Most new vehicles purchased these days come with a warranty - this is an agreement between the manufacturer and the customer that should anything break, malfunction, or otherwise go wrong with the vehicle within a certain period of time (typically 3 years or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first), then the manufacturer will repair or replace the component at no cost to the customer. Vehicle service agreements (also known as extended warranty plans) are designed to offer similar peace of mind by literally extending the length of time a customer can expect to receive such coverage.