Light Conversions
So what exactly are “Light Conversions”?
When U.S. specification vehicles are brought into the UK for more than one year, the lights
have to be converted to UK specification, and the vehicle must obtain official approval.
Many vehicles of Japanese and European design
require very little work. They already have amber indicators on the rear, and side repeater indicators on the front wings or door
mirrors. Of course, if they don’t, then we can do the necessary conversion.
However, these vehicles usually have amber “parking” (or
“running”) lights at the front and these need to be white for the UK. On some vehicles this is as easy as changing the bulb.
On other vehicles we need to fit new white lights and divert the power away from your existing lights.
On vehicles which have red
Indicators at the rear, the neatest way of gaining amber Indicators is to convert the reverse lamps, which means that we do not have
to bolt on additional lamps to the rear of your vehicle. You will no longer have reverse lamps, but these are not a legal requirement
in the UK for private cars, only for commercial vehicles.
The longest task of all is to provide a fog lamp at the rear of the vehicle.
This must be on the right-hand side of the vehicle, since traffic in the UK drives on the left-hand side of the road. We prefer to
convert a spare rear lamp to function as a fog lamp and by doing it this way your vehicle retains its neat appearance. We lift the
internal trim and carpets and run the additional wiring alongside the existing wiring harness, so that it is out of sight and, just
as importantly, safe.
This fog lamp is needed during misty conditions, when visibility is less than 100 yards. By the way, don’t forget
to switch it off when another vehicle comes up behind you!
There are some vehicles which are produced solely for the North American
market, for example, the Ford Mustang. The conversion of the lights on these becomes rather complicated; just think of the brake lights
and the sequential Indicators. Don’t worry, we can still convert these lights! After all, we have been carrying out light conversions
ever since the law was introduced in 1978.
Since around 2001, almost all vehicles on the market have been fitted with a number of
computers, and one of these (the Body Control Module, or “BCM”) controls the functioning of the lights. Carelessly interfering with
the computer wiring will lead to damage being caused to the BCM. Since the replacement and programming of a new BCM typically costs
around £700, this is a situation to be avoided! We have various methods for avoiding any such damage, so you can rest assured that
your BCM is safe with us.
Our policy is to never make any permanent changes to your vehicle, so we will never drill holes through the
bodywork, cut away sections of carpet or trim, or generally leave your vehicle looking scarred.
Once the conversion work has
been done, your vehicle then needs to have official approval. This is an SVA test for vehicles which are less than three years old
from the date of build, or an MOT test for vehicles of three years or older. We can arrange for the appropriate test for your vehicle
to be carried out.
Finally, when the time comes to transport the vehicle back to the USA, we will carry out the re-conversion of the
lights back to the original U.S. specification.
Light
Conversions