Chevy Warranties: New and CPO Benefits

One of the best reasons to choose a new or Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) Chevy is for the warranty protection that they offer – but it’s important that you know if your vehicle is still covered. The easiest way to know if your Chevy is still under warranty is to look at the age of the vehicle, based on model year and the mileage on it, and compare them to the warranty coverage. As your Certified Pre-Owned Chevy dealer, we’re passionate about warranty protection since it helps all of our customers get the most from their vehicles, and we can help you with any warranty questions you have.

Today, we’re going to take a look at the warranty benefits and protection offered on Chevy vehicles, for both those sold as new and as CPO models. There are some important stipulations and terms for all of this warranty coverage, so it’s worth knowing exactly what they offer and how they protect you. The good news is that, overall, understanding your warranty protection is quite simple, as is determining whether or not your vehicle is still covered. Let’s take a look at how the Chevy warranties work and what you need to do to stay protected as long as possible.

Chevy New Vehicle Warranty Coverage

Every new Chevrolet vehicle is covered by a number of different warranties backed by the manufacturer – many of these are similar to the warranty coverage on other GM brands. You don’t have to pay extra or choose this warranty coverage; it’s provided as a standard feature on all new Chevy cars, trucks, and SUVs when they’re sold. Although this information should be provided with your vehicle, and it’s easy to find from Chevy, let’s take a moment to check out what their warranty protection includes.

• Bumper-to-Bumper Limited Warranty: 3 years or 36,000 miles
• Powertrain Limited Warranty: 5 years or 60,000 miles
• Emission Control System Warranty: 2 years or 24,000 miles
• Electric and Hybrid Warranty: 8 years or 100,000 miles

It’s worth noting that there’s also an Extended Limited Warranty available that increases the standard bumper-to-bumper protection to 5 years or 60,000 miles. Since this is an option, however, we didn’t include it since not everyone will choose it when buying a new car – we should also point out that it’s only offered at the time the vehicle is sold as new, not afterward. It’s important to note that for all of these warranty plans, the coverage extends to either the number of years or miles, whichever one comes first – so if you put a lot of miles on your vehicle, then it will not last as long as someone who drives much less.

All of this warranty coverage can only be utilized if you have your vehicle serviced at an authorized Chevy service location – such as your dealership. If you take your car somewhere else for repairs or maintenance, then they probably won’t recognize the warranty protection since they don’t have an agreement with GM, and you’ll have to pay the full cost. That’s why it’s so important that you take your vehicle to the right type of certified service center when you need work done on something that’s under warranty protection.

There are also some instances where your warranty protection might extend beyond what’s covered by the standard warranties we presented above. For example, if you have a Chevy truck with a Duramax Turbo-Diesel engine, then those are typically covered for 100,000 miles rather than the 60,000 miles for other powertrains. Most vehicles also come with corrosion coverage for the sheet metal that lasts 3 years or 36,000 miles, with additional protection in the form of rust-through coverage, so your vehicle is protected against a lot of wear and tear.

Chevy CPO Model Warranty Coverage

Although warranty protection on a brand-new Chevy is great, that’s not the only way to get something like a Silverado or Camaro with protection from the manufacturer. Certified Pre-Owned models come with warranty protection, which sets them apart from other used vehicles that lack that kind of coverage. In order to qualify for this type of protection, all vehicles have to pass a 172-point inspection, and they must be less than 6 years old with fewer than 75,000 miles on them. They also have to have a clean title; once a vehicle meets these requirements, then it can be sold as a CPO model and have the following warranty coverage:

• Bumper-to-Bumper Limited Warranty: 12 months or 12,000 miles
• Powertrain Limited Warranty: 6 years or 100,000 miles

You might notice at first glance that this is actually a longer coverage period for the powertrain limited warranty with a CPO Chevy. It’s important, however, to note when each of these warranties goes into effect because they are not the same. The one-year or 12,000 miles of bumper-to-bumper protection is provided in addition to any remaining original factory bumper-to-bumper coverage. So if you buy a vehicle that’s two years old with 20,000 miles on it, then it would have up to four years (one year from the original warranty plus another for the CPO coverage) or 28,000 miles (the remaining 16,000 miles of coverage plus 12,000 more for the CPO protection) of warranty on it.

The powertrain limited warranty, however, starts with the vehicle’s original in-service date – that means when it was sold as new. Looking at new models, they come with a 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty, and this would simply change that to a 6-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty. It does not add to the original warranty the way the bumper-to-bumper one does, nor does it begin when the vehicle is sold as a CPO model.

This is still fantastic coverage and protection for your car, far more than what you will find on most other used models out there. It’s important to keep these details in mind when you’re looking at a CPO vehicle and trying to determine exactly how much protection it will have while you drive it. If you tend to do a lot of driving and put many miles on your ride, then the boost to 100,000 miles of powertrain coverage is fantastic and can really come in handy.

How to Protect and Maintain Your Warranty

In addition to the duration and mileage limits on all of these warranties, it is also important that you take the proper steps to maintain the coverage. The warranty documentation from Chevy clearly indicates a number of things that are not covered by the protection, such as tire wear and damage from normal use, as well as damage from road hazards, improper inflation, overloading, and other things you could consider “user error.” In fact, most of the things not covered by the warranty plans from Chevy include damage to a vehicle caused by accident, misuse, or improper maintenance of it.

For example, damage from a collision, driving with too much weight on a vehicle, or due to alterations to the body, chassis, powertrain, or anything else are not covered by the warranties. Installation of non-GM parts that cause any damage or issues is not covered, as is any damage caused by a failure to follow the recommended maintenance schedule for the vehicle. So if you skip an oil change that’s coming up, and you end up with engine problems, then your mechanic might tell you that the repairs aren’t covered by your powertrain warranty.

This is part of why it’s so important to follow the service and maintenance schedule from Chevy since it ensures your vehicle stays under warranty protection – it also keeps your car running smoothly and helps avoid future issues. Although extra expenses like lost wages from missing work aren’t covered by these warranties, it’s worth noting that not only parts and labor but also towing costs are all covered as long as the issue involves something that’s under warranty. Looking to get the most from your warranty coverage? Then call or come visit us at DePaula Chevrolet, and we’ll help you with everything you need.