NewinFrance Posted July 14, 2010 Share Posted July 14, 2010 Are there any hidden problems in re-importing a car previously registered here in France and then subsequently exported to, and registered in, the UK?The car was first registered (in France) in 2001 and is a LHD, French spec vehicle for sale at a dealers in the UK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunday Driver Posted July 14, 2010 Share Posted July 14, 2010 There's unlikely to be any hidden problems if you follow the procedure for importing a UK registered car to France. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted July 14, 2010 Share Posted July 14, 2010 We did the same with one a few years ago, and it caused the préfecture no end of problems because there was no way that they could match the date of registration in England (on the export certificate - that's how long ago it was) with the mise en circulation date corresponding to the VIN on their database. That, apparently, was what the system said had to happen...In the end they got over it because we found its last French immatriculation number, and an exchange of faxes between the old and new préfectures miraculously allowed a new number to be issued.I would imagine the authorities are a bit more clued up to imported vehicles now, so as long as you have all the right paperwork - i.e. the UK V5C and a bill of sale - you should have no problems. I would advise you to insist that the dealer arranges the EU conformity paperwork for you, to save you time and money. You may need to change the headlights back to French specification if they have been changed to dip the other way for driving on the left (ours were modified with tape, but that is less acceptable now). Again, check with the seller and get him to put the correct lights on, if it is a LHD specialist that should not be a problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunday Driver Posted July 14, 2010 Share Posted July 14, 2010 Shouldn't be a problem now, Will. The V5C contains two items of information - the date of original first registration and the date of first registration in the UK. The former should help with any matching of dates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemer1150 Posted July 14, 2010 Share Posted July 14, 2010 Thanks for the info everyone - I've managed an English car and Moto, a German Camping Car and even a French registered car found in the UK but not this particular combination so far!(Sorry about wrong ident on the original post - a forgotten password caused a log-on with an earlier identity) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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