Carvana Extended Warranty Overview
CarvanaCare extended warranty coverage comes in three different coverage levels, from powertrain to comprehensive with maintenance and cosmetic coverage.
With our #1 rated provider, 
Motor1 Reviews Team Take:
- Carvana vehicles come with a 100-day/4,189-mile limited warranty that covers most parts and systems with a $100 deductible at preferred repair facilities.
- CarvanaCare extended warranty coverage must be purchased during the initial vehicle sale or before the vehicle is delivered or picked up. This coverage includes basic powertrain to more comprehensive coverage with maintenance services.
- Carvana doesn’t offer pricing, sample contracts, or free quotes on its website, making it difficult for customers to know what they’re buying.
Based in Tempe, Arizona, Carvana is an online used car retailer that allows customers to shop, sell, finance, or trade in cars through its website. Made popular in part by its car vending machines and no-hassle, online car buying experience, the car seller also offers an extended warranty called CarvanaCare®. In this article, our reviews team discusses the details of Carvana’s extended warranty and how it compares to the best extended auto warranty companies in the industry.
Our team has examined thousands of online reviews, collected quotes, and mystery shopped warranty providers to understand the customer experience they provide. This adds up to more than 1,475 total hours of research and more than 2,200 data points. Backed by this extensive research, we gave Carvana 4.0 out of 5.0 stars for its extended warranty program.
Carvana Warranty Overview and Methodology
The CarvanaCare warranty program has three plans and offers coverage that is comparable to leading providers. Each of these plans comes with roadside assistance, and the highest tier of warranty covers complimentary maintenance services. As you might expect, the terms and cost of a Carvana warranty are affected by the specific vehicle you buy.
How We Rated Carvana Warranty
To give you the most relevant information, we update our review standards several times each year. Our warranty research evaluates providers in the following categories:
Industry Standing
When we rate warranty providers for industry standing, we consider things like how long they’ve been in business, Better Business Bureau (BBB) accreditation, and availability.
Carvana’s extended warranty plans are available for most vehicles the company sells, but not all. Not knowing whether you’ll find the model you want with the right coverage can add time to your used car search.
The car dealer has been in business since 2012 and is not BBB accredited or rated. Overall, we give the company a 4.1- out of 5.0-star rating for industry standing. Across more than 40 rated providers, the industry average is 4.0 out of 5.0, meaning Carvana has an average industry reputation compared to most other providers.
Coverage
Carvana offers three levels of extended warranty coverage, which is fewer than many leading providers. However, the company’s selection of plans features powertrain protection—for core engine and transmission components—and more comprehensive options that include maintenance benefits.
There are also some impressive perks that come with some Carvana warranty plans. With CarvanaCare Premier, customers get limited cosmetic damage coverage, roadside assistance, tire and wheel coverage, and select maintenance services.
All things considered, we give the company a solid 4.4-star rating here. That’s just above the average of 4.2 in this category across all providers we reviewed.
Cost
The cost of a Carvana extended warranty depends on the purchased vehicle model, age, and mileage. Carvana has a network of more than 10,000 preferred repair shops that offer $0 deductibles on covered repairs.
It’s tough to rate a warranty provider’s cost when it doesn’t disclose prices, but after reading Carvana extended warranty reviews relating to cost, we awarded the company 3.9 stars in this category. That’s lower than the industry average we found in our research of 4.0 stars, but not by much.
Transparency
We typically consider sample contracts and the availability of a money-back guarantee when we rate warranty companies for transparency. Carvana offers both sample contracts as well as a seven-day money-back guarantee for the vehicles it sells.
Overall, we give the company 4.0 out of 5.0 stars for transparency, which is just above the industry average of 3.9 stars in this category.
Customer Service
Online Carvana extended warranty reviews relating to customer satisfaction play a key role in our ratings for this category. We also consider a warranty provider’s digital presence.
Carvana doesn’t have a mobile app, but it does offer online chat. More than 11,000 customer reviews on Trustpilot award the company 4.3 out of 5.0 stars total. Weighing all these factors, we give Carvana 3.7 stars for customer service, which lands just above the average score in this category across all providers—3.6 stars.
Is a Carvana Warranty Worth It?
Before evaluating Carvana’s extended warranty, it is worth looking into the warranty that comes with every vehicle purchased from Carvana.
Carvana’s limited warranty, or “worry free guarantee,” entitles every new Carvana vehicle to 100 days/4,189 miles of coverage for needed repairs. While Carvana will cover most of the cost of your repairs, there is a $100 deductible for every repair at a preferred service center after 14 days of vehicle ownership. If the repair is performed at a non-preferred service center, that deductible climbs to $350.
The “worry free guarantee” covers repairs on all assemblies and parts on your vehicle except:
- Interior or exterior cosmetic imperfections
- Replaceable/wearable parts
- Recommended maintenance
- Aftermarket accessories
Carvana’s limited warranty also comes with roadside assistance, including towing, jump-starts, and flat tire assistance. In addition, locksmith services and emergency gas/fluid assistance are offered.
Drivers may find Carvana’s “worry free guarantee” helpful for the short-term, but most vehicle owners who desire long-term coverage need a warranty much longer than 100 days. Its seven-day money-back guarantee is also a short timeline for purchasing, which may leave some customers feeling rushed to buy a plan. It’s important to be aware of these shorter-than-normal terms, compared to the industry average.
Carvana Warranty Coverage
In contrast with many other reputable extended car warranty companies, you can only purchase CarvanaCare at the time you purchase your vehicle or before the vehicle is delivered or picked up. Although the company sells Carvana extended warranty plans, it is not the plan administrator. The CarvanaCare extended warranty is administered by SilverRock, a third-party warranty company.
CarvanaCare is only offered with some of Carvana’s vehicles that are available for purchase online. For example, CarvanaCare was not offered for a 2015 Porsche 911 Turbo being sold on its website.
Based on the information provided to us, CarvanaCare seems fairly comprehensive and is competitive with other providers. However, we recommend that our readers study the sample vehicle service contract they receive for CarvanaCare before purchasing an extended warranty plan.
Sample contracts can reveal differences in coverage between extended warranty providers that are not evident when comparing high-level descriptions on providers’ websites or in brochures.
CarvanaCare Plan Options
CarvanaCare offers three different coverage plans: CarvanaCare Essential, CarvanaCare Plus, and CarvanaCare Premier. Here’s a look at the components each of these plans covers:
| Carvana Plan | Plan Details |
|---|---|
|
CarvanaCare Essential |
A basic level of protection that covers the engine, transmission, and drivetrain. |
|
CarvanaCare Plus |
Along with everything in the Essential plan, this coverage level also includes steering, heating, air conditioning, fuel and emissions, electrical, and more. |
|
CarvanaCare Premier |
Similar to a manufacturer’s warranty, this is the highest level of coverage Carvana offers. The Premier plan features all protections of the Plus and Essential packages while adding coverage for minor cosmetic damage and tire/wheel repair. This plan also includes complimentary maintenance services such as oil changes, tire rotations, and multipoint inspections for one year. |
In the table below, our review team compared the offered coverage terms for three different Carvana vehicles. Since a new car is less likely to have issues than a used vehicle, a Carvana extended warranty offers more coverage in terms of mileage and years of coverage for newer vehicles.
| Vehicle | Mileage | CarvanaCare Coverage Offered |
|---|---|---|
|
2019 Kia Forte |
22,951 miles |
4 years/90,000 miles or 5 years/100,000 miles |
|
2018 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport |
37,478 miles |
3 years/90,000 miles or 5 years/100,000 miles |
|
2015 Ford Edge |
33,499 miles |
2 years/60,000 miles or 4 years/90,000 miles |
Carvana Warranty Benefits
Every CarvanaCare plan comes with the same roadside assistance offered through Carvana’s limited warranty, including towing, jump-starts, and flat tire assistance. The company’s locksmith services and emergency gas/fluid assistance is also provided to Carvana extended warranty customers.
What Does a Carvana Warranty Not Cover?
Like other extended warranties, CarvanaCare plans don’t cover damage caused by lack of routine maintenance, theft, vandalism, or acts of nature. Modifications to the vehicle and unauthorized repairs are also exclusions from Carvana warranties.
Carvana Extended Warranty Cost
Carvana does not disclose the cost of CarvanaCare protection plans, so our team conducted several extended warranty consumer surveys to better understand pricing.
In November 2023, we surveyed 1,000 drivers who had purchased an extended warranty. The majority of respondents reported paying between $1,500 and $3,500 in total. To see if Carvana warranties fell within this range, our team launched a second survey in January 2024 and was able to connect with 26 Carvana contract holders. It’s a small sample size, and it’s important to remember that pricing will depend on your vehicle’s make, model, and age, as well as the level of coverage you choose. But this small group can give you a better idea of what to expect:
- 2 reported paying under $1,000
- 12 reported paying between $1,000 and $2,000
- 7 reported paying between $2,000 and $3,000
- 4 reported paying between $3,000 and $4,000
- 1 reported paying between $4,000 and $5,000
With the majority of respondents reporting coverage in the $1,000 to $3,000 range, we think Carvana costs are likely to be close to industry averages.
What Customers Are Saying
When our team polled Carvana extended warranty contract holders, 25 out of 26 respondents reported satisfaction with their plans. Worth noting, only two of them had submitted a claim and both were satisfied with the outcome. Here’s what contract holders had to say:
- “It protects and covers all of my needs for my vehicle. I’ve haven’t had any problems with them or my car thus far!”
- “It covers almost every vehicle maintenance I have needed [in the] past two years.”
- “I am actually very happy with my warranty coverage. The coverage makes me feel safer in the vehicle I am driving around.”
Carvana Extended Warranty: Bottom Line
A CarvanaCare plan is a decent option for Carvana customers who want some extra peace of mind. The fact that you have to purchase a plan before receiving your car and only have till the end of the company’s seven-day money-back guarantee to solidify your decision is a complicating factor. It’s also not ideal that free quotes and sample contracts are unavailable. It’s a good idea to explore as many third-party warranty options as possible before the end of the seven-day Carvana guarantee period.
Our Recommended Extended Car Warranty Providers
Our review team has examined several extended warranty companies, and we found that both Endurance and Carchex are excellent providers.
Endurance
We give Endurance 4.6 out of 5.0 stars and recognize it for having the Best Coverage. Endurance is a direct provider of vehicle protection plans, which means there’s no middleman to handle claims. You can get free, customizable quotes online and view sample contracts at the same time. Endurance also allows you to choose from any shop that’s certified by Automotive Service Excellence (ASE®) for covered repairs.
Read more: Endurance Review
Carchex
Covering vehicles up to 20 years old and providing a 250,000 mileage limit, Carchex is our pick as the best extended car warranty provider for used cars. Carchex offers five coverage levels that are each customizable, which, along with its strong industry reputation, earned it a 4.5 out of 5.0 stars from our review team. Our team purchased a Titanium coverage plan from Carchex in 2023, and we were impressed with the smooth process and helpful customer service.
Read more: Carchex Review
FAQ: Carvana Extended Car Warranty
Below are some frequently asked questions about Carvana extended warranties.
Does Carvana have an extended warranty?
Carvana offers three levels of warranty coverage under the CarvanaCare name. The Essential plan is similar to a powertrain warranty, while the Plus plan adds steering, air conditioning, exhaust, and more. The Premier plan is similar to a bumper-to-bumper warranty.
What is the maximum care warranty on Alfa Romeo?
Maximum Care covers almost any mechanical breakdown on an Alfa Romeo. It’s an exclusionary contract, so it covers all major systems except for a list of exclusions.
How long is the Carvana warranty?
Every car purchased from Carvana comes with a limited warranty and a seven-day money-back guarantee. The Carvana limited warranty lasts for 100 days or 4,189 miles, whichever comes first. Keep in mind that most cars the company sells are still under their original factory warranty.
What is the deductible for the Carvana extended warranty?
This depends on the plan you purchase, but the highest option is a $50 deductible. Carvana has a network of over 10,000 preferred automotive repair facilities that have $0 deductibles for covered repairs.
Methodology
In an effort to provide accurate and unbiased information to consumers, our expert review team collects data from dozens of extended auto warranty companies to formulate rankings of the best providers. Companies receive a score in each of the following categories, as well as an overall weighted score out of 5.0 stars.
- Industry Standing: Warranty providers with a history of strong business practices and endorsements from experts receive the highest scores in this category.
- Coverage: This rating is based on types of extended warranty plans available, coverage terms, and added benefits like roadside assistance.
- Cost: Our research team reviews sample quotes for a variety of plans and vehicles. Companies with lower prices per year of coverage receive the best scores.
- Transparency: This score takes into account contract transparency and the availability of a money-back guarantee.
- Customer Service: We comb through customer reviews and perform our own shopper analysis to get a sense of the responsiveness and helpfulness of each warranty company.
*Data accurate at time of publication.
