Engine remap doubes my insurance quotes!!! Any tips?

[Burrito]

PMed said:

Looks like i opened a can of worms here.

I called Greenlight, who said that their premium would come down a lot after a year of owning the car.

Having shopped for quotes with and without a map, i expect the insurers now have it on record that I'd be interested in mapping it, and therefore might check in the event of a claim, so I guess I'll have to be above board.

To those saying don't map it. Have you got any other suggestions for a £7000 car that will do 30mpg and keep up with any other hot hatch out there?

There's a lot of overexcited people on here!

Ref the car, don't expect 30mpg unless you're driving Miss Daisy. I used to average 28 on the obc, so probably around 25/6.

If you're after economy and power then you might want to consider a diesel, I've remapped (and declared) my 330d to a alleged 280 and it is hot hatch quick and averages around 30mpg. I do miss the revs of a petrol though!

What does a Golf GTD achieve with a map?

[Gandahar]

Problem here is that the biggest mod you can make to your car is your tyres and do insurance companies need telling about those at all? For instance, what about if I fit wider widths or more sticky compounds. Or alternatively if I fit some Chinese tyres on the back of my Caterham just to get the back out. Everywhere, even on the straights?

Now I have a remap on my diesel Yaris. Only for fuel economy though of course. However it does have the advantage of being able to overtake more quickly and more safely, hence I should get a discount from the insurers I guess.

On the other hand I have replaced the OEM 185/60 tyres with wider wheels and 205/45 Michelin PS3 tyres so the mofo corners real quick and rolls like an Italian cruise liner.

So should I report this, it's made the turd of the Yaris a lot quicker point to point than the remap. But then again it can brake later and harder with the 205 tyres, so does it mean it is actually safer when heading to this imaginary bus stop full of children ?

It's a very interesting topic. If you modify your car you should tell the insurance company, but they seem to be obsessed with engines and not tyres. Wheels they will be concerned with, as it makes it perhaps more attractive to thiefs

Has anyone ever had their remap investigated after an accident ? I'd be interested to know.

[hdrflow]

Gandahar said:

It's a very interesting topic. If you modify your car you should tell the insurance company, but they seem to be obsessed with engines and not tyres.

You should certainly ask if is something they care about. They may care about all mods. My wing mirrors are declared for example and added nothing to the premium. My map added 20 quid. If modifying a car it needs to be insured with someone that understands what you're on about. It's a question of communication really since the underwriters are for the most part the same, as in my current underwriter also used to underwrite an old bog standard car I had.

[Engineer1]

ADM06 said:

How are they going to know its been mapped?
Btw, awesome car. I have one.
Buy one that's had a cambelt change though.

In a normal accident they are highly unlikely to check but if you are the trigger car for a multicar pile up on the motorway then the insurer may do more digging. Or if your car gets a reputation for being raced round all it takes is some digging on forums if either the plate or owners name is listed.

[roadend1981]

A remap on something like a golf tdi 130 or seat ibiza fr diesel,totally transforms the car..my argument is that having the extra performance for safer overtaking moves etc actually makes it safer, but im sure the insurance company would not see it like that lol so just dont tell em or you can listen to other people, who will say you wont get paid if you have a crash blah blah but at end of the day its an ecu with a different map. They will always pay out on a remapped car.thats the last thing they would ever look at.

[Gandahar]

hdrflow said:

Gandahar said:

It's a very interesting topic. If you modify your car you should tell the insurance company, but they seem to be obsessed with engines and not tyres.

You should certainly ask if is something they care about. They may care about all mods.

They never seem to be concerned about tyres which is the biggest mod you can do to your car, one way or another. That's not even bringing winter and the weather into it.

Given that the whole thing to me seems to be ill thought out and they only care about the money in and money out; given that it's no wonder people play the system they themselves are playing.

[LiamM45]

5lab said:

a quick look at a remap suggested it only added 25bhp (so 10%) to the car. That's not really very much, and certainly not enough to transform the car significantly.

if you can get classic insurance, take a look at 944s and the like, cheap enough, and pokey enough (in turbo or s2 form)

Arghhhh that first paragraph!!!

Right, peak bhp may not be a huge increase, but how it delivers the power and the added torque transforms the car.

My car went from 280bhp to 297bhp with a remap, so peak horsepower gains were low, but when you look at the graph the power doesn't drop under 280bhp for over 3000rpm. I also gained 50+lbs/ft of torque, and the power delivery is much smoother. To put simply, it's totally transformed the car, whilst running safe boost pressures and fuelling, so reliability and fuel economy is like an original car.

So I'll reiterate, it's not the peak horsepower figure that matters after a remap, it's the change in the torque and the power delivery that vastly improves the car.