Buying a car with a remap..
 

How does the license work for remaps? Does it stay with the customer or the car?

If I were to buy a car that had already been mapped, but I wanted to make some changes, would I be charged a 'tweak' price or as a new customer and so full remap price?

In this example, I have seen a car with a RaceDynamix map that I am interested in, but it's purely an example.

Best thing to be sure is speak to the mapper who last worked on the car and ask what the charge will be.
Anything else is a guess.

License stays with the ecu.

Any changes will be a tweak if you use the same guy who mapped it first time (circa £150).
However if you take it to a different mapper they will most likely want to start from scratch rather than tweak someone else's map (circa £300).

Thanks :)

If I bought one with a map then I would double check with the mapper, but just wanted to get an idea.

Racedynamix would have used OpenSource Mapping (most likely) which does not have a license :D

Shauin

I probably picked my use of the term 'license' incorrectly, as I know that some of the mappers say this is the reason a fresh map costs more than a tweak - I suppose the license side of it applies more to ECUtek than OS.

Mapping by OS leaves the mapping open for other OS tuners to see without restriction and no license.

Unless your motor is a big build and a lot of work has been done already to the point where much money has been spent and many sessions of mapping have been carried out then it may be a case of just tweaking in which case another mapper may well just charge you a tweak fee of between £100-£150 for up to a couple of hours or so work. However, when you spend that much money and have that much mapping done by a tuner that knows your car well it's generally advisable to stick with the same tuner.


If it's a run of the mill modified scoob and it's been mapped before your new mapper may well charge you the full monty because not many mappers will like using other mappers tunes. Most like to start from scratch if because they will have their own way of doing things to get best results and may well be better in the long run. His mapping will then be on the car and will he'll be able to tweak things for you quickly and cost effectively the next time you need something done.

Maybe your best bet is to go to the original mapper of the ECU and get him to do the tweaks. However, if you don't like the guy or the results he gives you then think about using someone else.

ETA: Sorry MattyB you've already said some of what i've written here. Apologies i didn't look far enough up the thread. I certainly echo what you say :)