LHD and MOT and the Headlamps

C

chrispenrallt

Joined
Nov 5, 2022
Posts
142
Likes collected
757
Location
West Wales
Funster No
92,280
MH
Carthago Compactline
Exp
I’m a newbie
I have looked at previous posts about this, but I’m still not sure about how the law views it. I took my LHD motorhome to the MOT station today. When I called to collect it they said that I would have to change the headlamps as the beam was not correct. My motorhome is a LHD Carthago Compactline 2015. I have all the previous MOTs and according to my brother who was the previous owner from new there has never been any mention of this when it has been been in for test previously. The chap said he would check with DVLA to see if I could just put stickers or lenses on it.
Does anyone know what the law actually is as I would like to be able to show the guys in the garage tomorrow that I’m not just a dim woman who knows nothing!
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
Would it be possible to go to the same testing garage as your brother?
 
Upvote 0
All I can add is that on a previous van RHD I fitted those cheap stick on headlight adaptors for a foreign trip. Took for MOT and I suddenly remembered they were still on. Tester said no issue, it passed ok plus another 3-4 years after that.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
I know for sure, that when on the opposite side of the equation….ie using a RHD vehicle in Europe, we had to purchase LHD headlights in order to pass the BFG road test….which was similar to an MOT in regards to safety to drive on the continent. Taped reflectors were not acceptable.
 
Upvote 0
Not quite the same but i had lhd lights titted in my rhd vw T25.
Passed mot for 10 years with tape on the correct part of the lens.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
I imported a one year old, Left Hand Drive, Mercedes E Class from Spain, to the UK in 2007. Owned it for a further 12 years and never changed the headlights either for the initial registration, or for the 10 MOT's I put it through.

I was once told to put some beam deflector stickers on but that was it. Last MOT I did for it was in 2019 so the rules may have changed since then.
 
Upvote 0
Yes that’s what’s I’m trying to find out, the rules as they stand in 2023. I have just come off the phone from talking to the mechanic who has actually done the MOT for the last few years and he said that my brother had never put stickers on the headlamps and it had always been acceptable. So what do we glean from that ?
 
Upvote 0
chrispenrallt said:
I have looked at previous posts about this, but I’m still not sure about how the law views it. I took my LHD motorhome to the MOT station today. When I called to collect it they said that I would have to change the headlamps as the beam was not correct. My motorhome is a LHD Carthago Compactline 2015. I have all the previous MOTs and according to my brother who was the previous owner from new there has never been any mention of this when it has been been in for test previously. The chap said he would check with DVLA to see if I could just put stickers or lenses on it.
Does anyone know what the law actually is as I would like to be able to show the guys in the garage tomorrow that I’m not just a dim woman who knows nothing!
Click to expand...
Many headlights these days on MHs, are adjustable, ie, taking the dipped beam from the right (EU), to the left (UK). Ours on both the previous Hymer, and the current Flair are adjustable, and not just for height either.

If this is the same frontage as your Carthago Compactline, then those round Hella lamps tend to be adjustable from the rear, for left or right beams. Maybe the tester either wasn't aware, or just couldn't be bothered to at least have a look for you. :(

1677699191356.png


Good luck getting it sorted. (y)

Cheers,

Jock. :)
 
Upvote 0
Thank you all for your help. I’m going to go tomorrow and show him this and give him the mechanics number so he can talk to him about it. I’m not going quietly!

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
JockandRita said:
Many headlights these days on MHs, are adjustable, ie, taking the dipped beam from the right (EU), to the left (UK). Ours on both the previous Hymer, and the current Flair are adjustable, and not just for height either.

If this is the same frontage as your Carthago Compactline, then those round Hella lamps tend to be adjustable from the rear, for left or right beams. Maybe the tester either wasn't aware, or just couldn't be bothered to at least have a look for you. :(

View attachment 722052

Good luck getting it sorted. (y)

Cheers,
Click to expand...
JockandRita said:
Jock. :)
Click to expand...
 
Upvote 0
Your CompactLine has Hella Classic Projector headlamps. They are adjustable between flat dipping and right hand kick up for driving on the right.
All you need to do is loosen the 3 Screws on the rear of the lamp and rotate it until it stops then tighten the screws.

As it's passed MOT's before I would check the beam alignment first by looking at the beam against a wall with the van a few metres away. If they are kicking up to the right you need to adjust them if they look flat you could have a picky MOT tester.
 
Upvote 0
I'm not familiar with the Carthago Compactline, but looking at the online pictures it seems to have those round 90mm Hella headlights. If so you are in luck. The dip beam lights can be easily changed from LHD to RHD by simply rotating through about 30 degrees. Are they the round type of light?

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
JockandRita said:
We can't all be wrong now, can we? ;)

Cheers,

Jock. :)
Click to expand...
autorouter said:
I'm not familiar with the Carthago Compactline, but looking at the online pictures it seems to have those round 90mm Hella headlights. If so you are in luck. The dip beam lights can be easily changed from LHD to RHD by simply rotating through about 30 degrees. Are they the round type of light?
Click to expand...
chrispenrallt. See what I mean! ;)

Jock. :)
 
Upvote 0
dazandandrea said:
Not quite the same but i had lhd lights titted in my rhd vw T25.
Passed mot for 10 years with tape on the correct part of the lens.
Click to expand...

Like you, my imported LHD T25 Westy is all original and still has speedometer in Km, still has original headlights (I just put shaped gaffe tape over the offending section). I just tell them it is a 'temporary' fix and this is allowed in the testers manual.

chrispenrallt , It has passed it's MOT in this country for the past 11yrs without problem.
 
Upvote 0
I have imported a few LHD motorhomes. In order to get a LHD vehicle registered in UK you have to have headlights that comply with UK as well as a UK speedometer and correct rear fog light. It's not acceptable to VCA to have 'beam benders' for this purpose. You have to sign a declaration and a garage has to provide a letter to confirm this work has been done.
It's my understanding that once you've got the vehicle registered then come MOT time it is acceptable to put the LHD lights back in and use 'beam benders' to get it through the MOT. I've not done this myself but intend to. The LHD lights that came with my van have LED, DRL's and are much better than my RHD lights I bought and the garage had to tinker with them to get the side lights to function as DRL's. I think a lot will depend on how picky your MOT station is. Most will just test the lights and if they point in the right direction you are fine. Other's may spot the beam benders and fail it.
This is what the MOT inspection manual says:
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.
The key work in that is 'temporarily', bit like how long is a piece of string.
Edit.
I've just spotted L'Hobo's comment above, which says same thing about the MOT inspection manual!
 
Upvote 0
I purchased a LHD La Stada Nova M from Alan Kerr some years ago. It was a Brand New But 3 / 4 year old for Export, I was told to Iran that never went ahead.

@ Simon-Alan Kerr​


I had no end of trouble with the Vehicle . When we viewed it, it had no beam benders fitted. When we collected it, it did have them on. When we took it for an MOT, my local Garage turned a blind eye. But said it could be a future issue. Just for your information, I had no end of trouble with Alan Kerr who couldn't give a monkeys and I ended up fitting the bill for £1,000s of pounds as I was working 100 miles an hour at the time and they were a long drive from Manchester.

AS I understand it, Alan Kerrs reputation has improved greatly since Simon came on-board. Pity he wasn't there when we bought from them.

Our current Hymer LHD always passes, but I think the headlamps must have been swapped when it Was imported .

In Spain, as mentioned here, you are not allowed to use beam benders and MUST swap the headlamp unit for LHD EU Approved units,\

www.motorhomefun.co.uk

Exporting motorhome to Spain

We are moving to Spain in October and want to take our motorhome with us, Autotrail EKS 2016. Has anybody had any experience of re registration to Spanish plates and getting through the ITV (mot). TIA
www.motorhomefun.co.uk www.motorhomefun.co.uk

I would advise anyone who is buying a LHD or Exporting a RHD too the continent to be very wary. As it could cost you dearly. Especially if you have Xenon or LED headlamps that cannot be switched to the opposite side by switch or on-board Computers
 
Upvote 0
autorouter said:
I'm not familiar with the Carthago Compactline, but looking at the online pictures it seems to have those round 90mm Hella headlights. If so you are in luck. The dip beam lights can be easily changed from LHD to RHD by simply rotating through about 30 degrees. Are they the round type of light?
Click to expand...
Yes they are and it seems they can be turned to suit .

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
chrispenrallt said:
Yes they are and it seems they can be turned to suit .
Click to expand...
If you point the dip beams at the wall you will see they are in the shape of a shallow 'V'. For driving on the right, the left side is horizontal to avoid dazzling oncoming traffic, and the right side slopes up to illuminate the nearside verge and road signs. For driving on the left, the right side is horizontal to avoid dazzling oncoming traffic, and the left side slopes up to illuminate the nearside verge and road signs.

A small rotation of the light switches between the two settings. On my Hymer, I have to loosen two screws, and a third must be removed completely and replaced to hold the light in the other position.
 
Upvote 0
Take a roll of gaffa tape and a pair of scissors it stops the machine being dazzled, never had a problem, you must have a jobsworth, don’t tell him though, be nice(y)
 
Upvote 0
dabhand said:
Take a roll of gaffa tape and a pair of scissors it stops the machine being dazzled, never had a problem, you must have a jobsworth, don’t tell him though, be nice(y)
Click to expand...
I will doing my best not to get annoyed or worse than that upset and teary . Of course I want to be legal but I don’t fancy the idea of paying out for 4 headlamps if there is no need. Brother, who was the previous owner from new is quite baffled by it .
 
Upvote 0
chrispenrallt said:
I will doing my best not to get annoyed or worse than that upset and teary . Of course I want to be legal but I don’t fancy the idea of paying out for 4 headlamps if there is no need. Brother, who was the previous owner from new is quite baffled by it .
Click to expand...
I reckon the tester isn't aware of the lamp adjustment. Even if they said that they would have to charge for adjusting the lamps before the re-test, that would be better than nothing I suppose.
If I was anywhere close to your location, I'd come over and adjust the bu@@ers myself for you.

On our old Hymer, I had them set up so that I could reach in and rotate them to alter the beam before crossing the Channel, then rotate them back again, before coming back to Blighty.

Cheers,

Jock. :)
 
Upvote 0

Join us or log in to post a reply.

To join in you must be a member of MotorhomeFun

Join MotorhomeFun

Join us, it quick and easy!

Join us

Log in

Already a member? Log in here.

Latest journal entries

Back
Top