soontobeingalicia

I am thinking of bring 2 cars over from the uk when we move out and I have heard that putting the deflectors on your lights will no longer be enough for it to pass the MOT/get registered and that EU left handed lights need to be fitted. Just got this costed and it would cost £527 all in from my local Honda garage!!! didnt really want to pay this if not required. Any had to ge this done?

Tele Addict

Right hand drive cars here are valueless. Why not sell them in the UK and buy cars when you arrive here (no import fees).

Mitzyboy

No import fees, but much more expensive

snikpoh

Yep, there have been many posts on the process and costs of matriculating UK (RHD) cars in Spain.

Don't forget that it's not only the headlights - in theory, if you have a single reversing light and a single fog light then these too will have to be changed (to the other sides). This may will mean new rear light clusters.

Unless the cars are of special 'value'to you (classic or similar) then I would recommend selling and buying over here.

Like you, I tried to bring two over with me. In hindsight, I shouldn't have done. The first, a Shogun, was a nightmare. despite being quite standard the technical engineer told me that I had to cut off the running boards, remove the front bull bar etc. etc. These are all standard factory fit but he was having none of it and would not issue the necessary paperwork. I sold the cehicle and bought Spanish.

The other was my wifes peugeot 307 - she loves it. We did get it matriculated but with the costs for lights, plates and then tax, I'm not sure it was really worth it. We now have an expensive RHD, Spanish registered car with no resale value - but she still loves it

Dick Dasterdly

You can say that again.
When I first moved to the Canaries 16 year back,I could buy a brand-new basic run-around car for little more than half the then UK price,(purchase tax there was only 4% which also helped a lot).
I do many more miles now on the Peninsula and around Europe, so prefer something bigger and more comfortable now, and quite fancied a new Citroen Crosser exec.
Spanish price(and most of the EU),is almost double UK price,..16K to 18K,..more!

Fairly confident I could get by with a UK RHD, if it was not for the toll road paypoints and tickets, as I often travel alone, so it would mean constantly jumping in and out to walk around the vehicle and also probably upsetting the frustrated queue behind.
Pity there is not one standardised automatic pay system for all of the EU.

bob_day

Don't take too much notice of all the doomsayers advising not to bring your car over with you..

We moved over in June this year bringing with us my Merc ML which is now sitting on the drive wearing Spanish plates. In the UK the car cost me half of what it would have done in Spain and personally I have no problem driving RHD over here, in fact in many ways I prefer it to our LHD car.

Matriculation was a breeze as I paid a gestor to do it on my behalf. The additional cost of emplying a gestor over doing all the running around yourself was under 200 euros. Their total bill was a shade over 600 euros most of which was payments for ITV, Engineers report, road tax, number plates etc that you would pay anyway.

I had to change the headlights, although I'm pretty sure the originals could have been adjusted for over here. However Merc garage insisted that they couldn't be so I had a new pair. I did sell the old units on ebay so net cost was around £150 for the lights.

The only thing the engineers report noted was the tint film on the rear wondows which had to be removed. Didn't complain about the side steps.

Would have sailed through the ITV first time had I not forgotten about the rear fog light. Half an hour job for a mechanic to switch a wire over and that was sorted.

Pretty much the only thing that I had to do was go to the British Consulate in Malaga to get a baja consular, a declaration that I am now living in Spain and therefore will not have to pay any import duty on the car which would have been around 1800 euros on a 2003 Merc ML270.

As I said the whole process was a piece of cake and in my case eminantly worth doing.

As to the commonly espoused RHD cars having no value in Spain. I don't intend to sell the car so that is an irrelevance.

Rotor

Dont just take your main agents price for headlights as the only option , there are hundreds of makes/models covered by pattern types, try several motor factors.

soontobeingalicia

Thanks for the info, the cars are 5 years old but fully serviced and I know the history and dont really want to get a second hand car or new over ther (both very expensive)

might just bite the bullet and go through the process.

Thanks again all

Fredbargate

From Wikipedia

Due to the number of deaths and injuries caused by cars with rigid metal bullbars (in 2000 some 2,000 deaths/year and 18,000 serious accidents/year in Europe [1]), the sale of metal bullbars was banned by a European Union Directive.[2]

and yes you still see them on sale.

Rotor

You are allowed to leave them on if they are shown on your ficha technica ,after may this year no more can be fitted legally except for use on private land/off road competitions,maybe these are the ones youve seen for sale,potentially big fine from traffico if fitted illegally .

Casa Santo Estevo

If you are moving to Galicia I personally would not import a Honda because there are not so many service agents around here. The nearest is either Lugo or Ourense. Too far to travel if the car does not work!
There are several breakers around in Monforte, Ourense or Lugo. Maybe if you are desperate try your luck at one of those. And do not forget your rear fog lamps!

Fredbargate

I understood that this was a European law that came in on 1/1/2002

Madridboy

Considering the amount of LHD cars in circulation in the UK I would imagine you could get a good deal buying a set of lights from a LHD specialist in the UK or maybe on ebay.

lunacrout

we need to change the lights on our Honda CRV but have found them very difficult to find online - e-bay, parts sites etc. No breakers that I know of in our area but maybe some around Malaga?

My OH wants to keep our RHD as he feels safer on the bendy country roads with sheer drops as he is able to see the edge - I, however, am not so keen to be stuck in the middle of the road with lunatic overtakers approaching

battlezone123

I wanted a Chevrolet Astro Van and there was one on sale here for 7,000 euros. Far too expensive. Found a left hand drive van in the UK for £3,000 so I caught a flight to Heathrow 70 euros, £22 coach fare, then £260 on the ferry. OK there were incidentals such as petrol c.50 euros and munchies but I still saved money.

And NO I will not be transferring onto Spanish plates. The Guardia Civil have told me not to worry! So long as the car is insured they are happy.