Focus 1.6 with ST170 body

Morba · 9 Jan 2011 at 01:15

Yeah, they'll want to know the decorative changes.
Would hope that they amount to less than a bodykit would!

The Edge · 9 Jan 2011 at 08:39

markomania said:
Good point

Those are my options through elephant, alloys are obvious but what would the other mods come under?

There is stuff on there i wouldn't dream of declaring.

Engine mods and body kits that were never part of the origional model sure, but body coloured bumpers and standard alloys??

If you bought the car and were not told that it was done later how would you/they even know?

Joshy · 9 Jan 2011 at 10:09

The Edge said:
There is stuff on there i wouldn't dream of declaring.

Engine mods and body kits that were never part of the origional model sure, but body coloured bumpers and standard alloys??

If you bought the car and were not told that it was done later how would you/they even know?

Ignorance is not a valid excuse.

Agent_Smith357 · 9 Jan 2011 at 12:01

Why are the Mini options packs classed as modifications by Elephant?

Janesy B · 9 Jan 2011 at 14:21

Agent_Smith357 said:
Why are the Mini options packs classed as modifications by Elephant?

They are stupid.

OP, seeing as the ST170 foglights fit in the standard car's bumper, all you need to change is the foglights to ST170 ones, change the wheels and paint all the bumpstrips. Hardly a massive list of mods but it does make a positive difference.

Joshy · 9 Jan 2011 at 14:39

Agent_Smith357 said:
Why are the Mini options packs classed as modifications by Elephant?

You're supposed to declare optional extras.

That's right, all of them.

Morba · 9 Jan 2011 at 15:49

Janesy B said:
They are stupid.

OP, seeing as the ST170 foglights fit in the standard car's bumper, all you need to change is the foglights to ST170 ones, change the wheels and paint all the bumpstrips. Hardly a massive list of mods but it does make a positive difference.

Exactly, it's far from a bodykit or anything else

The Edge · 9 Jan 2011 at 16:35

Joshy said:
Ignorance is not a valid excuse.

But how are some of them modifications?

My S60 SE is exactly as it left the factory apart from the towbar (Declared, didn't make a differance).

So should I declare the wheels, bumpers, and parking sensors which are origional AFAIK but could be an option? Very, very misleading if i should, nowhere did it say on my proposal that I should declare optional extras only modifications, which is surely - by definition - something done to the car after it is supplied.

Maybe it matters less on an older car?

rjk · 9 Jan 2011 at 16:44

Joshy said:
It wouldn't surprise me if in man cases insurance worked out cheaper (Modified example of lower speced car vs standard example of higher speced car).

this

a guy at OcUK had a 1.2 fiesta as his first car with a few mods done when he got it.
he declared the mods from the off but on year two of ownership his insurance rocketed upwards.

in the end it was cheaper for him to sell the car and buy/run the much much faster 1.6 zetec s

work that out :rolleyes:

my opinion is that having a car that looks like a few models higher is a pointless idea.
sure if they are interior upgrades, say like more comfortable seats/ uprated sound system, stuff a standard model would lack then fair enough. but making a slow car look like a fast car is something i just cant understand.

Joshy · 9 Jan 2011 at 16:46

From Admiral's site:

A modification is any change to the car away from the manufacturer's standard specification including optional extras, such as alloy wheels, body styling kits and exhaust/carburettor upgrades.

And that's them bolding 'optional extras', not me.

Morba · 9 Jan 2011 at 16:52

Yes, because they are changes to the base spec. They are options and you would hate to not have them accounted for in a payout etc

Aleksandrs · 9 Jan 2011 at 16:52

rjkoneill said:
my opinion is that having a car that looks like a few models higher is a pointless idea.
sure if they are interior upgrades, say like more comfortable seats/ uprated sound system, stuff a standard model would lack then fair enough. but making a slow car look like a fast car is something i just cant understand.

exactly. A sheep in wolves clothing! Paying more on insurance being one thing, and anyone who cares about cars will think you're a fool and mock you for being a wannabe.
If you can't afford the better model, then suck it up and wait until you can.

The Edge · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:11

Morba said:
Yes, because they are changes to the base spec. They are options and you would hate to not have them accounted for in a payout etc

You don't get my point do you?

On an SE spec car, are the alloys optional? Body coloured bumpers? Parking sensors? I think in my case the wheels and bumpers are standard, parking sensors maybe not.

Another point is if they want a list of options they should ask when they are talking to you on the phone. I was only asked about modifications.

d_brennen · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:20

rjkoneill said:
my opinion is that having a car that looks like a few models higher is a pointless idea.
sure if they are interior upgrades, say like more comfortable seats/ uprated sound system, stuff a standard model would lack then fair enough. but making a slow car look like a fast car is something i just cant understand.

Are you or are you not the owner of a very expensive water cooled PC? A lot of car modders would never "get" that

Don't get me wrong, OEM (or OEM+) all the way. Life is too short for silly body kits and uncomfortable suspension

DM · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:24

d_brennen said:
Are you or are you not the owner of a very expensive water cooled PC? A lot of car modders would never "get" that

Don't get me wrong, OEM (or OEM+) all the way. Life is too short for silly body kits and uncomfortable suspension

yea but dont his pc run colder for that? sticking a body kit on dont really do much does it

Morba · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:36

DiamondMark said:
yea but dont his pc run colder for that? sticking a body kit on dont really do much does it

Neither does glass windows or neons in cases, or the colour of the case or.....
Visual things make people happy just like performance enhancing ones

Morba · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:38

The Edge said:
You don't get my point do you?

On an SE spec car, are the alloys optional? Body coloured bumpers? Parking sensors? I think in my case the wheels and bumpers are standard, parking sensors maybe not.

Another point is if they want a list of options they should ask when they are talking to you on the phone. I was only asked about modifications.

SE is a spec and you get certain alloys for it. If you choose different ones, especially ones that incur further cost, then yes you should declare it.
You'd tell people about the options if you were selling it as it increases the value.

rjk · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:43

d_brennen said:
Are you or are you not the owner of a very expensive water cooled PC? A lot of car modders would never "get" that

Don't get me wrong, OEM (or OEM+) all the way. Life is too short for silly body kits and uncomfortable suspension

understand from that point of view. but a £1200 CPU needs to have high end cooling on it to make it worthwhile and get the best from it.

same with cars. having a top end car with all the bells and whilstles on is perfectly acceptable as it fits the purpose of the car and what the manufacturer intended.

if i had a 8 year old pentium 4 PC system with all the cooling and modding done, then it would be on the same track as this thread.

DM · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:46

Morba said:
Neither does glass windows or neons in cases, or the colour of the case or.....
Visual things make people happy just like performance enhancing ones

i got plenty of dust in my case does that help

Fr0dders · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:11

The Edge said:
But how are some of them modifications?

its a modification of the standard spec of the car.

At the end of the day if parking sensors are optional, if you get a shunt from behind they've got to replace the parking sensors as well as the bumper.

A bumper from the Manufacturer with parking sensors already fitted is going to be more than one without

Thats extra cost, which is reflected in the slightly higher insurance premium

Same with optional Alloys, Option Packs, Bodykits (eg Cooper S JCW bodykit which is a factory option)

Its all stuff thats an extra expense to replace in the event of an accident.

In theory it should all be declared. Sticky issue is however is when it comes down to you buying the car second hand and you're not given a list of what was factory options and what was standard spec.