Moving to England - what should I expect?

[i3oricua]

So I'm moving to England in June and am going to bring my B7 over with me. I have a lot of work done to it to include a Stage 3 kit that I've installed myself. I'm worried about any possible inspection.

Do you have emissions testing?
I'm sure you have a visual inspection, what does that consist of if I'm correct?
How strict are they with tint? Is it just the front windows I should worry about?
What are the common sources of inspection failures...especially for modified cars?

I really appreciate any answers you guys can provide. I'm a little worried about bringing the car since I don't know what to expect.

Thanks.

Edgar

 

[tony mc]

hello mate, you should be alright we have whats called an m.o.t. over here, its a yearly check to the car to make sure its road worthy, loads of stuff gets checked, from tyre's to bulbs, the list is big, google it for more info. emissions tests are part of that but theres ways round it if you know what i mean, there's plenty of people with hugely modified cars driving around so i wouldn't of thought you should worry too much, my mate is driving round in his track car with anti lag on it and meth injection and he's always ok, you can have tints on your front windows but there is a legal limit so you can't be to dark, i'm sure others will mention more as they post a bit more info for you,

where are you moving from pal ?

 

[Charlie Farley]

don't forget if your moving here to live you'll need to pay the duty on the car as any car , it will need to be re-registered with with UK plates etc, as well as getting it MOT's and taxed.....depending on what its worth etc it can in many cases be more practicle to sell it and buy a replacement car in the uk, if you have lots of nice mods on it , put it back to standard and bring just part over and add to a UK car ...just something to keep in mind.

 

[i3oricua]

Thanks guys. I'm moving from California as part of a military move. California has strict rules as well but I'm exempt from them since this is not my home state. I'd prefer not to leave my car so I'll probably get the stock downpipe modified a little, probably put a vband flange on it to make it easier to put on and take off. If not, I'm sure I can work my way around it.

How are the police? Are they sticklers for stopping modified cars to do random checks?

 

[Gazwould]

Depends if it looks oem+ or a ricer .

 

[Charlie Farley]

are you moving here for more than 6 months as the rules for using an imported car on UK roads changes if you plan on staying longer , I don't think you'll be exempt from everything if that is the case , my brother in law was a UK military person based in Munster , Germany some time ago and brought back his car , a VW from their, he was hammered for duty and charges and he was a UK citizen....

 

[tony mc]

where will you be based, most cops up north are ok with the cars its more how they are been driven that gets their attention

 

[i3oricua]

I'll be there for at least 3 years. I'll be at Mildenhall which on the map looks close to Thetford if that helps. I think the car is tastefully modded but I guess that depends. It's definitely not OEM+ I would say. I'll post some pics up.

 

[RAF_S7]

You should be fine, annual emissions test, suspension, brakes etc. Gereral rule of thumb is no tints on windscreen or either front doors.

You will likely need to sort out headlights, as the beam will be focused on the wrong side of the road.

Your biggest challenge will be driving on the left (in a LHD vehicle) and negotiating our traffic circles and narrow roads. Oh and the weather

I did 4 years at Ramstein. You'll love it here!

 

[i3oricua]

I did 4 1/2 years at Spangdahlem so the only odd driving thing will be the LHD part of it all on the other side of the road than I'm used to. Traffic laws shouldn't change that much in Europe from country to country so it should be easy to pick back up....I hope. I've heard about the headlights, sounds like a pain. Hope its not as constantly rainy as they say it is.

 

[i3oricua]

Mines the red one. I'll have to take the tint off the front windows. I've since got new rims. Well, I actually still have those rims but have another set too.