Stage 1 & Insurance?

[thejackal]

I have been considering getting my car remapped to stage 1 as I am keen to get the extra power and fuel economy without physically changing anything on the car at all.

Now I'm sure that non of you good people would ever endorse non disclosure of such an amendment to my insurance company, but for arguments sake where do u think I would stand in the event of a claim?

How would they know it had been remapped?

And if they could find out, could I just deny all knowledge and blame the previous owner or can they check the date it was done?

[Mk5 GTian]

It's illegal, and would invalidate your policy, basically meaning you would be driving without insurance.

You would know about the Stage 1, even if they didn't, so is it really worth the loss of peace of mind for a 20% premium increase? 

[JoeDarKa]

Just get it insured and dont be a wuss about it. Ring your insurance and ask what they will charge. Mine added nothing

[RedRobin]

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You say you are "keen to get the extra power and fuel economy without physically changing anything on the car at all"....

Extra power and fuel economy are not two features that sit comfortably together. Without changing hardware such as to a high flow exhaust and air intake, a remap is not going to deliver you significant extra power.

As for not declaring any mods to your insurer, you would be taking a big risk. You cannot possibly predict what kind of accident you might be involved in and if someone is seriously injured your car may be impounded and very closely inspected. Contrary to what some tuners may claim, there are specialist experts who can tell even if your car is rendered undriveable. I'm describing the worst case but it could end up costing you far more than an annual increase in your insurance premium.

[thejackal]

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You say you are "keen to get the extra power and fuel economy without physically changing anything on the car at all"....

Extra power and fuel economy are not two features that sit comfortably together. Without changing hardware such as to a high flow exhaust and air intake, a remap is not going to deliver you significant extra power.

As for not declaring any mods to your insurer, you would be taking a big risk. You cannot possibly predict what kind of accident you might be involved in and if someone is seriously injured your car may be impounded and very closely inspected. Contrary to what some tuners may claim, there are specialist experts who can tell even if your car is rendered undriveable. I'm describing the worst case but it could end up costing you far more than an annual increase in your insurance premium.

Point taken with regards to insurance but I was led to believe that the very essence of a stage 1 map was to give increased performance to what was a standard car! I accept that you wouldn't see the same gains as if u made physical changes or am I wrong in my understanding?

[stealthwolf]

I think it was PD tuning who stated they had been approached by insurance companies for doing scans and checking if the ecu had been modified, which means that there will be some companies who do do this.

As for proving, onus is on you to prove the car is not modified in any way.

[MC71]

As above, tell your insurers, they will NOT pay out if (god forbid) you are involved in an accident. Have heard stories about insurers not paying out for non disclosed cosmetic modifications such as stickers/decals (believe it or not), think you have NO chance not telling them youve had the car mapped.

Not sure where you are but check out some tuners for "tuning packages", they start with a basic stage 1 map + upgrading your DV to the piston one (revision D) + a better panel filter and so on. Should give you 10-20% increase in bhp then it's stage 2 with induction kit, turbo back exhaust etc etc and it never ends. IMHO if your adding more power you may well want to improve your brakes and handling mods ( to get that power down and keep it there), check out the NSQBBK thread on here for brakes.

 An example of costs from JKM Performance website, re tuning packages:-

http://www.jkm.org.uk/performance/jkmtfsi.

 

[john87]

This subject always gets things going, but say one were to purchase his approved used VW from their respective dealership, and be involved in an accident...only to find out their 'standard' car has been remapped by a previous owner. Where would they stand then? A thorough analysis of the ECU would most likely show a read/write access with corresponding date stamp, which would precede the owners date of purchase...

As insurance companies go, they'd be sure to find a way of wriggling out of paying out, but it's a chin-scratcher all the same 

[gigolo456]

Reputable Tuners r approached by insurance companies when sum claims r made, trust me on that 1!

[GrayMK5GTI]

Dont forget to upgrade your brakes after a remap, the standard brakes aren't really up to 200bhp 

[gigolo456]

Well depends how u drive of course surely!? Standard brakes, granted, will not have the stopping power of yr Cupra, S3, brakes, etc, but as long as u r not a mentallist, an extra 60 bhp is not going 2 b 2 much of a problem IMHO!!

[GTI-Pirelli]

I have found in my case that I saved a fortune by getting stage 1 REVO!

Elephant (Admiral) quoted me approx £1100 to insure my Pirelli, completely standard. 28, 9 years NCB.
Greenlight (Highway) quoted me £638 for the stage 1 + Forge diverter valve (Estimated at 300bhp - REVO's claimed).

No prizes for guessing who I'm insured with! 

It is worth changing insurance companies to maintain the peace of mind if something was to happen!

[stealthwolf]

Agreed - if you're going down the modding route, get a modfriendly insurer - usually much  cheaper than than mainstream.

[keendean]

It's worth trying John at Brentacre 01792 650933, I think from mem.  Been with them since I was 18 (Mk1 Gti) through a SC Vr6, Mk 2 16V Turbo conversion.  Very competitive and covers all mods, well worth a try :)

[RedRobin]

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The important thing about a mod-friendly policy is to make sure it's on a like-for-like replacement basis.