Does Apple usually work on macs outside of the original 1 year warranty if its only been a few months since it expired?
I usually never get warranties for anything at all, they are known to being huge ripoffs, but when spending this kind of money on a laptop with expensive parts im not too sure
Apple is definitely worth it - I sell used MBP's and AppleCare provides a lot of selling power. People are not afraid of a used MBP with warranty. If you are in the US purchase AppleCare from B&H video - $190.