Mk3 Ls400 Strip Searched By The French Gendarmes

[Malc]

Hi guys, well, back home after 5 weeks and 6060 miles fantastic Grand Touring around Spain and Portugal.

Lucky I remembered how to open the bonnet ......... that pesky wash bottle needed re-filling TWICE !!!

Amazing journeying and of course in armchair comfort, up mountain roads ( and over the top on one ), across the plains of Salamanca, the magnificent Atlantic coastal regions, wow, what an amazing journey ! and adventure.

Lexii was strip searched by the french at the border with San Sebastian on the return, and I was stopped 10 times by various police to check papers, tyres, headlight deflectors etc.

Is it really a mobster's car ???

Just thought I'd let you know how it all went. And i didn't bother with breakdown cover .... . reading the small print: cost of cover £157, excess £350 and to top it all, if the value of the car is less than the cost of recovery, they won't recover it !!!

No brainer really, cost of recovery must exceed the value of my car, surely.

Malc

[graham8370]

Fantastic Malc, must add to my list of 'to do'

Did you keep all the petrol receipts?

Be hard to beat that trip next year.

Graham.

[Rupert Dubreaux]

Glad your trip went well Malc ,you have covered more miles in a few weeks than I manage in a couple of years .

[Malc]

Petrol receipts, well, no, seemed to be filling up very often, I would be frightened if I knew how much I used ....... probably about 1000 litres I would imagine !

The great thing in Spain and Portugal is the mostly attended petrol pumps ................... and in Saumur ( France ) on the way back, at a Carrefour newish petrol station, inserted my credit card in the auto pump and wow, it told me I had a UK card and all instructions came onto the pump screen payment area in English, really good and helpful.

Malc

[Titch LS]

Malc, sounds like you had a great trip. I'm planning on a trip to France/Switzerland in the summer in the LS. What headlight deflectors did you use?, and did you take spare bulbs etc? Don't want to upset the Gendarmarie.

[Adam Evans]

Try these for cover ADAC

http://www.adac.de/mitgliedschaft/adac_membership/default.aspx

They will recover you and your passengers in ANY car from ANY European country to a garage of your choice

For example car breaks down in south of Spain they recover your car back to home in UK and put you on a flight to meet your car at the other side

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=1133193

The beauty about ADAC is that you are insured in ANY car (like German insurance) and if you break down in UK they pay for AA to come and get you !!!

Also I remember before I knew about ADAC I used AA for European breakdown cover and they said that that cover didn't cover me for every day driving in UK as the UK is not mainland Europe !!!! That cost me £257 for a full year

Anywayyyyyyyy..... Use ADAC and buy for you and a partner and it will cost you about £90 all that they ask you is that when in England if you don't have to use them then please don't as they get ripped off by AA !!! (Exact words when I rang them to order over the phone)

I had to use them in Germany, It is basically a repatriation company and to be fair to them they got me to where I needed to be so I am really happy with their service

[Malc]

Brian, I checked out the RAC and AA websites re my car needs in France etc. Might all change by the summer tho' !!

Must carry a warning triangle, reflective jacket(s) INSIDE the car

Not compulsory for bulbs or breathalyser test kits.

Compulsory headlight deflectors which I got from Halfords, they were a bit cheaper on the ferry but you don't really want to be buggering about putting them on at that stage i guess.

And the GB sticker which I placed on the rear number plate, a small one.

I haven't been driving in Switzerland for about 20 years, bet it's changed a lot.

Malc

[SHELLDRAKE]

TitchLS:I am going to france on Sunday13th, looking at what you said about what you need The main thing is you must have the breathalyser kit, otherwise the Gendarmarie will issue a Hefty fine. I have been stopped and when I produced the kit they nodded and let me go This law was introduced July 2012. also if your number plate has the E.U. circle of stars on it like mine has you don't need a G.B. sticker,SPARE bulbs-on the spot fines are given for non working lights in Europe,I always carry some with me.

[SHELLDRAKE]

This is it

[normski2]

This is what the AA say

January 2013 - Drivers in France have been required to carry a self-test breathalyser since July 2012 with enforcement by fines originally planned for 1 November but subsequently postponed to 1 March 2013. Now the French government has announced that the implementation of the sanction (fine) for drivers not carrying a breathalyser – a fine of €11 – has been postponed indefinitely.

So you are still required to carry a self-test breathalyser when driving in France but there is no current legislation demanding a fine for non-compliance.

What a crock of Chien wotsit!!

We don't need one but we should carry one. So now we get Halfords and the Cross Channel Ferries all desperate to flog you the B kit. Brittany Ferries were quite unashamedly trying to worry people into buying them at exorbitant rates on my crossing last year. World gone stupid!!

[Bluesman]

I have a couple of friends who live permanently in France and they don't carry any of this equipment the French government say we have to carry and they know many French people who don't carry the stuff as well.

We are clobbered because as soon as they see the number plate they are almost certainly going to be able to give us a ticket and get a few Euros.

The common market working in a balanced and fair way for all member states. Mike

[normski2]

Cool avatar

Mr Cleminson if I'm not mistaken....he of SAHB.

He was great on stage...just like Wilko was with Dr Feelgood.

[normski2]

Oh and don't forget to keep the reflective jacket in the glovebox or under the seat...they can...allegedly, nick you for having to get out of the car ( hey presto without the jacket!) to retrieve it from the boot.

I'm amazed Malc was stopped so much. I have only been stopped once ( in 20 yrs of visits)....as was the whole of France...seemingly...in an enormous lay-by whereupon every single car was stopped and the driver breathalysed. The only people apprehended...were FRENCH!!

[Malc]

It really is NOW a non requirement to carry the breathalyser kits or the spare bulbs.

No fines are seemingly being imposed on this front.

Running with faulty lights is, like in the UK, an offence but you would go to the local garage and get the bulb sorted at the time.

On the spot cash speeding fines tho' ... so carry a few hundred euros just in case, they only take cash ............ from experience

and wrong footing them works too, they really feel intimidated if you get out of the car to talk with them when they welcome you to stop.

Malc

[Titch LS]

Thank you, one and all, for the advice regarding driving in France. Perhaps I'll go to bed in my flourescent jacket to be on the safe side. Don't you just love the EU.

[Bluesman]

Cool avatar

Mr Cleminson if I'm not mistaken....he of SAHB.

He was great on stage...just like Wilko was with Dr Feelgood.

Your so right.

I saw Wilko just a few months ago and he is still belting it out although not with the same gusto as the dreaded cancer spreads its evil hand. Mike

[ambermarine]

Makes for interesting reading Malc ,last time I drove in Europe was mid eighties took the family down to Rimini on the Adriatic on a Cosmos self drive they supplied the overnight hotels in all the countries and all we had to do was get there.Went in a then brand new Montego estate both front windows fell off thier carriers so it was very draughty in the car coming home.The best country for service was Switzerland and the worst France,drivers were the craziest in Italy coming through Milan was a suicide mission at roundabouts.By the way if you go to the States do not get out of your car if stopped by the police you will probably get shot.

[mick4545]

This was my Euro trip last year. My priority when booking hotels is secure parking and easy access from the motorway.

Ferry Plymouth to Santander.

Santander - Zaragosa: Hotel Tryp Just off Mway, underground car park shared with a supermarket.

Santander - Benidorm. Hotel Don Pancho. Totally secure underground car park behind two locked steel gates.

Benidorm - Orange France. Ibis Hotel. Secure gated car park. 100 yds off Mway

Orange - Trier Germany Hotel Roma Brucken. Open car park opposite hotel with barrier.

Trier - Hamburg Raddisson Blu hotel. Secure underground car park.

Hamburg - Weissenhausse Strand. Baltic Coast. Secure resort parking.

Weissenhausse - Ebsjerg Denmark - Ferry to Harwich.

Ferries: Brittany Plymouth Santander superb, good food and entertainment, more like a mini cruise. DFDS Ebsjerg - Harwitch not so good, The ferry is a truck transporter.

2600 miles: 34 mpg, mainly motorway. Spain is the best place for driving, mile after mile of totally empty road. I'm going to Benidorm again in May using the Portsmouth - Caen ferry both ways with an overnight on the French\Spanish border.

[Malc]

I didn't pre-book a single hotel stay, the Lexus found somewhere quite good each night !!! ................she took the lead and took me to amazing locations

We ( Lexii and i that is ) just had an amazing adventure, and as for secure car parking, well, it didn't cross my mind .............. and if you're going from Santander thru' Pamplona then El Toro hotel ( NH group ) is quite good.

Malc

[runsgrateasanut]

A Gillet for every person travelling is a must have. Always, but always Stop at stop signs even if there is not a car in sight as Gendarmes have a habit of watching these stop places from hidden vantage points knowing drivers will think its pointless to stop when the road is clear - instant fine in cash and don't waste your time arguing. Also if you have radar detection and they spot it in your car then you'll be in serious doodoo. If its something they can't take out and stamp on, then it could be worse.

About the Mobsters car I've only just bought a Lexus and my W140 S320 Merc is probably more of a "Gangster car" but I've never been stopped on French roads. Only at the border control at Calais have I had an inspection. .When the rear window mechanism failed going over, and I couldnt repair it before getting back to the UK, so French Border Control at Calais were very interested as the window was nowhere to be seen, just cardboard and duct tape over the area. They asked me to open the boot and had a cursory glance. Usual tools and customary booze. Waved me to close it and I lightly pulled it down with the hand plate (no dirty hands on the actual boot) and of course it self-closed. The Customs Frenchman called me back to open it again as I think he must have thought there was some small person inside who had pulled it in, as it creaked shut. Laugh.

With regard to Deflectors I'm surprised that the Car Booklet doesn't give any diagram of the positioning of Deflectors? Merc book does. I always use Silver Duct tape and long ago stopped buying those things you get from the AA or on the ferry which are pricey and diffcult to remove the tackiness. Tape does the job just as well and is easily shaped by adhering a length to a piece of greaseproof paper first. Actually it can be cut more precisely to shape than those AA things.

[lexusdaduk]

Drove all over Spain and Portugal for the last couple of years, dreading the french trip down to Uzes for 4 weeks in july.

Can anyone recommend headlight converters for the LS430.

So we don't need breathalyzer or bulbs ? jackets I have from the other visits is it 2 triangles or one ?

Thanks all.

[Ruud]

Re: breathalyzers - Apparently the French law still states you need to have one in the car, but there is no current legislation demanding a fine for non-presence (from the AA)

A bigger worry is the satnav - make sure speed camera detection(if you have one) is turned off.

[Malc]

Hi lexusdaduk, in Spain it is two red triangles, in France just the one.

The Spanish rules are odd tho', only Spanish regd. cars need two and all other regd cars it is one BUT if you're a

uk car and need to use one then if you don't have two they say you will be fined !

Malc

[Bluesman]

Hi lexusdaduk, in Spain it is two red triangles, in France just the one.

The Spanish rules are odd tho', only Spanish regd. cars need two and all other regd cars it is one BUT if you're a

uk car and need to use one then if you don't have two they say you will be fined !

Malc

That's the way to do it in a fair and level common market, just keep moving the goalposts to suit.

[lexusdaduk]

Thanks for that I will get a breathalyzer anyway just to be safe, Spain and Portugal are fantastic to drive around, went all the way from Manchester to Nerja and only 10 sets of traffic lights ( all at this end ) and only seen 3 Coppers the whole trip.

I am expecting French Police to be a little more proactive, but my golden rule applies never attempt to speak the lingo even hello just use english and act dumb.

My old Volvo V70 had a switch on the back of the headlight for Euro driving L+R dose the LS430 have such a switch ???

if not wheres the best place to get headlight converters and what would the members recommend.