How much does engine size affect insurance costs (eg. 1.2 compared to 1.4 engine)

DrFroggies

Hi Guys,

I've just found a car i want to get that suits my needs and my budget. The only thing is that the engine size is 1.4 and i'm worried about how much of an increase this will mean in terms of insurance.

It's my first car and i'm still on my learners permit etc so my insurance is already gonna be pretty high and i don't want to make things any harder on myself than they already are but at the same time in terms of space, comfort and driveability this car is what i'm looking for.

So would there be a massive difference between a car of around 1.0-1.3 verses a car with 1.4 engine in insurance costs?

I'm going out to the dealer tomorrow and i'll get him to ring Quinn when we get there (apparently they're the best for first time buyers) but in the meantime i'd love to get an idea of the kind of percentage in the difference of say...just for argument's sake a 1.2 compared to a 1.4?

Thanks
DF.

congo_90

Depends on insurer and your age bracket etc.

you said quinn who I think increase the amount after 1.5
I know hibernian only allow up to 1.4 for certain age brackets/experience.
I wouldn't say there would be much in it.

A key difference is the car in mind for example a glanza ( 1.3) is higher than a 1.5 Almera due to the risk factor of either car so choose carefully!

Another thing to note is that unless you're buying a new car. The tax will be different too. The smaller the engine size the less tax.

https://www.motortax.ie/OMT/pdf/motortax_rates_2009_en.pdf

hope this helped

DrFroggies

congo_90 wrote: »

Depends on insurer and your age bracket etc.

you said quinn who I think increase the amount after 1.5
I know hibernian only allow up to 1.4 for certain age brackets/experience.
I wouldn't say there would be much in it.

A key difference is the car in mind for example a glanza ( 1.3) is higher than a 1.5 Almera due to the risk factor of either car so choose carefully!

Another thing to note is that unless you're buying a new car. The tax will be different too. The smaller the engine size the less tax.

https://www.motortax.ie/OMT/pdf/motortax_rates_2009_en.pdf

hope this helped

Thanks mate that clarifys things a little - so when you say Quinn increase the amount after 1.5, they keep it around the same for everythig under that?

The car i'm after is a VW Polo 1998 and i'm a late starter (32) so i'm hoping the age thing will play in my favour a little.

I'll also keep the motor tax situation in mind - though for the moment the car is taxed into the new year and NCT'd etc

But if the insurance with Quinn doesn't increase until its over 1.5 that would be a big relief ;-)

Cheers
DF

Gary ITR

DrFroggies wrote: »

Thanks mate that clarifys things a little - so when you say Quinn increase the amount after 1.5, they keep it around the same for everythig under that?

The car i'm after is a VW Polo 1998 and i'm a late starter (32) so i'm hoping the age thing will play in my favour a little.

I'll also keep the motor tax situation in mind - though for the moment the car is taxed into the new year and NCT'd etc

But if the insurance with Quinn doesn't increase until its over 1.5 that would be a big relief ;-)

Cheers
DF

If you go to Quinns website you can get an online quote. Everybody's insurance quotes are different

NewApproach

With Quinn anyway, they tend to insure up to 1.6 for young drivers, and the difference between this and say a 1.2l is negligible in my experience.

Sqaull20

DrFroggies wrote: »

Thanks mate that clarifys things a little - so when you say Quinn increase the amount after 1.5, they keep it around the same for everythig under that?

The car i'm after is a VW Polo 1998 and i'm a late starter (32) so i'm hoping the age thing will play in my favour a little.

I'll also keep the motor tax situation in mind - though for the moment the car is taxed into the new year and NCT'd etc

But if the insurance with Quinn doesn't increase until its over 1.5 that would be a big relief ;-)

Cheers
DF

Whatever about the insurance, dont buy a petrol 98 VW Polo!! They can cause alot of problems, 1.0l in particular is a real banger.Nissan, Mitsubishi, Honda etc are a much safer bet.

Murphy09

motor tax for a 1.4 would prop be around €340 or so, mines €445 for 1.6 so thats a bit of a guide for you

and as for engine size i dont think it'll matter till ya get nearer the 2.0 mark, i moved from 1.1 to 1.6 with no effect to my insurance

DrFroggies

Thanks folks - just needed that bit of reassurance that i hadn't just shot myself in the foot. Appreciate your input!

Sqaull20 wrote: »

Whatever about the insurance, dont buy a petrol 98 VW Polo!! They can cause alot of problems, 1.0l in particular is a real banger.Nissan, Mitsubishi, Honda etc are a much safer bet.

Actually i've already bought it...maybe its only the 1.0l that cause problems - i'm just gonna tell myself the 1.4 are the perfect used option and pray that i've gotten lucky.

As a matter of interest what sort of problems do the 98 petrol VW Polos cause?

Mr Benevolent

DrFroggies wrote: »

As a matter of interest what sort of problems do the 98 petrol VW Polos cause?

It likes to eat front tyres, discs and brakes. Gearbox problems are the big one though. Just keep an eye on the gear change and it'll be ok. If the gearbox does go it's not worth keeping the car. How much did you pay for the Polo?

DrFroggies

Confab wrote: »

It likes to eat front tyres, discs and brakes. Gearbox problems are the big one though. Just keep an eye on the gear change and it'll be ok. If the gearbox does go it's not worth keeping the car. How much did you pay for the Polo?

Yikes...discs and brakes worry me a bit i gotta say, seemed fine during test drive though and the gear box was grand though the clutch did seem a little sticky but i put that down to the age of the car. Other than that and a tiny crack on the right headlight it seems to be in immaculate condition and apparnetly the previous owner was a bit obsessive about keeping it in good nick.

I got it for €900 which judging by some of the prices for almost identical VW Polo 98s on various websites seems to be a pretty decent price (i actually got it that low as part of a mix up over another Polo) i've also noticed the Polo's do sell quick.

But tbh paying less than a grand for a car is always gonna be a bit of a gamble i reckon and as long as she lasts me the year i'll be happy.

Brakes do worry me tho!!!!

unkel

Well wear

DrFroggies wrote: »

But tbh paying less than a grand for a car is always gonna be a bit of a gamble i reckon and as long as she lasts me the year i'll be happy.

Indeed! You did well getting it for under a grand - I presume it came with a bit of a warranty and some NCT left?

Anyway, how much did your insurance work out at?

j@utis

my boyfriend has the same dilemma: buy bigger engine car or stick with 1.0l polo. he's 29 and has had his for provisional license for 10years (still can't drive). I'm gonna insure him under myself so it's big different to your case but: insurance quote for 1.0 is something about 580eur, 1.2 - 670eur, 1.4 - 720eur and 1.6 (audi a3 for a learner lol) - 880eur. so we see insurance is creeping up with bigger engines, so does the road tax.
I'm trying to convince him not to buy anything bigger than 1.4, now looking at vw polo and , seat ibiza, ford focus, skoda fabia and maybe mazda 323 and maybe honda civic. It's very hard task to buy a car that would be cheap and cheerful :rolleyes:

DrFroggies

unkel wrote: »

Well wear



Indeed! You did well getting it for under a grand - I presume it came with a bit of a warranty and some NCT left?

Anyway, how much did your insurance work out at?

No warranty...none of the dealers i've been checking with have offered warranty because i've only been looking at options for under a grand. However it is NCT'd and Taxed into next year and as well as being in lovely nick (asthetically...i wouldn't have a clue about anything under the bonnet etc) it's got a brand new set of Firestone tires. So yeah i really can't complain about the deal i got.

Saying that, i have noticed a couple of 'quirks' some minor others potentially a concern but it's an 11 year old car so!!

Big concern for me having read this thread is the brakes and gearbox as i have noticed theres a nack required in engaging the handbrake and engaging 5th gear has been an issue but i thought it was more me than the car - now i'm starting to wonder???

Thinking i might get some mechanic to give it the once over to make sure everythings ok because so far as i can see other than the above issues she's running grand?

Anyone know off the top of there head what garages/mechanics usually charge for this kind of thing...actually that's shifting way off thread...i'll prob post another tread later once i rang around a few or something ;-)

Insurance i got in the end was €1,111 which all in all i'm happy with!

L1011

1.1 -> 1.4 (and 4 years newer, admittedly) on the same car added €1,100 for me.

The 1.4 is admittedly 190% the power of the 1.1...

Heroditas

MYOB wrote: »

1.1 -> 1.4 (and 4 years newer, admittedly) on the same car added €1,100 for me.

The 1.4 is admittedly 190% the power of the 1.1...

They seem to look at BHP rather than engine size. I went from a 1.8L to a 2.5L recently and my insurance only jumped up les than €100 for the year. The difference in BHP was negligible