taking my seven to France

[surrey7er]

Hi folks,

I will be taking my 7 to France this year (LMC) and I want to make sure I am legal.

I've got the warning triangle, but what should I do about the bulb kit? Anyone know what to get and where to get it? I tried Halfrauds (with a heavy heart and a feeling that I was gonna be disappointed) and I was disappointed.

Many thanks

[Cock Womble 7]

Surely Halfords would have the individual bulbs, if not as a kit?

Don't forget the hi-viz vest(s) either.

[ewenm]

Yep, buy the individual bulbs from Halfords (other motor factors are available). Warning triangle and hi-viz vest for each person. I also take a fire extinguisher, first aid kit and a load of spare fuses.

Lots of people carry spare clutch and throttle cables too.

Edit: GB sticker too.

Edited by ewenm on Monday 7th June 11:41

[BertBert]

Headlight blanking thingies.
Bert

[surrey7er]

Gentlemen, thanks for the replies.

Got my high-vizage, got my headlight blanking thingys, even got a GB sticker.

ref buying individual bulbs, erm, because my 7 has been so faultlessly reliable for the last 4 years , I have never even had to change a bulb on it!!

can anyone please point me at a list of what I need?

ta very much!

[Chris71]

Going through this myself at the moment for the trip to Le Mans (although sadly not in the Seven).

You need:

Hi-vis jacket one for each occupant and accesible from the cockpit
Warning triangle
Spare bulbs
GB sticker

Headlamp converters

Documents - V5, MOT and certificate of insurance

Think that's everything. Don't forget some money for the payages too!

[CanAm]

If you are forced to use the Autoroutes, then the Sanef transponder is well worth the effort. Much easier to drive through the peages without even stopping than to struggle to pay from the wrong side of the car.

[Shaun_E]

A standard H4 headlamp bulb, a 5W/21W tail light/brake light bulb and a 21W indicator bulb are all that is required. These are easily found in Halfords. They probably do a kit with these bits in. I assume you will have some tools with you as you'll need a screwdriver to change any of them!

[mickrick]

I don't know if it's the case in France, but in Spain, you have to carry two warning triangles.

[surrey7er]

Shaun_E said:

A standard H4 headlamp bulb, a 5W/21W tail light/brake light bulb and a 21W indicator bulb are all that is required. These are easily found in Halfords. They probably do a kit with these bits in. I assume you will have some tools with you as you'll need a screwdriver to change any of them!

thank you sir, that is just the ticket...

tools? pah, will a swiss army knife do?

[BertBert]

Chris71 said:

one for each occupant and accesible from the cockpit

Just one needed in France and Monaco.

You only need bulbs if one fails!!

Bert

[Steve-B]

BertBert said:

Headlight blanking thingies.
Bert

Now here's the question du jour:

Continental drivers coming to the UK never use them here -- and the BiB I've observed don't enforce the reverse. Cause Celebre to not do this? Ever been pulled for this, anyone?

[surrey7er]

Steve-B said:

BertBert said:

Headlight blanking thingies.
Bert

Now here's the question du jour:

Continental drivers coming to the UK never use them here -- and the BiB I've observed don't enforce the reverse. Cause Celebre to not do this? Ever been pulled for this, anyone?

No, I never have... however, I have heard too many cautionary tales of over zealous Gendarmes when the Le Mans visitors come to France... hence my attempt at being compliant... Normally, I have just filled up with petrol, luzzed a bag in the back and gone for it...!

[allen l]

I've never been stopped on your rainy Island for not put a blanking sticker on my headlamps. I have never got any light signs from drivers driving in the opposite direction. I guess that's because the lights of the VX220 I had, and the Caterham, can be compared with candles. Wouldn't worry too much about it. Especially if you leave your lights off during daylight.

[7SS]

allen l said:

I've never been stopped on your rainy Island for not put a blanking sticker on my headlamps. I have never got any light signs from drivers driving in the opposite direction. I guess that's because the lights of the VX220 I had, and the Caterham, can be compared with candles. Wouldn't worry too much about it. Especially if you leave your lights off during daylight.

Having had a run in with les gendarmes I wouldn't take the risk for the sake of a couple of quid. Or even a bit of insulating tape if you're that thrifty. Depending how enthusiastically you drive you may want to keep a stock of Euros in your pocket as they'll impound your car if you're stopped & can't pay. They have plenty of unmarked patrols & are particularly harsh towards Brits.

[BertBert]

Even with a pile of euros, you can't go all that quickly now in france before they just take away your keys anyway!

The headlight adjusters on the family car now stay on all the year round as I can't be bothered to take them off and put new ones on for the 2 trips a year to johnny-foreigner-land.

Bert

[Chris71]

allen l said:

I've never been stopped on your rainy Island for not put a blanking sticker on my headlamps.

Not even our police are as anal as the French it seems!

[Murph7355]

Halfords do a perfectly suitable H4 bulb kit. Saves having individual bulbs rattling around.

If you have a rear number plate with 'GB' on, you don't need a sticker.

Hi-vis vest needs to be in the car, not the boot. One per occupant.

Triangle as mentioned.

Would be worth taking a few basic tools and from experience a spare throttle and clutch cable. A first aid kit is also a useful thing to have.

I've never bothered with beam deflectors - it's very rare I'm driving at night (am usually in a bar!), when I am I'm usually in a hurry so on autoroutes which more often than not have a barrier in the middle and the 7's so low that it's unlikely to cause any issues. You can always improvise with electrical tape.

[BertBert]

Murph7355 said:

One per occupant.

One per car in Fr.
Bert

[Shaun_E]

I popped into Halfords today and can see the problem with the bulb kits - they do about 20 different ones and they contain nearly every bulb on the car plus a few fuses. It's a shame as the case is quite neat and has a foam insert to protect the bulbs. Not bad for £9.99 either. I've decided to make my own up instead as I have spare bulbs at home and also want a brighter headlight bulb than is in the kit.