Would painting a car a different color affect insurance rates? And would it affect anything else?

Question

I want to buy a used BMW E46 M3 in Laguna Seca Blue but i can't seem to find one in that color. I even tried looking for one at different cities and provinces (i'm from Canada btw) and i still can't find one. The closest one that i found was from New Jersey in the U.S, which is too far and there's a lot of things to be done when buying a U.S vehicle. So i was thinking of buying one of a different color and painting it. Would that affect anything?

Answer 1

I've never been asked what color my vehicle is by any insurance company. By that I assume they really don't factor that in.

Answer 2

No, that's an old old insurance myth (and it's only red paint in the myth anyway) that never went away. I've written up thousands of policies on thousands of vehicles, and not once has an insurer asked what colour it was. Insurance companies just don't care.



There are costs though, and you need to know about them. There may be a fee to reprocess the ownership at the licencing office, but it will be negligible. Your biggest cost will be the paint job itself, and don't go with the really cheap guys who say they can do it for $300. You won't get ripped off if you hire them, you'll just get a $300 paint job - which will peel in a few weeks because that's what you paid for. For a decent professional paint job, you're looking at $1500 to three grand easily.



The other thing to remember about a paint job is this: It's a cost, not an investment. A paint job has minimal effect on the overall value of the vehicle. So if you spend two grand on paint and the vehicle is hit by a train a week later, it won't change the settlement amount.



As long as you're aware of those things, paint your machine any colour you can think of.

Answer 3

It would affect the registration. The cost will be high to get it painted properly. It is still probably cheaper to get the one from the US than to have it shelled out painted and rebuilt. If you do not do this the job will never be right.

Answer 4

no i wouldn't if you get it done by the finest professional. unprofessional might disappoint you with the finish of the paint and final look.

Answer 5

No.