Headlights when driving a German car in the UK

I want to drive back home in September. I'll make sure the car is in good nick before I go, but what about the headlights?

Can you buy little deflector stickers for the lens or could this involve some expensive fix? Or just forget it and dazzle a few island monkeys?

I never bother with changing them, it never really seems to cause any problems. The ADAC might be able to supply you with the little black stickers for the lights but I wouldn't worry about it.

when we drove from UK to Germany we used the stickers, they were cheap and did the trick.

I'm sorry to display my ignorance, but I am curious - why do German car's headlights dazzle UK motorists? Is it a left-hand-drive thing?

Because when you dip them, they light points down and to the right, which is away from the oncoming traffic here, but towards it in the UK.

Ah, thank you. I didn't know that. I thought they just dipped straight down.

Some of the newer cars (Audi and BMW) have a setting which you find in the console settings software which allows you to set to "travel lights". It switches to UK standards.
Stickers also work...

stickers do the job alright

Never had problems driving back home, but if you have Xenon headlights then do not use the black stickers - tends to make them "pop". Expensive.

I drove over a couple of summers ago - first time that way, and the first time I had had to think about headlight conversion in 20 years. I was disappointed to find that modern headlights (mine, at least) no longer had any markings on them so you know where to stick the black tape, thus requiring me to spend an inordinate amount of money on a sticker kit on the ferry, which in my case required sticking two circles on the headlight casing. One fell off within 24 hours, leaving a sticky mess that took ages to get off, so it wasn't doing its job anyway.

So, a lot of money spent for bugger all effect, just so as I could see bugger all when on dipped headlights. I think it's easier to avoid driving at night and hope you don't get stopped by some jobsworth copper.

general consensus then is not to bother in the UK- has anyone ever been done - or would you just plead being an ignorant foreigner....

Just wondering as driving back to UK tomorrow and haven't done anything about my De llights - and wasn't planning to.

Speak to the policeperson in German, that'll vex them

We had no problems with our German car btw.

I guess the problems are more likely to be for the people that you have just passed who end up in the ditch...

Most cars nowadays have a control to raise and lower the headlights to cope with heavy loads (not that anybody ever uses it!). It should be possible to find a compromise position where you can see fairly well, but not dazzle on coming traffic, or at least not as much.

This doesn't work for Xenon lights though, as by law the car must have a self-levelling system when Xenon lights are fitted. I would guess the option mentioned by cb4ach probably applies to cars with Xenon headlamps.

Didn't know you could potentially damage Xenon lamps with the old fashioned stickers, though. That would be expensive!

If you're lucky you'll have a second pair of lights from when you converted your RHD car to German regs. Just carry the 2nd set - then you could whip out of the car after the crossing and change over the headlights.

That may be practical on a twenty year old banger, but I wouldn't like to have to try it on many modern cars. Some of them you just about have to take the engine out to change the bulb!