[Miked61]

I drive through France several times each year and have always kept a set of spare bulbs in my car in case of failure and/stoppage by a French Policeman. I understood that it was compulsory to have these!Whilst I may get stopped and fined if driving with a bulb that is out, you have to be able to replace the bulb there and then, before the police will let you drive away. The same applies with the new breathalyzer law in France.
I have a Q3 on order and am wondering what is the position if the rear LED lights fail? These are an all in one cluster with only the LED strip. Have I got to carry a couple of spare light clusters just in case. I can't see a breakdown company in France or England having these to hand, so it could be days before you can drive away!
What brought this up was the failure of the rear light on my current car ( A3 Cabriolet ). Luckily the cluster is split in two and provided one part was still working it was still legal in this country.
I am sure that there must be similar other makes out there with the same thing!
Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[Mark67]

Hi Miked61Not sure how you'd argue this one with the French Policeman but the the Q3 Owners Manual says that LED headlights and LED rear lights are maintenance free and that if a bulb should need to be changed that a qualified workshop should be contacted. There are no instructions or diagrams to even point you in the right direction. In a warning note it also says not to try to change Xenon bulbs yourself, due to potentially fatal consequences. I'm hoping that the rear clusters are made up of many LEDs and that if one goes the rest of the light continues to work. As for the Xenon lights I'll be keeping my fingers crossed. Despite whilst when buying my Q3 I asked about changing the headlight beam direction for travelling in the continent and received an email saying it's a setting in the MMI, of course there is no setting and you have to take your car into Audi to have them changed and then back again. Not really ideal and will cost!!As for the French law on these type of lights there must be some small print as there are plenty of Audis and other marques with LED and Xenon lights.RegardsMark

 

[Mark67]

HiI've just had a look at the RAC, AA and a couple of other websites and all say that a spare set of bulbs are recommended and not compulsory in France.

 

[Miked61]

Hi Mark67
They said the same on my A3 Cabriolet about them lasting, but I still had to have it changed, under warranty luckily.
If the Q3 is the same as my A3 the LED is a long continuous strip fixed inside the plastic with just a couple of connections at the end.
Don't think manufacturers thought about this when they designed these pretty new lights. Maybe if they are maintenance free Audi will pay my fine and the overnight hotel stop in France whilst waiting for a replacement unit under warranty.
I know the breakdown cover will sort it out but it's just the time delay that cuts into a fortnights holiday!
I got rid of my Rav T180 ( great motorway cruiser ) as it had run flats that could only be replaced in a Toyota garage. You don't want a puncture in France late on a Saturday evening and have to wait until Monday for a Toyota dealership to open. This is a similar dilemma!