Hi 

 

I want to import my French registered car to the UK.

 

I have two outstanding problems.

Are the headlights adjustable or do I need to change the headlights for RHD.

 

The second problem is the speedo is in KM only.

The speed can be displayed digitally on the dashboard in MPH, but is that exceptable for an MOT.

 

 

 

Re headlights, which version : normal, LED, matrix etc as there are different solutions depending on type

 

Not sure on MOT question

According to the manual if the headlights have adaptive function then the headlamps can be changed via the Menu. As SJ says it depends on the lights you have.

 

It would seem reasonable for the speedo to be Ok but I don't know. It's one thing changing things for driving abroad but for importing it might be more complicated.

 

If the Fabia only has one foglight this will need changing as well.

 

Once the required modifications have been done the car will need an IVA - Individual Vehicle Approval.

Edited 25 September, 20241 yr by VAGCF

4 hours ago, Pete79 said:

The second problem is the speedo is in KM only.

The speed can be displayed digitally on the dashboard in MPH, but is that acceptable for an MOT.

No; the speedometer must display in MPH or MPH and KPH.

You really need to contact government agencies to get this right otherwise you may get good intentions but incorrect advice - such as IIRC the speedo at some point had to indicate or highlight a 30 mph in some way but I could well be wrong or no longer applies.

 

I'm a moderator on a UK motorhome forum (24 years of participation and over 24K postings).

 

When sterling was very strong against the euro, buying a new or used left-hand-drive motorhome in Continental Europe and importing it to the UK was quite common and I did this myself in 2005. When it comes to UK-registering a NEW LHD motorhome imported to the UK, the current headlight and speedometer 'acceptability' rules are shown below and these should also apply when a secondhand LHD car is being imported.

 

 

There's official guidance here

 

https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/registering-an-imported-vehicle

 

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6570647e739135000db03bd4/inf106-how-to-import-a-vehicle-into-the-united-kingdom.pdf

 

The UK's MOT inspection manual can be found here - with sections 4 and 7 relating respectively to lighting and speedometers.

 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-inspection-manual-for-private-passenger-and-light-commercial-vehicles

 

The headlamp-related MOT rules say

 

It’s acceptable for masks or converter kits to be fitted to right hand dip headlamps to temporarily alter the lamp for use in the UK by removing the beam ‘kick-up’ to the right.

 

but this conflicts with the importing regulations I've listed above.

 

When I imported a new LHD Ford Transit-based motorhome in 2005 it was primarily to use it in Continental Europe (though the cost savings were significant too!) The importing rules relating to lighting and speedometers were similar back then, but the buyer was not asked to confirm if the vehicle conformed or had been modified to conform and imported motorhomes were not being physically inspected at the UK-registration stage. I never swapped that motorhome's headlamps and speedometer as a) I wanted to drive the motorhome outside the UK where the original right-dipping headlamps and kmh-only speedometer would be preferable and b) with the Transit it was an expensive and far from easy exercise. The MOT test was passed by sticking black adhesive 'masks; to the headlamps prior to the test and removing the masks immediately afterwards.

 

Unlike the importing regulations, the UK MOT test is much simpler and easier-going where speedometers are concerned, as will be seen from the rules below.

 

I bought another new LHD motorhome in 2015, but this time via a UK dealership rather than importing it myself and, In this instance, before I took delivery the dealership had replaced the right-dipping headlamps and modified the speedometer with a mph/kmh overlay to meet the UK's importing regulations. 

 

FOG-LAMPS. One rear fog-lamp is mandatory (NOT two) and this needs to be centrally positioned or on the driver's side of the vehicle.  I believe a LHD Fabia Mk4 will have a single rear fog-lamp on its left side (UK nearside) and this will conflict with general UK lighting regulations and the UK MOT test's rules. Both of my LHD imported motorhomes had as standard a fog-lamp on each side of the rear bodywork (as does my 2009 Skoda Roomster) but some motorhomes (and many cars) have just a single rear fog-lamp. When a 'single fog-lamp' LHD vehicle is to be imported to the UK, meeting the UK rules van can prove challenging and demand (expensive) light-unit replacement or adding a supplementary fog-lamp.

Edited 26 September, 20241 yr by DerekU

Might depend on model of course but I've got a feeling I've seen on Briskoda that the rear fog fixings(?)and bulb holder(?) are there for UK on a LHD but I could well be wrong as I was the out of date speedo thing.  Whether the fog light change needs setting up with an appropriate scan tool I can't remember.  All vague all possibly wrong and as with any info all needs checking.

 

My 2024-built UK-specification right-hand-drive Fabia Mk 4 has 'simple' LED headlights, not the more complex type that Skoda calls "Bi-LED Headlights" that have adaptive functionality.

 

It's straightforward enough to identify which LED headlight-type a Fabia Mk 4 has using the car's infotainment screen's Lighting menu. If the headlights are Bi-LED there will be a "Travel Mode" option that permits selection of "Right-hand traffic" (ie. for countries where  vehicles drive on the right) or "Left-hand traffic" (ie. for countries where vehicles drive on the left as in the UK and Ireland).

 

 

If the car has LED headlights, but there is no "Travel Mode" option in its Lighting menu, its headlights are not Bi-LED and their beam pattern cannot be driver-adjusted to optimise/legalise their use in right-hand or left-hand traffic.

 

For Fabia Mk 4 cars that do NOT have By-LED headlights, the UK Owner's Manual advises "Seek assistance from a specialist garage". I assume "specialist garage" means a Skoda dealership, but I don't know how the dealership would respond. (I'm guessing they would stick beam-converters (eg. Eurolites) on the dipped-beam part of the headlight, but I've not checked.)

 

This issue was touched on here  in 2022, but the advice given seems to assume that all Fabia Mk 4 models have Bi-LED headlights with a beam pattern that can be adjusted for LH or RH traffic via the "Travel Mode" lighting option - but that is not the case.

 

https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/506791-driving-in-france/

 

Headlights fitted to cars to be marketed in the UK have historically had headlights with a dipped-beam pattern that is downwards and to the left with a noticeable 'kick-up' on the left to better illuminate the road's verge - and it's the kick-up part of the pattern that can dazzle oncoming drivers when the car is driven 'on the right'. Some headlights (like my Roomster's) have a built-in capability (a movable lever on the rear of the headlight) that will suppress the kick-up, otherwise add-on 'masks' or beam-converters can be used to do this. Some headlights have a 'flat' dipped-beam pattern that is less likely to dazzle and - in such cases - the car's Owner's Manual will (usually) advise that the headlights are bisexual (or ambidextrous) and do not need to be adjusted/masked when (say) a UK -marketed car is driven in Continental Europe. Oddly (to me) the Owner's Manual for my 2021 Hyundai i20 (that had halogen headlights and a dipped-beam pattern with a distinct leftwards kick-up) advised that the lights were suitable for left=hand and right-hand traffic.

 

Modern car headlight units can be hideously  expensive (I was told that a single new full-house LED-matrix headlight for a Hyundai i20 cost around £1400) so, if Pete's LHD Fabia's headlights did need to be replaced to comply with the UK's importing regulations, the cost could be very unpleasant. 

On the following link the application form used when importing a car from the EU to the UK. can be viewed and the form describes the headlights, speedometer and fog lights requirements.

 

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/61f7cfd1e90e0768a3523234/application-for-gb-conversion-iva-passenger-cars.pdf

 

I was wrong about my Roomster - it has only one rear fog light and this is on the right (UK offside).

 

After purchasing the Roomster in 2009 (to replace a very sickly Golf Estate that disappeared into the Government scrappage scheme) I now recall noticing that the Roomster had just one rear fog light and, as my motorhome had two, deciding to investigate how easy it would be to add a second fog light on the UK nearside. This proved to be impracticable: I can't remember where the difficulty lay, it might have been that the nearside rear light-unit had no bulb-holder in its fog light section, or the fog light section had no internal reflector, or there was no cabling to the fog light section, but whatever the reason (and I'm not going to remove the Roomster's left rear light-unit to check) It was sufficient to dissuade me from going ahead.

 

I tried shining a powerful torch into each of my Fabia Mk 4's rear fog lights to see if I could spot any internal difference between the one on the UK nearside that does not illuminate and the one on the offside that does, but the 'lens' of the lights is too opaque to get any sort of clear picture (and I'm not going to remove the Fabia's lights either).

I've checked the dipped-beam pattern of my UK-specification RHD Fabia Mk 4's non-adaptive LED headlights and confirmed that this is appropriate for a vehicle being driven in 'left-hand traffic'. The pattern is 'left-dipping' and, although flattish, still has a mild uplift on the left. I've also looked at the French-language version of the Fabia Mk 4 Owner's Manual and the relevant guidance is the same as in the English-language Manual - that, for driving in a 'foreign' country (ie. a country with 'left-hand traffic' like the UK), unless the headlights are the adaptive BI-LED type, assistance should be sought from a specialist garage (which the Manual defines as a Skoda agency/partner).

 

My Skoda Roomster's 'projector' headlights have a large rubber cover on their rear behind the bulb and removing the cover permits access to a lever that can be moved to flatten the UK-spec dipped beam pattern when the car is to be driven in countries that have 'right-hand' traffic. My Fabia's headlights also have a removable rubber cover on their rear, but there is no obvious beam pattern-adjustment mechanism beneath the cover.

 

What this all boils down to is that, if a LHD Fabia Mk 4 with non-adaptive LED headlights that have a dipped-beam pattern designed for countries that have 'right-hand traffic' (like France)  is to be imported to the UK, its headlights would need to be replaced to comply with the UK's importation regulations.

 

My Fabia has a single operative rear reversing light on the right (UK driver's side) of the boot-lid and a non-operative reversing light on the other side. I can see into both reversing lights and the internals of the operative reversing light differ significantly from those of the non-operative light that is essentially 'empty'. So getting both lights to illuminate would take more than just putting a bulb into the non-operative reversing light.

 

I suspect that the single on-the-left fog light arrangement of a LHD Fabia Mk 4 will be similar to that of the reversing lights and, to get a working fog light on the right in addition to the one on-the-left, would probably require a replacement right=hand fog/reversing light-unit and some cross wiring. 

 

Reaching the rear of the fog lights involves removing the boot-lid's trim panel. This 2023 forum thread discussed this and the advice in the 2nd posting sounds right (but I'm not going to try it!)

 

https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/511125-installing-a-rear-view-camera-boot-trim-removal/

 

As I mentioned earlier, importing LHD motorhomes from Continental Europe to the UK used to be popular and fairly straightforward, though sometimes tricky where meeting UK lighting and speedometer import regulations was concerned. Conversely, importing a RHD motorhome from the UK to a Continental European country can be a lengthy and expensive procedure and, if the vehicle does not have a European Type Approval certificate of conformity,  a bureaucratic nightmare. It's generally advised that UK motorcaravanners don't do this (however much they love their motorhome) as, even after they have jumped through all the hoops and got the motorhome registered abroad, subsequently selling it for a reasonable price will prove difficult.

This link includes adverts for the rear light-units removed from a UK-specification right-hand-drive Skoda Fabia Mk 4

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_ssn=salvogroupltd&store_name=salvogroupltd&_oac=1&_trksid=p4429486.m3561.l170197

 

The following four images relate to the light-units in the Fabia's boot lid. These two photos are of the right-hand (UK drivers side) unit that houses the operational rear fog-light and reversing-light.

 

 

and the next two photos are of the left-hand (UK passenger side) unit that has non-operational lights.

 

 

What is immediately obvious is that the right-hand (drivers side) unit has an electrical cable leading into it, whereas the left-hand (passenger side) unit does not. And - as I mentioned in my last posting - the reversing-light part of my car's left-hand unit has no internal fittings to accept bulbs.

 

So, in order to comply with UK vehicle importing regulations that demand a fog-light on the driver's side (or centrally positioned), the best approach is likely to involve replacement of a LHD Fabia Mk 4's right-hand boot-lid light-unit with a UK-specification equivalent unit and 'cross-wire' this to the LHD car's operational left-hand boot-lid light-unit. Suitably modifying the wiring would then allow the LHD Fabia's left-hand fog-light to be disabled and a reversing-light on both sides to be obtained.

 

I've had another look at the dipped-beam pattern of my Fabia's non-adaptive LED headlights. The pattern is definitely not 'flat' and I'm doubtful that it could be tweaked enough to comply with the UK's importing rules, even if one could find a garage prepared to attempt this. There are a few RHD Fabia Mk 4 secondhand (damaged) non-adaptive LED headlights currently advertised for sale online and their asking prices suggest that brand-new UK-specification headlights would be far from cheap (£500 each?) but a UK Skoda dealership could confirm what the price is.

 

A basic rule for marketing a new vehicle in Europe is that its speedometer MUST be able to display speed in kilometres-per-hour (KM/H), but there is a derogation for countries that use imperial distance measurement (eg. the UK) to have the speedometer ALSO display speed in miles-per-hour (MPH). When a UK-specification RHD vehicle has a 'fixed' chronometric speedometer, the usual arrangement is to have an outer MPH scale with a secondary inner KM/H scale. (It doesn't HAVE to be that way round, but I've only seen the opposite once, years ago on a small Italian-made scooter.) The 'fixed' chronometric speedometer of a LHD vehicle will just have the KM/H scale and, when the vehicle is imported to the UK, meeting the dual MPH/KM/H requirement can be VERY expensive, sometimes requiring replacement of the complete original instrument-cluster. Fortunately a LHD Fabia Mk 4 with a chronometric KM/H-only speedometer can also display speed digitally (MPH or KM/H) in its central area (as shown below) and this should satisfy the UK's (slightly ambiguous) speedometer-related importing requirements.

 

Edited 4 October, 20241 yr by DerekU

6 hours ago, DerekU said:

in its central area (as shown below) and this should satisfy the UK's (slightly ambiguous) speedometer-related importing requirements.

Not going against all the great info you've provided and you may well be correct but personally I would check this, if it's the same as the Mk3 Fabia the digital speed display is not permanent, it can be switched/scroll-wheeled to other items checked in the menu.  It may pass requirements, I don't know but I'd check with those that either pass or fail this. 

That's why I said about the Fabia Mk 4's display "...this should satisfy the UK's (slightly ambiguous) speedometer-related importing requirements". 
 

A LHD Fabia's chronometric display with a KM/H-only speedometer can show the car's speed in KM/H and (by operating a 'switch') simultaneously show a digital MPH equivalent between the speedometer and rev-counter. Obviously this not 'permanent', but it should meet the importing requirements. Certainly, where imported LHD motorhomes with this type of dual-speed-readout arrangement have been concerned, there has been no need to swap the complete display just to get a combined MPH and KM/H chronometric speedometer.

 

Even if a Fabia has a Virtual Cockpit that allows the speedometer's display to be easily swapped between KM/H and MPH, the swap will not be 'permanent' in the strictest sense of that word.

 

This link may be of interest

 

https://www.aronaforums.co.uk/threads/importing-car-into-uk.1209/

 

I would be very careful if the UK's VCA (Vehicle Certification Agency) is to be contacted for advice about the importing process. I've dealt with the VCA in the past about importing and been happy with their response - but I'm VERY careful with what I ask and how I word an enquiry. Some people importing LHD motorhomes have had questionable advice from the VCA that, when challenged, resulted in long delays and (eventually) the advice proved to have been wrong.

 

 

Skoda's guidance on importing/exporting can be found here.

 

https://www.skoda.co.uk/owners/vehicle-import-export

 

The following two sections are ( or may be) relevant in Pete79's case

 

Importing a left hand drive vehicle under 10-years old from an EU country

To import a left hand drive vehicle you must make sure the following modifications have been made to comply with UK road regulations:

• Headlights permanently adjusted/replaced to suit UK traffic
• Rear fog lights operate as a pair or only on the right hand side. Speedometer graduated in miles per hour (MPH)
• Your vehicle has two exterior rear-view mirrors
• You will need to present a Certificate of Conformity (COC) and evidence that any necessary modifications have been made, for example receipts and/or invoices, to the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) . You will then have to register the vehicle through the DVLA.

Useful contacts and links

If you need help with importing or exporting your Škoda, you can email Škoda Customer Care or call us on 03330 037 504.

• Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) - 0300 123 9000
• Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) - 0117 952 4164
• Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) - 0300 790 6802
• London Low Emission Zone enquiries - 0343 222 1111
• To order your certificate of conformity please email [email protected]