifically, but hollow promises don't sell me on cars, and certainly don't replace a good competent inspection before purchase.
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Kaptain75329 11:48AM (8/20/2008)
Something is very wrong with this.. Having worked in car sales years ago, I couldn't ever stand comments from customers that expected to be treated like royalty when they simply wouldn't pay the price for it. (I used to say: "I can fix the price of my car, but I can't fix the price of your good taste.") Your brother bought a Venture -- USED for pete's sake -- a product that's never been rated well anywhere. There's a reason it's production run was only 3 years; 5 minutes on Google should have been enough to inform him that the Venture, along with it's horrid corporate cousins, could never possibly be certified as anything other than landfill fodder.
That aside, I'd suggest you have your brother contact Chevrolet's North American Customer relations group. As the car was indeed a CPO vehicle (the Venture being unworthy of CPO status notwithstanding) then it should be backed by GM/Chevy and as such subject to warranty coverage. If the dealer wants to renig on the warranty after only one day of service, that's hardly GM's fault since the dealers are independent (just as GM can't really be blamed if the previous owner didn't care for the car properly - that's the risk of buying used) but GM/Chevy should be able to direct your brother to a dealer that will cooperate.
The only snag I see here is GM coming out with something like "Well, the dealer didn't do the inspection properly which means the car should never have been given CPO status in the first place, so we won't cover it." That'd be pretty dick on their part, so let's hope they care about their corporate reputation.
A little initiative and homework is much better course of action than just complaining. Here.. I did some of the work for you:
Chevrolet Motor Division, General Motors Corp.
Customer Assistance Center
Chevrolet Motor Division, General Motors Corp.
PO Box 33170
Detroit, MI 48232-5170
Toll free: 1-800-222-1020
Toll free: 1-800-243-8872 (roadside assistance)
TDD toll free: 1-800-833-2438
Fax: 313-556-5108
Web site: www.chevrolet.com
Beyond that, tell your brother to exercise more discriminating standards next time - you get what you pay for.