NoobNox said:
For these reasons (and others) I always make sure my monthly payments don't go past the manufacturers warranty...and after that I simply save a portion of what would be my monthly car payment for possible repairs later on..
That's very sound advice!
The only problem for most people is that the cost of new vehicles is very high and the warranty is normally only three years. Most people cannot make the required payments on a $30K+ vehicle in order to pay it off before the warranty expires.
I would think that the next best thing if possible would be to purchase an extended warranty to cover the duration of the payment period. That way you wouldn't have to deal with repair bills while your still paying for the vehicle.
Since here in Canada we only have the option of the GM extended warranty or those other, "GASP!" less desirable third party warranties, we purchased a year of GM extended, $0 deductible warranty for our Nox to cover the four years of payments.
This may or may not be the best option for everyone and if we never have to use it, it will be money spent on peace of mind.