04 Accord - Extended Warranty/Ziebart/Stock Tires...

I just bought a new Accord today! I haven't bought a car in a while and
hoped I could get some advice on some of the "up-sells" they are offering.

1) They are offering an extended warranty from the factory 3/60,000km to
6/100,000km for 740$CDN. For an additional 180$CDN they are offering six
years of Roadside Assistance (not included in the original new car
warranty). Has anyone (particularly in Canada) opted for the additional
warranty and roadside? Is it worth it?

2) Ziebart - do new cars need it now adays? I've got the leather so I'm not
too worried about the seats. How about the rust proofing and undercoating?

3) Stock tires. The car comes with the Michelin Energy MXV4 Plus. I've had
limited experience with the tires (a couple of test drives in the rain) but
found them lacking in traction - both starting and stopping. I did some web
research to find that others have found the same thing. The dealer may be
willing to swap them out for something else. I'm a spirited driver and like
a tire that can keep up with me. I'll probably be buying a set of winter
tires come fall so winter capabilities aren't high on my list. Any
suggestions on tires?

 

I've never bought Honda's extended warranty when the car was new or when
they offered an extended warranty to me a month or two before I paid the car
off. I found an ASE certified Honda repair shop and followed the "severe"
maintenance schedule. I've owned 9 Hondas and I've never had any
catastrophic type repair bill. All my Honda's have gone over 150,000 miles
before selling them for something new. You can usually get some sort of
roadside assistance through your car insurance or the CAA. I guess what I'm
saying here is it's a Honda and chances are you're not gonna need the
extended warranty (IMHO).

My (US) 99 Accord EX had the Michelin Energy MXV4 Plus. They sucked... dry
road, rain, light snow, wet snow, handling, noise level... 32,000 miles and
they needed to be replaced. I bought Toyo's Spectrum and have been very
happy with them. I've got 63,000 miles on them so far and they've still got
allot of treadlife left. They perform well in the snow and I routinely
drive in the mountains where they handle well. They could be a bit quieter
on the highway though. I'd definatly buy them again.

Cheers,

Rick

 

Forget about the extended warranty......you can buy it later as you have
some experience with your car. For roadside assistance buy a AAA/CAA
membership.....there's lots more benefits to paying for that versus the
Honda Roadside assistance plan.

 

An extended warranty on a Honda or a Toyota is a waste of money , if you
were buying a domestic car I would consider it. I had a set of Michelins on
a 95 Accord I owned and put over 80000 miles on them and never even had a
flat. As far as rustproofing goes I wouldn't let Ziebart drill any holes in
MY new Honda. I live near Detroit where they use massive amounts of salt on
the roads . I try and keep my car washed , haven't had any rust problems in
decades. Enjoy the new ride !
-Dana

 

If you shop around the Hondacare warranties are cheap. They get you a
loaner when you have warranty work done and have a roadside program. I
paid about $800 for a 100,000 mile, 7 year, no deductible policy.
Cheap insuranse and it covers virtually everything other than routine
maintainence and cosmetics.