A few days after that, I received news that the soft launch of a 5-year warranty, in a 3-stage format, was already in operation in select cities for certain customers – based on profile and other conditions. Without being able to validate this next piece of information, but with no reason to doubt the source, apparently another manufacturer is offering 50-months, while yet another has a 4-year warranty with a 3-year service package.

But that’s still not the end of the rainbow. It was not too long ago that a 1-year warranty, offered as some sort of a consolation prize, was tagged on with whatever you bought. What purpose it actually served was another story altogether – it usually involved reconfirming every-and-any-thing from Head Office.

Now, 7-year warranties are reasonably common in developed countries – with unlimited mileage and corrosion cover on offer, even in cold countries where the salt on the roads can cause permanent damage to anything that plies them. In some cases, these are also extended to commercial vehicles, as well as fleet and taxi operators, who certainly have more wear-and-tear than the normal private vehicle operator.

Likewise, newer manufacturers, like Kia, are now offering 7-year warranties for their products, even in countries with extremely tough road conditions – like Poland for instance, where it gets cold enough to stop armies from moving. Moreover, they offer the same warranties where the road conditions are quite like those in many developing nations – often worse too. From personal knowledge, the Poles really like to push their cars – to the limit and beyond – and anybody offering a 7-year warranty in Poland is truly confident about their product and service.

So, if the new standard for warranties in India now reaches 6 years, with high mileage protection thrown in, what does this imply?

Surprisingly, on deeper analysis, it appears to be a win-win for the manufacturers, their dealers, as well as the end customers. The possible losers in this new game would be the independent workshops – especially those in the larger urban locations.

Here’s how:

• A long warranty will have all sorts of lock-in clauses, wherein owners will have to bring their vehicles to specific authorised dealers only. Any deviation – and now there is enough technology within a car, as well as at the dealers, to ‘catch’ those who try to fiddle outside the network – and the warranty would be void. The honest customer, however, has nothing to worry about, and absolutely everything to gain
  
  
• For the mainstream private vehicle owner and operator, a long timeline does not necessarily mean high usage, and so the dealer is largely safeguarded from the risk of warranty repairs due to high wear-and-tear. However, the vehicle still has to come to the workshop to satisfy warranty conditions, and money is then made in servicing and consumables
  
  
• Preventive maintenance is outside the purview of the warranty, and that’s another cost that regular owners will hopefully gladly bear – again to the benefit of the dealer workshop. If this leads to a more satisfying and secure driving experience, even when the vehicle is older, it’ll certainly work to everybody’s advantage
  
  
• The manufacturer can also ‘lock’ the customer in for running expenses like insurance, tyres, batteries and bodywork. This last one, merged with the insurance, is a money spinner – especially if there’s close cooperation between the insurance people and the dealers to prevent fraudulent insurance claims
  
  
• The chances of a customer, who has been satisfied with a long term warranty, going back to the same manufacturer for a replacement / additional, vehicle are high. And this is also where the power of word-of-mouth will stand out. In my opinion, this will be the real winner