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Insurance For A Modified 1.275 Engine. New To The Mini World!


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#1 Ark2010

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Posted 08 January 2017 - 11:53 AM

Hello all,

 

I'm looking to go and pick up my new mini next Saturday. The car itself is a modified mini where the engine has been upgraded from 998cc to 1275 CC. It is a F reg and MOT'd until June 2016.

 

I'm 29, however it is my first car that I am going to own so I'm a little green around the edges.

 

I have a few questions which I'm hoping you all could help with -

 

1) The DVLA website shows it as a 998cc still. Should this be showing as 1275 now or is that because that is how it was originally produced?

 

2) Who are the best insurers for a modified mini? From doing a basic search on a comparison website Flux keeps coming up around £200 less but they seem to have a pretty poor rep from all that I have read. 

 

I also saw Lancaster from this website and looked at them - they gave a great quote, but only as unmodified. With the mod I need to speak with someone on the phone and they aren't open on Sundays.

 

3) When I enter the details on the insurance company websites it just asks if it is a standard, or non standard engine replacement. I'm assuming it is the latter as it is not factory issued but I want to make sure that is correct.

 

4) Any other advice you have?

 

Many thanks!

Noah



#2 AVV IT

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Posted 09 January 2017 - 03:32 AM

Hi Noah & Welcome to TMF,

If the DVLA database is still showing the engine as a 998, then the engine swap probably won't have been declared, so after you buy the car you'll need to send the V5c off to them with details of the new engine size & number. In an effort to reduce vehicle identity fraud DVLA also tend to require written confirmation/ evidence of a genuine engine swap these days. This can be in the form of the receipt/invoice from the garage who carries out the work. If there is no receipt, or the swap was done by a previous owner, then you'll probably need an engineers report from a garage/ workshop etc. confirming that an engine swap has taken place. A friendly independent garage or classic car restorer should be able to help you out with this if needed, but some may charge an admin fee.There have been cases where DVLA have decided that evidence isn't actually needed for classic car engine swaps, so you could just try sending off the V5c with details of the new engine number/cc, and they might just update it and send you a new one straight back, but this doesn't seem to be a consistently applied policy by DVLA, so they may well write back to you asking for written evidence to be provided first.

In terms of an insurer, I'd always recommend that you avoid comparison websites & mainstream insurers and get a classic policy through one of the specialist providers. Personally I'd avoid flux though, due to a rather negative customer service experience that I had with them. I've been with Peter James for a few years now and can't fault them, but I've also had policies with reasonable customer service from HIC, Lancaster, Footman James & Brentacre, so you could give a couple of them a try instead. Most insurers won't quote you online if a car is modified, particularly if the car has performance mods such as a bigger engine, as they'll usually want more details about the associated increase in BHP before giving you an accurate quote.

Who ever you go with, make sure that you get an agreed valuation policy, so that you get back the true cost of replacing a classic mini in the event of a claim & not just the insurers opinion of what standard market value is. Most of the specialist providers provide these policies, some as standard and others for an additional admin fee, similarly some will accept your valuation so long as you supply a series of photos of the car, whilst others will require you to have the car independently valued by a garage/specialist beforehand.

Hope that helps and if I can help with anything else, just give me a yell.

#3 Ark2010

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Posted 10 January 2017 - 07:04 PM

Hi Dave,

 

Thank you very much for that detailed repsonse. Really appreciate the time and effort.

 

The information regarding seems to correlate with what I had found out in the last day. I think I should be able to get a note from a garage to confirm the engine change (mate's grandad used to own it) and doesn't seem to be too much of a hassle. Probably best to get it confirmed with all the necessary docs that potentially waste time and being told they need confirmation from a garage anyway.

 

I now have a quote from Lancaster with the mod taken in to consideration. It only cost an extra £20 to add on the engine as it was a standard one (A-Plus if that means anything to anyone). It cost £186 for the year which was very reasonable, but I am slightly concerned by their reviews online. I liked the guy I spoke to there (Andrew), he seemed on the ball, and working in sales myself I like would want him to take my business as I feel he earned it. My only concern now is that the company itself may not operate very well and having trouble when claiming on insurance is a put off.

 

Any one else have any info on Lancaster?

 

Cheers!

Noah






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