Is your dead engine or transmission covered by a maker's warranty extension?

If your car isn't on one of those, other programs may exist that we haven't verified. This page shows how to check, what each program actually says, and what your options are if the answer is no.

Check your VIN first

Every extension and recall is tied to specific vehicles, so the VIN is the key. NHTSA says it is a 17-character number on the lower left of the windshield and on your registration card, and it may be on your insurance card too.

Then do two things:

1. Search the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. NHTSA says the search shows whether your car needs a repair as part of a recall. If it does, NHTSA's advice is to contact your local dealership to fix the recalled part "for free" (NHTSA).
2. Ask a dealer for your make whether your VIN is in any warranty extension or service campaign. An extension is not the same as a recall, and the NHTSA lookup shows recalls.

Write down what the dealer tells you, including the program code if there is one. The codes below are how the makers name them.

The extensions we could confirm

Each row comes from the maker's own bulletin, posted on NHTSA's site. Nothing here is from a news story or a forum.

Three catches buried in those bulletins:

• Hyundai's knock sensor software. The TXXM bulletin says the Knock Sensor Detection System, Service Campaign 966, had to be done by November 4, 2023 for claims-made benefits, and that KSDS is "also generally required" for the extended warranty. If your engine failed and that campaign was never done, ask the dealer how it affects your claim.
• Nissan's class action opt-outs. The extension came out of a class action. Nissan says some owners opted out by excluding themselves from it, so the VIN must be checked car by car.
• Ford's coverage is the module, not the whole transmission. The program covers the transmission control module on DPS6 cars only. If your problem is somewhere else in the transmission, this extension may not reach it.

What we could not confirm

You'll find other programs mentioned online. We couldn't read an official source for these, so we don't list terms for them:

• Ford PowerShift clutch coverage beyond the control module
• Hyundai and Kia extensions other than TXXI and TXXM
• Nissan CVT programs for other models or years
• Honda, Toyota, GM and Subaru engine or transmission extensions

Not being on our list doesn't mean a program doesn't exist. It means you should get the answer from a dealer, tied to your VIN, in writing.

Warranty, extension or service contract?

These words get mixed up, and the difference matters when a claim is denied.

The FTC says federal law doesn't require a business to give a written warranty at all. Once it does, the Magnuson-Moss Act applies, and on a product costing more than $10, the written warranty must be titled either "full" or "limited" (FTC). Hyundai's lifetime engine coverage, for example, is a Limited Lifetime Warranty (Hyundai).

Hyundai's bulletin says its extension stretches the powertrain warranty itself (Hyundai). A service contract is something else. The FTC describes it as an optional agreement you buy that gives protection beyond the warranty. If you paid extra for an "extended warranty," check your paperwork to see which one you have.

Two more FTC points worth knowing:

• A seller that offers a written warranty, or sells you a service contract, cannot disclaim implied warranties on that product under federal law.
• "Lifetime" warranties confuse people because it is often unclear whose life measures the coverage. With Hyundai's TXXI, the bulletin covers original and later owners, which settles part of that question. With any other lifetime promise, read the fine print.

If you bought the car used

Transfer rules come from each program's own wording. The two Hyundai bulletins say plainly that they cover "original and subsequent owners," and TXXI applies regardless of how long you've owned the car. The Nissan and Ford bulletins we read don't say either way, so ask the dealer to confirm with your VIN rather than assume.

When the answer is no: fix or sell

If the claim is approved, let the dealer do the work. That's the best outcome you'll get.

If it's denied, or your car was never on a program, you're back to a plain repair decision. Get a written quote for the engine or transmission job, then look up what the car sells for in good running shape. If the quote tops that number, we think selling is worth a look. A car with a dead engine or transmission can still be sold as it sits. We buy whole non-running and junk cars, and you can sell the whole car as it sits with free pickup anywhere in the US.

If you sell, finish the paperwork so the state stops treating you as the owner. States handle that step very differently.

After the sale: how each state takes the car out of your name

From each state's agency page or statute. Where our sources had nothing, the cell says so.

Still deciding, or the dealer already said no? Tell us what failed and we'll talk through selling it as it sits. (877) 421-6008