New Powertrain Warranty Adopted
Date:8/20/2009
Chrysler Group LLC said Wednesday that it is dropping its lifetime powertrain warranty in favor of a 60 month / 100,000-mile guarantee, the Associated Press reported.
The change is effective with the start of the 2010 model year.
Chrysler spokesman Rick Deneau said the decision was driven by market research that showed consumers prefer warranties with a fixed time period, the story said. Powertrain warranties typically cover repair or replacement of transmission and engine parts. “Basically, the assumption of a lifetime warranty just wasn’t that big a deal to consumers,” Deneau told the news service. The five-year, 100,000-mile warranties will be transferable to new owners if the vehicles are sold before they run out, he said. The previous lifetime warranties were not transferable, the story said.
The Associated Press said the new warranty program also includes the automaker’s SRT and Viper models, which were excluded from the lifetime warranty. But the Sprinter van and the diesel version of the Ram pickup remain excluded, Deneau told the news service. Company officials said in a statement that dealers had been notified that, beginning with the 2010 model year, most Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge vehicles, including SRT models, will be covered by a five-year/100,000-mile fully transferable powertrain warranty. The five-year/100,000-mile warranty covers the cost of all parts and labor needed to repair covered powertrain components—engine, transmission and drive system. This warranty replaces the Lifetime Powertrain warranty the company implemented in July 2007, which was not transferable. The company’s consumer research indicated that transferability was an appealing attribute of any warranty plan as was having a defined time frame on coverage. This change gives consumers something they can easily understand and adds value to their ownership experience.
(Associated Press/Detroit Free Press)