07-03-2024, 09:26 AM | #1 |
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Found out my car has been tuned
Had my car in at BMW for a service on Monday (first one since purchasing it back in January). When doing their usual vehicle inspection it was flagged up as having an engine tune. I bought the car privately and it was never mentioned by the previous owner. I suspect it was done whilst he owned it as he’d bought from BMW with an approved used warranty. It has full dealer service history and the vehicle checks (carvertical & vcheck) all returned fine so it didn’t even cross my mind to ask - everything seemed 100%.
Obviously it’s a bit of a concern as I’ve no idea what map is on the car. The tech at BMW couldn’t really say much other than it had been flagged on their system. It’s ran fine for the past 6 months (6k miles), it’s a family car driven sensibly which is possibly why I never really suspected anything. In hindsight, it does feel a little quicker than the others I test drove but not really enough to cause any suspicion. Aside from that my warranty is now void and I’ll need to inform my insurance who like most are already screwing me on my premium. BMW offered to remove the map at the cost of an hours labour which I’m considering, obviously it won’t change the warranty situation as its now recorded has been modified but would give me peace of mind going forward and also prevent any insurance hikes. The downside I guess is I’m likely to be driving a car with much less power than what I’m used to. Any advice on what to do? Is there anyway of finding out what map/tune was put on the car and when it was applied? I’ve attempted to contact the previous owner for information but unsurprisingly no joy. The car is a 2020 320i M Sport. |
07-03-2024, 11:34 AM | #2 |
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that's bad news, especially with insurance the way it is - the best you could do is to have a look at what the ECU remap tuners offer and see what's closest. e.g.
Stage 1 tune - 181 BHP to 300 BHP - does that sound like your car https://www.celtictuning.co.uk/servi...tuning/stage-1 274 BHP https://www.remapkings.com/ECU-Remap...84-bhp/stage-1 |
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ronniehotdogs5.50 |
07-03-2024, 11:59 AM | #3 |
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Yeah that sounds about right from what the BMW tech said. If there was anyway of finding the company who mapped it, it'd be useful.
There's so many companies ranging from well established reputable ones to back street garages offering them these days so it could be any I suppose. |
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07-03-2024, 12:17 PM | #4 |
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I’m assuming the car is coming out of warranty anyway coming up to 4yrs?
I’d get BMW to reverse it personally. Not having any detail on the map then you have no idea if it was done properly or not. In my mind, that’s potential strain on the engine and components which otherwise wouldn’t be there. I don’t know enough about maps, but speaking to a dealer years ago they did warn me that it’s not always great to just tune it, bigger air intakes/intercoolers are required to support it. Again, just my opinion, but I’d say reverse the map and as for power don’t worry too much if as you say it was nothing totally obvious when test driving vehicles prior. Not to mention insurance will take any reason to hike up your premium! |
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07-03-2024, 12:18 PM | #5 |
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Wow, what a strange situation to find yourself in.
Sounds like an hour's labour would be money well spent compared with the impact on your insurance. Good luck.
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07-03-2024, 12:26 PM | #6 | |
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To be honest I have considered selling it but that may be an over reaction. |
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Funboy78132.50 |
07-04-2024, 03:18 AM | #7 |
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For insurance purposes alone put it back to standard , an hours labour is well worth it as your insurance premium will increase probably by that much if not more.
Also when obtaining a new warranty I would suggest declaring it was originally remapped but has now been brought back to standard spec by a BMW dealership. If you don't and you have to make a claim they will probably check with BMW to ascertain the previous service history and if the back to standard remap was not disclosed it gives them a chance to void the claim. |
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ronniehotdogs5.50 |
07-04-2024, 04:52 AM | #8 |
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Thanks for the advice everyone, along the lines I was thinking. I'll be getting the car booked into the dealers for it to be reversed.
Interestingly, I heard back from the previous owner who *thinks* its was mapped by Superchips. I've heard the name before - they look like a generic mapping company who do it on the driveway so certainly not a specialist tuner. He said it was on the car when he purchased it but I've contacted Superchips this morning who confirmed it was done by them and gave me a date which was during his ownership. I really didn't think that BMW would have knowingly sold him a modified car, anyway I suppose that's irrelevant now. Bad news regarding the warranty, I've been informed that my current policy is void (understandable) but even when returned back to stock by BMW they can't offer any further cover. |
07-04-2024, 07:51 AM | #9 |
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What was the scope of the warranty you purchased?
In the US a tune would affect the engine warranty and maybe other powertrain components, but the remainder of the car still has a warranty on covered components. For example, the failure of a covered component in the braking system or the HVAC would still be covered. |
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07-04-2024, 08:11 AM | #10 |
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glad you got to the bottom of it
wow super chips can remap my car from 258 bhp to 410bhp for £225 In this case I understand insurance companies and warranty providers wanting to avoid at all costs |
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07-04-2024, 08:24 AM | #11 |
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Quite - 410bhp from a 2-litre four-pot is reaching.
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07-04-2024, 08:35 AM | #12 |
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sorry I double checked and screwed up
its 310 BHP which is a 20% increase , Not so dangerous for all Last edited by carrera77; 07-04-2024 at 08:41 AM.. |
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07-04-2024, 10:07 AM | #13 | |
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I had one on a previous BMW my wife had and remember claiming on it and it was fine, took a little longer to get reimbursed and I think we had to pay for the repair upfront to BMW and then claim the cost back. Still fulfilled the 'peace of mind' having a warranty gives you though! |
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07-04-2024, 10:09 AM | #14 |
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Have you asked them if non drive train/engines can still be covered? Electrics etc that won't be affected by the tune. Or is it the whole kit and caboodle?
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07-04-2024, 10:24 AM | #15 |
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I asked and was told any modification voids the whole policy so even parts unaffected by the map aren't covered.
Looks like I'm just going to have go without warranty and hope nothing too expensive breaks, that or move the car on and start again! I think this may be the last time I purchase a car privately. |
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07-04-2024, 03:03 PM | #16 |
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Try CarCare Plan for a warranty, I have it on mine , made one claim for O2 sensor and they covered the cost in full including the diagnostic charge but as said above I had to pay upfront then claim it back as the dealership I used was not one that had an account with them.
https://carcareplan.com/ |
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ronniehotdogs5.50 |
07-05-2024, 03:26 AM | #17 | |
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I honestly wouldn’t worry too much. Get it reversed by BMW then carry on enjoying the car. If you were thinking of changing anyway, different story, if not, then again don’t worry. They are tough engines, whilst I do appreciate the benefits of warranty, the chances are the car will be solid for the foreseeable future. Bottom line, don’t stress about it - but I agree I’d be annoyed as well, especially knowing the previous owner blatantly lied. |
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ronniehotdogs5.50 |
07-19-2024, 11:47 AM | #18 |
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Had the tuning reversed earlier this week. Can't really feel much of a difference so either the remap wasn't that good or it's just me! Either way it means I'm sorted in regards to insurance and aren't driving around with an unknown map.
Previous owner must have coded some things as stop/start is on everytime I start the car now and the default drive mode has changed from adaptive to comfort. I'm sure I can change these back though. |
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