W204 Dipping lights for driving in France

Ductman

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We are off to visit friends in the Dordogne this week and normally I don't bother about converting the dipped beam as we generally are travelling only during the day. This time, however, we will be travelling down overnight, so can anybody please advise if it is a DIY job on a 2012 facelift W204?
 

whitenemesis

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If your car has ILS then it's simply selected from the cluster menu.
 
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Ductman

Ductman

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No, it doesn't I'm afraid, so I'll have to check out the handbook later.
 
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Ok, just leafed through the handbook and come up with the following:-

1) "Setting the dipped-beam headlamps for driving on the left/right. This function is only available on vehicles with the Intelligent Light System."
So thats a no on my car.
2) "You can also have the dipped-beam headlamps set for driving on the right or left at a qualified specialist workshop."
So that isn't a big help either and pretty much what I've come to expect from MB handbooks these days. :(
Oh well, looks like I'll just have to face the wrath of Johnny Foreigner as I don't have time to get the car in to the dealers before I go.
 
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whitenemesis

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Some dealers have been known to do this foc. Got to be worth a call?
 
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Some dealers have been known to do this foc. Got to be worth a call?

Normally I would agree, but I've just left it too late, unfortunately. I am up in London all day tomorrow and Thursday, before leaving late afternoon, heading for the Eurotunnel and our overnight stop in Laon on Thursday night.
Stupidly, I only thought about this today, hence starting this thread in the hope I could do it myself this afternoon. :(

In the past, I found that leaving it on full beam caused less problems than dipping to the left.
 
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whitenemesis

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I'd be tempted to drop in on any dealership I passed ..
 

EmilysDad

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I'd expect that there's a lever inside each of the head lamps to cut off the upward & to the left beam pattern of out RHD cars so we don't blind Johnny Foreigner. The projector headlamps of my R Class has them, as do the HIDs of my Vauxhall. My hand book says something similar to yours. Worth a look.

They don't make them LHD but just give a symmetrical/flat beam

\_____ \_____ to _____ _____ ;) ;) ;)
 
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I'd expect that there's a lever inside each of the head lamps to cut off the upward & to the left beam pattern of out RHD cars so we don't blind Johnny Foreigner. The projector headlamps of my R Class has them, as do the HIDs of my Vauxhall. My hand book says something similar to yours. Worth a look.

They don't make them LHD but just give a symmetrical/flat beam

\_____ \_____ to _____ _____ ;) ;) ;)

I had a quick look this afternoon, but couldn't see anything obvious on the back of the light bodies. Even my little Lotus has levers for this purpose, so I was kind of expecting the C Class to have them as well.
 

whitenemesis

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If you have the levers they would be inside the lamp unit next to the bulb holder.
 
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If you have the levers they would be inside the lamp unit next to the bulb holder.

Thanks. I'll take a quick look before I leave on Thursday afternoon.
 
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