Headlights for France!

[fatbelly33]

Hi All,

We recently took delivery of our Octavia Estate 1.6 TDI SE. As I have said in another post we love it.

In July we are taking the Car on a road trip to France for 2 weeks, driving from. Calais to the South of France stopping off on the way.

We have been to France a few times but never driven a UK spec Car there, I know we have to have our headlights altered so they don't dazzle oncoming drivers & would like to know the best way to do this? Is it an expensive job to get them altered at a dealer or should we buy a conversion kit from our local car parts shop. What are our options? We don't want to spend money unless we have to. Cost is important but we do realise that we have to be legal.

Also if anyone has any other tips or advice for driving in France then please post any help will be gratefully received.

[Nookiebear]

Keep right!

[Keith64]

You'll need to carry a couple of breathalyser kits and have a hi-vis vest to hand in the car (handy slot under drivers seat for the vest).

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[Keith64]

And a spare bulb kit.

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[VRS63]

Check you infotainment system. You should have the ability to switch the lights over within the car. I can on my VRS.

[Timoctav]

Check you infotainment system. You should have the ability to switch the lights over within the car. I can on my VRS.

Only if you have bi-xenon lights. These are only standard on the vRS.

[Yogi-Bear]

You'll need to carry a couple of breathalyser kits

 

They gave up on that - it was never enforced and the law was suspended quite soon after it came into effect, so don't waste your money on them.

[fatbelly33]

Check you infotainment system. You should have the ability to switch the lights over within the car. I can on my VRS.

 

Hi VRS,

Thanks for the reply, I don't think I can on my Car, Its only models with Xenon headlights that you can switch automatically.

 

Also thanks to everyone else for their replies the more the merrier.

[Timoctav]

Hi All,

We recently took delivery of our Octavia Estate 1.6 TDI SE. As I have said in another post we love it.

In July we are taking the Car on a road trip to France for 2 weeks, driving from. Calais to the South of France stopping off on the way.

We have been to France a few times but never driven a UK spec Car there, I know we have to have our headlights altered so they don't dazzle oncoming drivers & would like to know the best way to do this? Is it an expensive job to get them altered at a dealer or should we buy a conversion kit from our local car parts shop. What are our options? We don't want to spend money unless we have to. Cost is important but we do realise that we have to be legal.

Also if anyone has any other tips or advice for driving in France then please post any help will be gratefully received.

Watch your speed! The French police watch the autoroutes particularly close to the ferry ports very closely. If you are taking a portable navigation device with you make sure you disable speed camera locations - the police will confiscate your device on the spot.

But warnings aside, enjoy driving in France. The roads are much less crowded. As much as you can stay off the autoroutes and enjoy the wonderful N roads to see real France. It's a vast country, make sure you stop every couple of hours, don't try to do heroic distances in one go. Enjoy!!!

[Keith64]

They gave up on that - it was never enforced and the law was suspended quite soon after it came into effect, so don't waste your money on them.

Lol..only saw all the fuss about carrying them..never heard about the suspension.. thanks for the update..I wont buy them for my trip across the water.

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[Smeghead]

Ditto. We did a similar trip in February (Calais to Andorra) and the light change jobby in the infotainment was a doddle (once I found it).

 

Ah...  no xenons - you'll need a universal kit.

Edited 29 May, 2014 by Smeghead

[fatbelly33]

 

 

Ah...  no xenons - you'll need a universal kit.

Hi Smeghead,

Where do I get the 'Universal Kit 'from...

 

Also what route did you take? We are driving to Perpignan

We are thinking of going Calais to Clermont-Ferrand....Clermont-Ferrand to Millau.....then Clermont-Ferrand to Perpignan.

Edited 29 May, 2014 by fatbelly33

[Smeghead]

Hi Smeghead,

Where do I get the 'Universal Kit 'from...

 

Also what route did you take? We are driving to Perpignan

We are thinking of going Calais to Clermont-Ferrand....Clermont-Ferrand to Millau.....then Clermont-Ferrand to Perpignan.

 

I meant the standard ones you get at the ferry/tunnel terminal or fleabay.  They should have a diagram to fit the Octy3 - your dealer should be able to help.

 

Route we took - Calais - Paris - Orleans - Limoges - Toulouse (overnight in Toulouse) then onto Andorra. 

 

You could use that route as far as Toulouse then turn south east, but just looking on Michelin's driving guide, they recommend the route you mention.  I doubt there's much in it, to be honest.

[dilly]

Whatever you do, try to go across the Millau Bridge. It's completely wonderful and, let's face it. British. Designed in Blighty. It's a work of art, without question. When I went, I also had a look from below but don't bother with that unless you're very sad!

Dill

[loadswine]

I did about 1700 miles over there last week. Although I didn't use the motorways for that much of my routes, i found having a toll tag saved me time and inconvenience at the peages. You can get them through euro tunnel, or sanef in the UK. I tried to keep within speed limits but i believe it is acceptable to have dangerous road segments on the gps, as long as camera locations aren't on there. Garmin have these on their subscriptions and state them to be legal.

I love the N roads and D roads myself, had a great time over there. Was mainly around the Dordogne region.

[Timoctav]

Whatever you do, try to go across the Millau Bridge. It's completely wonderful and, let's face it. British. Designed in Blighty. It's a work of art, without question. When I went, I also had a look from below but don't bother with that unless you're very sad!

Dill

I must be sad - well worth going underneath the Millau viaduct ([pronounced meeyow) just to appreciate the sheer scale  with the road deck 1000 ft above your head! There is a visitors centre there with a section of the road deck on display and a shop where you can buy a book on the viaduct's construction.

[philhoward]

Watch your speed - especially at intersections as the 90/70/50 come very quickly (I got caught there once).

 

Disable speed cameras on your SatNav.

 

Make sure you have sufficient hi-vis jackets for the number of people in the car - and that they are accessible from INSIDE the car.

 

Don't bother with the breathalysers - as has been said, they (virtually) canned the idea.

 

Aside from that, enjoy!

[Farsider]

Do the Amundsen / Columbus have static speed camera POIs in them? I didn't think they do.

[philhoward]

I was referring to using a third party one such as TomTom..

[dieselV6]

My satnav does not show speed cameras, only.... doughnuts, burgers and fajitas, remind me to eat during the trip. Any appearance of these symbols and a sound when nearing a speed camera site is purely coincidental.  As is the selection of food commonly associated with law enforcement officials sitting in the bushes   

 

Just to be clear, I do not condone driving with speeds too fast for the road and traffic/weather conditions. But some of the cameras in France, especially close to Calais, are quite vicious, e.g. flashing at 1mph over stated speed (the one on the motorway before Dunkirk really does not like even 112km/h as measured by GPS). Same in Belgium. I very much prefer the way German police deal with dangerous driving on motorways, you are a lot more likely to get a ticket for tailgating, using rear fogs, or lane hogging, than for exceeding speed, at least on motorways.

[philhoward]

Yep - that one by Dunkerque really is twitchy!  The speed display just before it is bang on to SatNav speeds as well.

[Timoctav]

Do the Amundsen / Columbus have static speed camera POIs in them? I didn't think they do.

No - because it is illegal in most European countries

[Steveh3]

This is a good reference for more details. Check also the frequently asked questions as well. Confirms what most people have already stated. Although you only need one safety gilet easily accessible. Breath test is required although no sanction. Using radar detectors same as watching films in motion 1500 eur fine plus loss of kit. Some good stuff about kids seating such as 10+ on the front but only if all other seats occupied. Dont forget your driving license and passport at all times. And agree with the police presence they are everywhere especially on black weekends. http://www.securite-routiere.gouv.fr/connaitre-les-regles/le-vehicule

Edited 30 May, 2014 by Steveh3

[VRSx3dave]

I'm in Chartres (using hotel's free WI_FI) at moment. Eurotunnel tomorrow.

I travel to the Auvergne 2 or 3 times a year (first time in my new 2TDI O3).  Don't do much night driving - just set my dip setting lower and hope for the best (positioning on the road also helps).  On the AutoRoute I'm doing 80 to 85 mph all the time (lots overtaking me) with 56 mpg so far - a few extra mpg on the next stage with lower UK speeds.  Negatives?  SE not too smooth on poor surfaces.

Positives?  Traffic free roads!

[pipsyp]

Seems to be the case if you have Amundsen/Columbus nav and Xenons that headlamps set to tourist mode automatically depending on the cars GPS location and tells you so on the infotainment. A nice touch.