P

perpetually perplexed

New Member
Going to the continent (France mainly)for the first time since God was a lad and have to set up dip beam to the right, as you do .. why oh why do they have to drive on the wrong side of the road? .. last time I was there h'lamps also had to be yellow, but understand that has now changed .. the only deflectors I can find are tiny little bits of plastic and no-one (not even my local LR service place can tell me how to fit them or even if they will work on Oscar, my 1998 300 Tdi ..

So, all you experienced continental travellers with similar motors, do I get a set, such as the AA sell, or are there any others that fit over the whole lamp as in the past or do I use black tape etc etc

thanx

P.P.
 
Don't worry about it. Are you planning on doing a lot of night driving? What's the chances of getting pulled over by le plod anyway?
 
hughesy said:
Don't worry about it. Are you planning on doing a lot of night driving? What's the chances of getting pulled over by le plod anyway?
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as a firm believer in the adage "if it can go wrong it is certain to do so" I am reluctant to take the chance ..

it may well come down to the gaffer tape in the end
 
As battenberg said a bit of gaffer or any other tape cut to shape to match and stuck over the 'ski jump patten' in the head lamp glass. It can be found on the L/H side of the glass about a quarter of the way up from the bottom
 
I've been working in Calais for much of the last year and Le Plod seem entirely uninterested unless your attempting to break the land speed record or being a total w@nker. I've done around 7k over here between the disco and S3 neither have beam adjustment stickers and have yet to be as much as flashed at - mind you the headlights on either can't be described as outstanding. think i got some stickers for the S3 but never got round to fitting them - the police will be more interested in fire extinguisher, triangle, spare bulbs and hi-viz jacket if they stop you. Only been stopped twice and both times were on the same night - yes i was des - had to blow into the magic box and had to show i had the aforementioned and was sent on my way with a warning about drunk drivers in the area!
 
Halfords do a universal kit for about £6 and as others have said, there is always the bodge of gaffer tape in the correct position.

My car spends a few months a year in Europe so I bought the perspex deflectors/protectors from the stealer. They were £47 and take about 30 seconds to fit/remove. No more removing sticky goo when I return to the UK.

I would certainly reccommend them if you are looking for something that is OEM, looks good on the car and gives protection to the headlamp.
 
brings me back to our trip to france last year where everyone was sticking them little clear deflectors on their lamps reading the instructions on the bonnets of their cars in the ferry queue... The guy next to started laughing when I got the roll of gaffer tape out and just put a couple of strips on...
 
battenberg said:
brings me back to our trip to france last year where everyone was sticking them little clear deflectors on their lamps reading the instructions on the bonnets of their cars in the ferry queue... The guy next to started laughing when I got the roll of gaffer tape out and just put a couple of strips on...
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Depends on your Disco, but if it's got dashboard adjustable headlights you can just wind them down. Fine unless you are heavily loaded, although admittedly it does mean you can't see much. I've never had to bother with gaffer tape since I got the TD5 with the dashboard adjuster. Even the French don't use yellow lights any more, although the AA carried on selling yellow headlamp paint for quite a while. People are right about the other stuff though - triangles, jackets and light bulbs. Worth remembering a few other things too, like always parking OFF the road (except in Paris), parking facing the right way (stops you moving off on the wrong side of the road) and the most dangerous bit of all - coming off the ferry on the way home and forgetting to drive on the Left!
 
PASTMASTER said:
Depends on your Disco, but if it's got dashboard adjustable headlights you can just wind them down. Fine unless you are heavily loaded, although admittedly it does mean you can't see much. I've never had to bother with gaffer tape since I got the TD5 with the dashboard adjuster. Even the French don't use yellow lights any more, although the AA carried on selling yellow headlamp paint for quite a while. People are right about the other stuff though - triangles, jackets and light bulbs. Worth remembering a few other things too, like always parking OFF the road (except in Paris), parking facing the right way (stops you moving off on the wrong side of the road) and the most dangerous bit of all - coming off the ferry on the way home and forgetting to drive on the Left!
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It's got SLS and headllight adjusters , the gaffer tape was a token gesture just in case i got stopped, the most heavily loaded was just before we got the ferry home and had space to fill, so 12 cases of wine did the trick!!!:D
 
I'd buy deflectors - as the man in Calais said, the police don't care until they pull you over. Tape is illegal, musts are the car papers, driving licence and high visibility jackets for everyone in the car - everything else is recommended, not compulsory.
The authorities are hot on seatbelts, and speeding on the autoroutes.
The speed cameras here are linked to the internet, and it has been known for cars to be stopped at the next autoroute pay booths - then you will have a problem.
There's no leeway on speeding, either, 5kph over the limit can get you fined - and this year there is a drive to ensure foreigners obey the speed limits - especially those big (German) limos which fly past on the autoroutes.
It's not generally realised that the Police Nationale operate in the towns, the Gendarmes in the countryside and on the autoroutes. And they are in charge big time if they stop you - gendarmes are part of the army, they are a military disciplined force, not the police, and are not the gentlest of people.
 
gdb said:
I'd buy deflectors - as the man in Calais said, the police don't care until they pull you over. Tape is illegal, musts are the car papers, driving licence and high visibility jackets for everyone in the car - everything else is recommended, not compulsory.
The authorities are hot on seatbelts, and speeding on the autoroutes.
The speed cameras here are linked to the internet, and it has been known for cars to be stopped at the next autoroute pay booths - then you will have a problem.
There's no leeway on speeding, either, 5kph over the limit can get you fined - and this year there is a drive to ensure foreigners obey the speed limits - especially those big (German) limos which fly past on the autoroutes.
It's not generally realised that the Police Nationale operate in the towns, the Gendarmes in the countryside and on the autoroutes. And they are in charge big time if they stop you - gendarmes are part of the army, they are a military disciplined force, not the police, and are not the gentlest of people.
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Re the auto cameras: they give you whats called & "marge technique" of 5% eg1: in a 90kph limit, flashed by a radar camera you would have an actual limit of 90 x 1.05 (rounded up) = 95kph, anything over that and you're done. 1kph over = 60€ unless you pay on the net then 45€ within 15 days, plus 1 point. eg2: 130 (autoroute in dry weather) x 1.05 = 137 etc

I'm told they now link the french computers to Swansea, so you won't get away with it, being on English plates.

You WILL incurr a speeding record in France and it is theorectically possible to lose your license in one trip :eek: :eek:
 
i always buy mine at the ferry terminal, depending who you are sailing with they will even help you fit em if you are unsure, but then, like folk have said, if you aint doing a lot of night driving i wouldnt bother, its only the fact that i drive through the night that i do.
 
thebiglad said:
I'm told they now link the french computers to Swansea, so you won't get away with it, being on English plates.
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this is complete bollocks, you cannot get prosecuted in a different country to where the crime took place.there is no link between the two countries computers, the only thing they can do is send your reg to swansea and ask them for your address. if its only a minor speeding incident then they wont bother. if they do bother, you will just get a fine through the post. even though you have a european driving licence the points system on the continent is different to here so you will not get points.
 
gdb said:
I'd buy deflectors - as the man in Calais said, the police don't care until they pull you over. Tape is illegal, musts are the car papers, driving licence and high visibility jackets for everyone in the car - everything else is recommended, not compulsory.
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you forgot the warning triangle and spare bulbs. if you are going into spain, you also need a spare fanbelt and tools to fit it
 
There was a story in the press a while back about the continental fuzz linking up with our plod for the purpose of chasing up traffic offences and unpaid fines. I think it was more of a scare story designed to make us behave rather than something that might actually happen. Never heard bugger all from the frogs about the parking ticket I didn't pay anyway:rolleyes:
 
The ruling is: That failure to adapt your headlamps at any time day or night will render your vehicle unfit for use on the road. It dosen't say how to adapt the head lamp or by what means.
Therefore the use of tape is not illegal and as the this forum is about adaption of Disco 1 lights the tape or the black patches with the silver backing can be used to to meet the requirment buy cutting off the peak of the dipped headlamp beam, that's the part that could or may dazzle oncoming drivers.

Im sure that with the modern polycarb headlamps another means of adaption is required.

And don't forget the GB plate, first aid kit and fire extinguisher and in Spain two warning trangles. So all this extra kit plus my self-recovery kit the disco's full before I start :D
 
I can only speak for France as I live here, so to reiterate, the only legal requirements to have with you are the car papers, your licence, and the high visibility jackets, I have to add the GB plate to that, but everything else is recommended.
Have a look at the AA web site for the latest list of what's needed where-
thsi should setle the arguments.
www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/touring_tips/aa-compulsory-equipment-Jan2008.doc
Next door we have a French police officer,the source of my information, who told me that the French would love to have access to foreign car databases, but do not at the moment. They are lobbying at EU level to get this established, but they don't have access yet.
What is important in France is not to get caught by a camera and then stopped by the police, as their computors store the numbers of offenders. And if you use the autoroutes they use cameras to check traffic flow and probably numbers.
Thanks for the correction about tape on headlights- but isn't that English law?
One thing I forgot - French law forbids the use of radar detectors- even if it's in the car and not connected. I read the actual law, and it's draconian. That doesn't stop them being sold here though.....
gdb




discool said:
The ruling is: That failure to adapt your headlamps at any time day or night will render your vehicle unfit for use on the road. It dosen't say how to adapt the head lamp or by what means.
Therefore the use of tape is not illegal and as the this forum is about adaption of Disco 1 lights the tape or the black patches with the silver backing can be used to to meet the requirment buy cutting off the peak of the dipped headlamp beam, that's the part that could or may dazzle oncoming drivers.

Im sure that with the modern polycarb headlamps another means of adaption is required.

And don't forget the GB plate, first aid kit and fire extinguisher and in Spain two warning trangles. So all this extra kit plus my self-recovery kit the disco's full before I start :D
Click to expand...
 
gdb said:
the French would love to have access to foreign car databases, but do not at the moment. They are lobbying at EU level to get this established, but they don't have access yet.
One thing I forgot - French law forbids the use of radar detectors- even if it's in the car and not connected. I read the actual law, and it's draconian. That doesn't stop them being sold here though.....
gdb
Click to expand...
I have read that the international thing is stymied by the Germans, who apparently won't provide any info about German drivers to any foreign authorities.

I've also read somewhere about the radar detectors - I think it's illegal to have them in the car in France, even if not used.

You never see international coaches with headlight masks - I asked a driver and he said they just wind them down - that's if they bother at all.

Never been asked for my licence abroad but they are VERY hot on registration docs. Some of the more remote countries want to see them at the border before they let you in. And in some places you have to carry them by law, so the police will want to see them if they stop you.

Another thing to check is headlight use - example, they are compulsory in Germany if it's raining. And remember the French motorway speed limits are lower in the rain.

Final thing (sorry - I'm going on a bit) in some countries you MUST give way to pedestrians AND CYCLISTS when turning left or right. A German cyclist overtaking you on the right, on the pavement, has right of way, so check your mirrors.
 
yella said:
this is complete bollocks, you cannot get prosecuted in a different country to where the crime took place.there is no link between the two countries computers, the only thing they can do is send your reg to swansea and ask them for your address. if its only a minor speeding incident then they wont bother. if they do bother, you will just get a fine through the post. even though you have a european driving licence the points system on the continent is different to here so you will not get points.
Click to expand...

Yet again yella, a considored response.

This is not complete bollocks. The French systems do have a link to the UK systems and you will recieve a fine and points in the post. This applies to cameras of the various kinds. If you are stopped by the Gendarmerie you will be fined on the spot and accrue points.

Incidently, if you are 30kph over the posted speed limit, then you could recieve an automatic driving ban.

The points situation applies to point accrued in France as if on a French driving license. They accrue on the french records such that if you are caught speeding, in France, on a number of occasions within a 2 yr period, then YOU WILL BE LOCKED UP !!!!!!

The way the points system works over here is that you start with 12 points (in your account so to speak) and you progressively lose them until you get to zero, when you lose the right to drive on French roads.

Even if you had a English driving license, you still generate an infraction record in France, so will incur points and fines.

I suppose yella that there is only one way to convince you, so come on over, break the speed limits and see what happens ;) ;)
 
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