Left-Hand Drive Headlights

[Grecian]

With the car's first CT rapidly approaching I need to replace the UK units with left-hand drive units. I have the sticky deflector things on the lights at the moment, but the odd car does flash me, presumably because the lights are dazzling the outcoming car, or maybe the driver just doesn't like me!

I have 'Googled' in search of aforementioned lights and come up with abacusautoparts.com who want 200 pound for the pair of headlights, my car is a Hyundai Amica, which the French authorities have rechristened a Hyundai Atos. I stored a website with a view to buying the lights a while back: PieceOnline-Pro.fr who only wanted 62 euros per unit, but I am unable to get their site to appear, so I guess they are either still on holiday or have gone bust.

Does anybody out there have any other companies they can recommend for the purchase of my headlights, if you have I would be most appreciative to hear from you.

[AnOther]

Try http://www.pieceonline-auto.fr/ instead.

Also www.easypieceauto.com

 

[elamessa]

You could also try http://www.mister-auto.com

You will have to paste it into your browser as i dont know how highlight it as AnOther has done above.

[HoneySuckleDreams]

be careful about piece online. We just bought some headlights for our Suzuki hair dresser 4x4 from them and we got the lights (eventually! I think they have been on holiday for the whole of August). They both fit, but one of them is a manual adjustment not an electric one. So we paid a lot of money and ended up getting the cheaper version. Having said all that, wifey fitted them (eventually, fitfully and in the end ecstatically!!)  so they now conform, which is the important thing.

We went to a local scrap place for the citroen headlights, 90euro the pair, including all bulbs...bargain. You can always try those piece d'attacher (or whatever they are called) first. But...as I've never heard of your car (that's not to say that it's a very good car i might add), you might struggle...or be amazingly lucky. Bon chance.

 

[Grecian]

Thanks for the replies.

I have looked at the three sites and only pieceonline stock the correct lights for our Atos, but at €84.77 each they are the best price to date.

elamessa I should have thought of mister-auto myself as their advert is on French telly every night.

crazyfrog I take onboard what you say about pieceonline, and hope delivery will be quicker now all of France is open for business again. If your wife is passing anytime and fancies a go at fitting my Atos headlights she is more than welcome!

[AnOther]

At the prices charged in relation to the main dealer it should be pretty obvious that most of the parts you buy from the likes of pieceonline are not OEM but  copies and consequently the quality of fit may vary. If you want guaranteed perfection buy original manufacturers parts.

The headlight I bought for my Skoda was virtually indistinguishable from the original. The wing and bumper were not perfect but were adequate for purpose but at less than 1/2 price I think I got what I paid for.

If you received wrong parts then you should have sent them back.

[Grecian]

Bringing this one back to the top to supply some information that may help others in the future when replacing right-hand drive headlights.

I had decided to order my new headlights from pieceonline, when I thought I would obtain a devis from my local garage just to compare the price. OK it took me nearly 2 weeks for them to supply me with a devis, I guess that is quite good for France! Whilst the price was slightly more expensive than pieceonline I thought it would save a lot of hassle getting the garage to supply and fit my new lights. I was talking to the mechanic, well trying to talk to the mechanic in French in front of my car when he pointed at my certificate of insurance sticker, and said that the insurance company would pay for my new headlights. I thought this unlikely but off we went to the insurance company to enquire. Unfortunately the lady that speaks English in the office was not there, but we did get to speak to another very nice lady, and proceeded to ask her if indeed we could claim for our LH headlights on our policy. After reading the policy she said it only covered us if the headlights were damaged, but she would telephone the chef to check. After telephoning the chef she informed us that indeed we could claim for our new lights even though the lights were not damaged, being quite elated at this piece of information we left the office without asking if it would affect our bonus, so back to the office this morning. After apoligising for troubling her again I asked if we claimed for our new lights would our bonus be affected, to which she replied that the bonus would not be affected or there would be no excess to pay either, and told us to tell the garage to send the bill directly to them.

I am not sure if this applies to all French insurance companies when replacing RH lights but I think it well worthwhile asking if anyone needs to replace their lights in the future. For the record we are insured with Mutuelle de Poitiers Assurances.

[sid]

Wow! Gobsmacked!

Sid

I wonder it'll work for new tyres? [Www]  No, don't worry, I'm joking.

[AnOther]

I had heard of this previously but this is the first time I have heard of it actually working in practice, well done !

Interesting to hear that Mutuelle de Poitiers Assurances have a chef as a chief, good for cooking the books perhaps [Www]

[dave21478]

The chap I sold a Landrover to a few years ago put a hammer through both headlights (uk spec) and claimed it as vanadlism on his insurance policy. Seemingly headlights are often covered alongside windscreens and other glass and can be claimed for without affecting bonus and with the usual windscreen excess which depends on your policy.

[Chancer]

Yes that is what many people do, often encouraged by the insurance agent, I know of someone that has regularly changed their cars and gets LHD phares gratuit every time courtesy of his insurers.

Grecian, what exactly was written on the claim form that you signed?

[Grecian]

Sorry Chancer but I am unable to tell you what was written on the claim form, the lady handed me the form and pointed where to sign, so that was what I did. I am afraid I did not read what she had written, I guess in the UK I would not have signed anything without reading it, but in France at the moment even the simple operations are difficult, without the full grasp of the French language.

I can confirm however that no hammer has gone anywhere near my UK phares, I actually used a wrench, only joking!

The car failed its CT this morning due to it having UK lights, hopefully they are being replaced tomorrow at my local garage, but this being France I am not taking anything for granted.

[Chancer]

Probably a good thing that you didnt read the claim form, we can probably guess what was on it [;-)]

The good thing (at the moment) about France is that if and when you change insurers they only ask for an attestation from your current insurers of you bonus entitlement which of course is unaffected by a headlight claim, I dont think they ask the question "have you made any claims in the last X years,", I say think, I really should know having changed insurers 3 times in the last 18 months.

I know someone that answered no to the question in  the UK but their premium was bumped up because they found out from the central database that she had had a windscreen claim which hadnt affected her bonus.

[megnfern]

This was very informative .. I am wondering, did you keep the original headlights? ..

[Jo]

I am trying to source LHD headlights for our T reg Ford Mondeo and have been quoted £180, is that about right? I'm having difficulty finding a supplier, presumably because of the car's age?[8-)]

[AnOther]

Cheaper here:

http://www.easypieceauto.com/boutique/fiche_produit.cfm?ref=FOR431&type=183&code_lg=lg_fr&num=112

and here

http://www.pieceonline-auto.fr/pieces-detachees/ford-mondeo-2-10-1996-a-08-2000/eclairage/204-2194-phare-ampoule-h7-h1-reglage-electrique.html

check your precise type though.