Is sending your car to a sub manufacturer worth it?

Is sending a car to a small aftermarket manufacturer worth it?

What do I mean when I say a small aftermarket manufacturer? I’m talking about companies like Hennessy, Brabus, Roush, Dinan, in some cases AMG for Mercedes, or M (for motorsport) for BMW. 

For those that don’t know, a sub manufacturer like those listed above, is basically a company that takes your brand-new car and modifies it to make it faster. In some, or most cases, it’s not only to make your car faster but to also make it “look better”. How it works in most cases is, you buy your car from the dealer, you then either put it on a truck, (or drive it) and bring it to one of these companies. They then keep the car for some amount of time, and modify it, usually installing bigger power adders (like turbos or superchargers) and supporting mods. They also sometimes have different body parts they can add, or new wheels, or even interior changes.

Some of the sub manufacturers in that list have actually over time joined with the main manufacturers. One is AMG and the other, M. M joined BMW in 1972, and since then is helping BMW build race cars and sporty daily cars. So yes, M does fall into my list of where I’m going, but not completely. If you want your BMW modified more than what M can provide you, that’s when Dinan comes into play. Dinan is there for when you want your BMW to go extra fast. 

But, is it worth sending your brand-new car to one of them? 

I’m not sure. I mean, I get why they exist, but some people don’t want to drive their car how it comes from the factory. Some people just want it to be the “go faster” version right out of the box. I guess, if you’ve owned one before or you already know what to expect then sure, I say go for it. But, if this is the first experience you have with this new model, do you really want to send it out and have a bunch of things changed and modified? 

Think about it, if you send your new E-class Mercedes to Brabus, and they install new turbos (talking about a E63 AMG), new tune, some interior bits and new wheels, that’s going to run you up a pretty penny. So, maybe you have the money and you want the extra power (boosted from 612hp to 800hp) or the fancy new 21’’ wheels. Do you want to send your car to them and only be able to select what they have to choose from? Or would you rather take the car and bring it home enjoy it for a bit and change only what you don’t like about it. 

In my opinion, I like to think that having that kind of money will be able to get you almost anything you want from your car. No matter what kind of car it is and no matter who is going to modify it. Obviously, it being a reputable company. I know that all of the manufacturers I listed build fantastic cars and I can’t wait to drive one of them. But for now, I like to ponder the idea of whether I would want one of them to modify my stock (new) car, or if I would rather take ownership first and see what I would change before sending it off.