Disclosure: This content was produced by an independent editorial party for the purposes of educating our customers, and is not influenced by the other business operations of CARCHEX.
An extended car warranty is protection from the vehicle manufacturer against mechanical breakdowns. This term is sometimes incorrectly used to describe coverage from third-party providers, which offer similar protection plans called vehicle service contracts. CARCHEX is a vehicle service contract provider.
You’ve just purchased a new Honda vehicle. As excited as you might be, you know that protecting it past the manufacturer’s warranty is important. Your Honda dealer will probably offer you a protection plan from Honda Care®. These Honda extended warranties provide coverage for specific types of repairs to your car.
Did you know a Honda Care plan isn’t your only option? A vehicle service contract from CARCHEX gives you the protection you need at an affordable price. See the benefits and disadvantages to a Honda Care plan and how a CARCHEX Extended Vehicle Protection Plan gives you unmatched protection.
What Is Honda Care?
Honda Care is the extended warranty program offered directly from Honda. This program allows new and certified pre-owned Honda buyers to enroll in a vehicle service contract for their car. Although vehicle service contracts are often called auto service contracts and warranties, they are separate from your Honda factory warranty.
You can sign up for a Honda Care plan when you buy your car from a Honda dealership that offers the program. Not all dealerships provide Honda Care enrollment.
Why Purchase an Extended Warranty?
Most people look for an extended care program for their new or certified pre-owned vehicle to help protect it against unexpected breakdowns. Your Honda manufacturer’s warranty only covers repairs due to faulty or defective parts and poor workmanship.
Likewise, insurance policies, which are required by state automobile financial responsibility laws, don’t cover breakdowns from normal use. Your insurance policy only covers repairs related to accidents and is dependent on the type of coverage you carry.
Extended warranties, on the other hand, provide coverage for vehicle systems that tend to break down over time. Even with proper maintenance, the parts on your Honda can wear out. A vehicle service contract seeks to relieve some of the cost of expensive repairs.
Who Can Repair My Car with Honda Care?
Repairs covered by Honda Care need to be performed by a Honda dealership. While not every Honda dealer offers Honda Care contracts, they all must honor Honda Care repairs.
If you’re in an area where there are no Honda dealerships, you may use a Honda-certified mechanic. However, any mechanic must use genuine Honda or American Honda parts for repairs. These parts can be expensive to replace if your vehicle has another breakdown after your plan expires.
What Does Honda Care Cover?
Honda offers new car owners plenty of coverage options through its Honda Care plans. Some of the covered components of a Honda Care plan for new Hondas include the engine, brakes, and electrical components.
See the chart below for some of the more common covered components.
Car System |
Example of Covered Components |
|---|---|
Engine |
• Cylinder block |
Air Conditioning and Heating |
• Compressor |
Drive Axle System |
• Drive lines |
Brakes |
• Check valve |
Cooling System |
• Radiator |
Fuel Delivery System |
• Fuel injectors |
Electrical Components |
• Starter |
Suspension |
• Control arms |
Steering Components |
• Steering column |
Plan Options from Honda Care
Honda offers four different plans for new, certified pre-owned, and pre-owned Honda vehicles. You can also sign up for Honda Care if you don’t have a Honda vehicle. This generally isn’t recommended, as you’ll still need to have repairs to your non-Honda vehicle done at a Honda dealership.
Honda also offers a maintenance plan for purchase. While Honda doesn’t provide free maintenance for your vehicle, the maintenance plan gives you the chance to buy a bundle of oil changes and other maintenance services up front.
There are two types of coverage:
- Component Coverage
- Powertrain Coverage
Component Coverage
Honda Care Component Coverage is available for:
- New Honda Vehicles
- Pre-Owned Vehicles
- Certified Additional Coverage for Certified Pre-Owned Hondas
Component Coverage is the most extensive Honda Care plan available. It offers exclusionary coverage. This means every system of your car is covered except for a list of excluded parts.
Some excluded parts of the Component Coverage plan are:
- Non-genuine Honda Parts
- Cables, belts, and hoses
- Battery
- Non-Honda electronic or audio accessories
- Windshields and glass
- Oil changes and other routine maintenance
Powertrain Coverage
Powertrain coverage is available only for pre-owned vehicles. It offers basic protection from costly repairs. Covered parts include:
- Engine
- Drive axle
- Transmission
- Seals, gaskets, and fluids
Are Used Vehicles Covered?
You can cover your used Honda under a Honda Care plan. Vehicles must be a 2021 or newer and have fewer than 36,000 miles. Once a Honda vehicle falls outside these requirements, Honda Care is no longer an option.
How Much Does Honda Care Cost?
Pricing for Honda Care depends on a number of factors. For example, you can choose a plan with a deductible or one with a $0 deductible. The $0 deductible plan is more expensive. Other factors in the price of Honda Care include:
- Vehicle age
- Mileage
- Honda model
Honda Care Roadside Assistance
One benefit offered by Honda Care is roadside assistance, which includes:
- Towing services
- Lockout assistance
- Battery jump-starting
- Tire changing
- Fuel delivery
If you need a rental car while a covered repair is being made, Honda Care provides rental car reimbursement up to $35 a day for up to six days.
Similarly, Honda Care includes trip interruption service if your car breaks down 100 miles or more away from home. The plan provides $100 a day for up to three days for meals and lodging.
As with any dealership-offered extended warranty, Honda Care plans come with a lot of restrictions. Not meeting certain requirements could have your repair claims denied. This could leave you with a broken vehicle and big repair costs.
Some of the biggest drawbacks to Honda Care come from the use of Honda parts, dealer repairs, and driver modifications:
- Must Use Honda Dealership for Repairs—You’re required to have repairs completed at a Honda dealership. In some specific circumstances, you may be able to use a Honda-certified repair shop. These scenarios generally happen if you break down in an area outside of towing distance from a Honda dealer.
- Only Genuine Honda Parts—Your favorite mechanic might be able to get you a good price on repairs by using third-party parts. If you have a Honda Care plan, however, the dealership can only use genuine Honda parts. Branded parts are often more expensive, pushing repair costs even higher. While high repair costs may be fine when your Honda Care plan is active, once it expires, you may be stuck paying for costly repairs using these expensive parts.
- Strictly Follow Honda Maintenance—You should perform regular maintenance on your vehicle. This helps it run better and keeps you from voiding extended warranty contracts. With a Honda Care extended warranty, you’ll need to follow the Honda maintenance schedule using only Honda-approved parts.
- Upgrades Aren’t Covered—Thinking of making small modifications to your vehicle? Or have you had small repairs done by your local repair mechanic? Any non-Honda parts used in these modifications aren’t covered by the Honda Care plans.
- Limited Coverage Options—The limited timeframe to enroll in a Honda Care plan is one of the biggest downsides. Cars must be under three years old and have fewer than 36,000 miles to purchase a Honda Care service contract. Hondas rank below industry average in reliability, according to the J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study℠. That means as your Honda ages, you’re more likely to need protection from unexpected breakdowns.
- Extra Expenses—Your dealership will likely ask if you’d like to roll the price of your Honda Care plan into your car financing. This makes payment simple since you’ll only have to make one monthly payment. However, the cost of your Honda Care will then be charged interest like the rest of your financing.
Are There Better Options than Honda Care to Protect My Car?
A better way to make sure your car stays protected, even after the manufacturer’s warranty expires, is through a third-party protection plan*. Independent companies offer a large range of coverage and pricing options to meet your needs. You also won’t be restricted to Honda-only parts, repairs, or maintenance services.
See why a vehicle service contract from a third-party provider like CARCHEX is the best choice for protecting your Honda:
- Customized Coverage—Honda only offers two types of coverage for your car. Unless you have a pre-owned car, you’re stuck choosing the Component Coverage option from Honda Care. If you want just basic coverage for major repairs and a more affordable price point, you’re out of luck. CARCHEX lets you customize the coverage you want for your vehicle to fit your needs.
- Repair Shop Options—Use your favorite mechanic instead of the Honda dealership with a third-party vehicle protection plan. Is the dealer your preferred provider? With a third-party service contract, you can still have repairs done at the dealership.
- Factory-Quality Parts—Third-party service contracts give your mechanic the ability to use the best parts for the repair job. Without being limited to genuine Honda parts, your mechanic can help you save money on small repairs that don’t require a claim.
- Coverage for Older Vehicles—Third-party vehicle protection companies have more plans that can help you find coverage for an older vehicle or one with higher mileage. As your Honda ages, you can feel confident you’re still covered from unexpected breakdowns and repairs.
*Plans offered by independent companies like CARCHEX are vehicle service contracts—not extended warranties. Service contracts and extended warranties offer the same function, however, providing repair coverage for mechanical breakdowns after factory warranties expire. Vehicle service contracts from independent providers often cover components that extended warranties from auto manufacturers won’t and for longer term limits.
Get an Industry-Leading Vehicle Service Contract from CARCHEX
When it comes to third-party auto coverage for Honda vehicles, CARCHEX is an industry leader. We’re committed to customer satisfaction. In fact, we’ve put so much value in helping our customers, we’ve been accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) since 2009 and made our motto “Customer Experience Above All.”
See how a CARCHEX vehicle service contract stands out from other providers:
- Excellent Customer Service—Our A+ BBB rating comes from a desire to help our customers.
- Flexible Payments—We offer low monthly payment plans to best fit your budget.
- Coverage for Almost Any Car—Our protection plans provide options for cars of all shapes and sizes, including new Hondas, high-mileage Hondas, and older vehicles.
- Easy Repair Payments—Paying your repair bill is simple. You’ll pay your deductible if your plan has one, and we’ll take care of the rest by paying the repair shop directly. Best of all, you’ll get to work with your favorite mechanic, regardless of brand.
- 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee—Don’t like your CARCHEX plan? Cancel within 30 days and we’ll give you your money back, no questions asked.
- Extra Perks—Like the Honda Care plans, CARCHEX provides all of our protection plan customers with a robust roadside assistance and trip interruption service at no extra charge. Get a tow to your mechanic, fuel delivery, battery jump-start, and more with 24/7 access.
Get More Out of Your Vehicle Service Contract
Still on the fence about a CARCHEX plan or Honda Care? Learn more about our vehicle protection plans and find the right fit by speaking with our customer service team. We’ll walk you through different coverage options for your Honda vehicle.
Sources:
Federal Trade Commission
https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0054-auto-service-contracts-and-warranties
Insurance Information Institute:
https://www.iii.org/article/background-on-compulsory-auto-uninsured-motorists
Saccucci Honda:
https://www.saccuccihondacare.com/coverage.php
Honda Financial Services:
https://www.hondafinancialservices.com/static/pdf/Honda_Care_NonHonda_Coverage.pdf
CurryHondaCare.com:
https://www.curryhondacare.com/faq.cfm
J.D. Power:
https://www.jdpower.com/business/press-releases/2024-us-vehicle-dependability-study-vds
Better Business Bureau:
https://www.bbb.org/us/md/hunt-valley/profile/extended-warranty-contract-service-companies/carchex-0011-23015869