Driving MG4 in Europe - headlamps and kph

[tsedge]

Well, if they're prepared to tell people it's impossible for a UK spec to be switched to show the speed in km/hr, which to the best of my knowledge would mean that the car was illegal to drive on the continent, what else are they missing?

I strongly suspect the EU rules are the same as the UK's; a car's type approval depends on displaying km/h to be sold in the EU and if you import a car it must be converted, but simply going abroad on holiday is fine, i.e. you can drive your UK spec car in France no problem - you don't require a French numberplate, for example.

 

[Rolfe]

Well, I could be wrong. But I recall a conversation on the VW forum when I got the Golf where people who had some sort of ideological objection to seeing km/hr on their dashboard were told it was mandatory for a car to be able to display km/hr to drive on the continent.

Anyway, he was wrong, which is the main point. If MG's own representatives are making mistakes that are that elementary, what else are they wrong about?

 

[mg4mc]

I looked at my headlamps again this morning on an airport "shuttle" drive, and although there is a step up to the nearside, the higher part is flat rather than angled, so maybe that is where the confusion is arising.

As the step up is flat, you can just use the headlamp level control on the dash, take it down two notches and the higher part of the dip goes to the level of the lower part normally takes. That would make it OK to use in Europe. Though you would have a slightly lower dip on the continental "nearside" than you would have here,

 

[DB Go Rex]

I looked at my headlamps again this morning on an airport "shuttle" drive, and although there is a step up to the nearside, the higher part is flat rather than angled, so maybe that is where the confusion is arising.

As the step up is flat, you can just use the headlamp level control on the dash, take it down two notches and the higher part of the dip goes to the level of the lower part normally takes. That would make it OK to use in Europe. Though you would have a slightly lower dip on the continental "nearside" than you would have here,

This is exactly what I've done over the last 10 years (with 3 different cars) of holiday trips to France/Italy/Germany/Slovenia.

Nobody flashed me or been pulled by police yet.

 

[Tigger]

I looked at my headlamps again this morning on an airport "shuttle" drive, and although there is a step up to the nearside, the higher part is flat rather than angled, so maybe that is where the confusion is arising.

As the step up is flat, you can just use the headlamp level control on the dash, take it down two notches and the higher part of the dip goes to the level of the lower part normally takes. That would make it OK to use in Europe. Though you would have a slightly lower dip on the continental "nearside" than you would have here,

This describes what I experienced on my Trophy - see my post #9 earlier. The 'flat step-up' is caused by the left dipped beam being set higher than the right dipped beam. Look at the link in post #9 for how to lower the left beam to the same height as the right beam (or vice versa). You will need a 6mm allen key.

 

[mg4mc]

This describes what I experienced on my Trophy - see my post #9 earlier. The 'flat step-up' is caused by the left dipped beam being set higher than the right dipped beam. Look at the link in post #9 for how to lower the left beam to the same height as the right beam (or vice versa). You will need a 6mm allen key.No

No both beams have the step. It would not be legal if one beam was providing the step-up higher than the limits (the lamps are tested independently):

• below the upper limit of 0.5%
• above the lower limit of 2.75%

The step up must be 2 degrees to the side of the centre line of the lamp

 

[Tigger]

No both beams have the step.

Which is interesting, because mine are completely flat from left to right. I wonder how they achieve your step - maybe there is a separate adjustment for each of the LEDs that we don't know about . . .

 

[OriginalBigAl]

A good place to ask could be the AA or RAC or at a push Halfords?

 

[Tigger]

More data on the 'flat beam' issue: My son has a Tesla Model 3, which is claimed to have a flat beam like the MG4. Before he drove to the south of France in April, he checked the dipped beam, and confirmed that it was flat. He even got me to look at it, and he was right.

He drove well over 2000 miles in France in the Tesla, and no issues arose. Nobody flashed him, and there was no trouble with the gendarmerie. It would appear that France is happy with flat beam cars (as is the UK, of course). . .

 

[mcsquared]

I can confirm that my Trophy (Nov 2022 import) has dipped beams which are flat - there is no kick-up on the left. This appears to accord with the statement from MG that the lights will be legal in Europe.

Thank you, Tigger and mg4mc. So it seems to vary between different MG4s. I have been wondering if there might be more than on beam pattern on MG4s (depending presumably on the exact model, which country or region they were intended for and when they were manufactured). Fortunately, it's fairly easy to check the beam pattern on on a vertical surface and not too difficult to check the labels on the lights.

 

[siteguru]

The Trophy has different headlights to the SE - I don't know if that impacts things in this respect:

 

[tsedge]

The Trophy has different headlights to the SE - I don't know if that impacts things in this respect:

View attachment 19214

My Trophy has a higher beam on the left than the right side

 

[Ian Key]

My Trophy has a higher beam on the left than the right side

Mine too.

 

[mcsquared]

I can confirm that my Trophy (Nov 2022 import) has dipped beams which are flat - there is no kick-up on the left. This appears to accord with the statement from MG that the lights will be legal in Europe.

 

[Ian Key]

I wonder if some dealers when they do their own PDI checks also adjust the headlights for UK roads which is why some kick up on the left and others don't.

 

[mcsquared]

I wonder if some dealers when they do their own PDI checks also adjust the headlights for UK roads which is why some kick up on the left and others don't.

The kick-up (or lack of it for a symmetrical flat dipped beam) is fundamental to the headlamps when they are made and labelled before being fitted in the factory. Headlamp adjustment doesn't change it; changing the whole headlamp does.

 

[eejp1007]

I was just looking at this and they have added the MG4 to the Eurolites Headlamp Deflectors instruction book.
Full list of vehicles: http://www.motoring-into-europe.co.uk/download/travel-spot-latest-vehicle-listing.pdf
MG4 comes in as a 222 type fitment.

 

[securespark]

We may be going to France. Depends if we can get a CritAir sticker in time. I mean, why you need to get one for an EV, je ne sais quois...

Need to get a VE103 from the lease company.

A UK sticker. The GB magnetic thing we have is no good and we could be refused entry or fined if we display that.

Headlights, they don't need converting, do they?

Some ambiguous lists online of stuff you're supposed to have.

Warning triangle (some say you must have 2?)

FAK

Hi Vis X2

Torch (one on the phone should be good?)

Bulbs and fuses.

Breathalyzers.

Last time we went, we took 1 hi vis, 1 warning triangle, bulbs and fuses, breathalyzers were not law (I don't think they are now, actually) and there was a torch on our phones, not that that was a requirement.

We knew that on motorways, the limit was 110 in the wet and 130 when dry. And on some lesser roads, you have to give way to traffic coming from side roads. But that last rule may have changed, like the old yellow headlamps and the old traffic on roundabouts had to give way to traffic joining roundabouts rule. Nuts!

I took a bike from the centre of Paris to Versailles in 1982 and when I got to the Champs Elysée, it was a mad free for all, with yelling and Gallic shrugs aplenty!

Advice about what is absolutely necessary to avoid falling foul of Officer Crabtree would be appreciated!

 

[Ian Key]

Headlights don't need converting as they are flat beamed LEDs. You could turn the adjuster inside the car to its lowest beam setting.

Keep the high vis jackets inside the car as you need to put them on before you get out. My friends who live in France keep them over the back of their seats.

The legal requirement to carry a breathalyser was dropped in 2020

I was never stopped in the 10 years when I used to visit Brittany and stay at my brother's gite. The one time the gendarmes were doing road checks as soon as they saw my UK number plates they waved me past.

 

[Rolfe]

Just supposing. Supposing you hate the very letters UK. What would happen if you took the sticker off once you were past customs?