I hear a lot on the forums and Facebook about people spending hundreds of pounds remapping their cars and there are many reasons people do it. It isn’t necessary, but with the correct map, you can cover ground a lot quicker and you can save fuel too.
There are companies that will remap your car for you, but it is a fairly straight forward task if you decide to do it yourself.
Basically you need to locate the map and either make alterations to tune it for modern roads, or you can buy a more modern map and install that. I opted for buying a new map. These are available online or from appropriate shops.
Finding the location of the map takes a bit of detective work.
It is important that the old map is removed before installing a new map as not only could 2 maps in the same place cause damage, it can cause problems if the wrong map is referenced during use of the vehicle.
I found mine in the pocket behind the passenger seat, it has served me well and ensured smooth travelling over thousands of miles. Warning, not all not all Fs and TFs are equipped with map pockets.
I removed the old map
And after checking I had the latest and correct map for my car
I installed the new one.
The age of the map can be identified by a code embedded on the map. In this case you can see the code says 2016 and UK. This combination of numbers and letters refers to when and where the map is for. You can find more information on the meaning of these codes on the manufacturer’s website.
Installation was very quick and went without problems.
Installing an out of date or incorrect area map will not necessarily damage your car, unless the out of date information overrides your common sense when the directions no longer exist. If you install an out of date or incorrect area map by mistake, it can easily be removed and a new one installed at any time.
I now find my car drives a lot more efficiently.
Although this was carried out on a 2004 MG TF160, the procedure is similar for most makes of car.
I hope this has helped people.