Adjustments for speedo and headlamps to an imported 08 GSA

mvrandery

Registered user
Joined
Jun 28, 2008
Messages
648
Reaction score
16
Location
London
Moved to the UK from the EU and brought my EU spec 08 GSA along

It seems I need to change the entire instrument cluster as it reads in KPH alone and it is required to be in MPH

Headlamps are Right hand drive and need to be Left Hand Drive

Anyone have experience with this and maybe found a way to do it without spending too much? Dealer is asking for almost £900 to do this
 
You could mark the face of the speedo showing 30, 40, 50 mph etc or utilise a bicycle speedo. When it comes to the headlamp the only thing is a new unit which runs at around £260.

Dave
 
Hi

Just learn to convert from KPH to MPH in your head. I did this for a few years with a GSXR400, which was in KMs only. I don't think there's any legal requirement to have a speedo, let alone one in MPHs.

50kph = 30mph
60kph = 40mph
80kph = 50mph
100kph = 60mph

(near enough anyway).

And I thought the headlights dipped down, and not to the side....
 
HAVE A FRIEND WHO HAS DONE THE OPPOSITE AND IS LOOKING FOR AN INSTUMENT CLUSTER IN KM RATHER THAN MPH ON HIS 08 GSA BUT NOT FOR THE HEADLIGHT CLUSTER. iF YOU ARE INTERESTED LET ME KNOW SO WE CAN SORT OUT THE DETAILS.
 
All the DVLA paperwork/forms I've seen that are needed to get the bike registered in the UK say that the headlamps must be adjusted/changed and the speedo must show either MPH & KMH or MPH alone. If there is a way to not do this, I'd love to know where I can find this info - that's why I posted!:)

Sot1200, you have a PM
 
I imported a bike from Germany after living there, headlights often come up cheap on Ebay so no problem there, the biggest issue you'll have is the speedo change. The problem is the the odometer, if you buy a UK speedo cluster the odometer will be in miles but the ECU will be telling it to count in KM's so your mileage will shoot up, the ECU needs reprogramming by a Dealer, I had mine done in Germany and it took the dealer a week to figure it out, in the end they got the ECU program straight from the factory and installed it, all ok then. Even though they had the bike for a week and I had there loaner they only charged me half an hours labour, can't see a UK dealer doing the same. Remember to tell the dealer programming the ECU needs the factory software and it takes a maximum of 30mins to do it. If you get the spares yourself it will work out alot cheaper to fit them yourself and just get the programming done by the dealer.:thumb2
 
I've just listed my brand new UK headlamp for sale in the Items For Sale section of the forum...I bought a new UK GSA for export to Spain in June and had the dealer supply and fit an EU headlamp. Substantial saving on list price if you are interested..!
 
mvrandery said:
Moved to the UK from the EU and brought my EU spec 08 GSA along

It seems I need to change the entire instrument cluster as it reads in KPH alone and it is required to be in MPH

Headlamps are Right hand drive and need to be Left Hand Drive

Anyone have experience with this and maybe found a way to do it without spending too much? Dealer is asking for almost £900 to do this
Click to expand...

If you are having to get your German registered / spec'ed motorcycle 'type approved' for import into the UK, it used to be the case that there are only a limited number of centres around authorised to do the paper work. As theses were government staffed they tended to be, shall we say, 'Over efficient'. My next door neighbour, a German lady, had one hell of a job getting her German registered 900 Triumph through.

There was though a very 'friendly' :augie government approved centre in Kent who did the checks on the vehicle, which a chap at work used to import licence a very dodgy Nepalese Enfield Bullet.

I am not sure if it or the bods are still there, though. I could ask if it's any help.
 
On the paperwork side I didn't need any type approval, just turned up at the local DVLA office, showed em my insurance and certificate of conformity (dealer should have suppled this) and paid for the tax (and an initial registration fee of about £50:blast) it may have been easier for me being a squaddie back from the fartherland as it's something we do quite alot and most of the paperwork we have for vehicles registered on the BFG net is English and the DVLA have regular dealings with us.:)
 
Mr K said:
Can one not utilise one's sat-nav, set to MPH as the speedo'?

:nenau
Click to expand...

Not if you have to go through the hoop of officialdom with those who grant type approval import licences. Very dull people, with a clip board.

My neighbour's Triumph failed, twice, despite a letter and forms from Triumph, confiring that it was - when manufactured for the German market - an EU spec'ed bike. She fell fowl of the speedo being only calibrated in KPH.

The last reason for failure was that hers had the raised filler cap (old stylee). Banging her nuts on it was, for the usual physiological reasons, not her greatest concern :D
 
nedflanders said:
On the paperwork side I didn't need any type approval, just turned up at the local DVLA office, showed em my insurance and certificate of conformity (dealer should have suppled this) and paid for the tax (and an initial registration fee of about £50:blast) it may have been easier for me being a squaddie back from the fartherland as it's something we do quite alot and most of the paperwork we have for vehicles registered on the BFG net is English and the DVLA have regular dealings with us.:)
Click to expand...

You may have had some exemptions on your side. The paperwork shows that I need to show up with the EC certificate of conformity (which I have) and proof that the speedo is capable of showing MPH (photocopy of owners manual or a receipt from a garage showing that the modification was made), same requirement for headlamp.

Wapping said:
Not if you have to go through the hoop of officialdom with those who grant type approval import licences. Very dull people, with a clip board.

My neighbour's Triumph failed, twice, despite a letter and forms from Triumph, confiring that it was - when manufactured for the German market - an EU spec'ed bike. She fell fowl of the speedo being only calibrated in KPH.
...
Click to expand...

That's the problem, people with clipboards! I can understand the requirement for the headlamp as it would dazzle oncoming drivers, but the speedo???! It's not difficult to mark the important points on a KPH speedo. The speedo is almost £500 new, + installation.

In both cases it seems I'll have to have it installed by a dealer, even if I supply the parts, as I will need proof that it's been done.
 
The speedo is marked in both MPH and KMH.

Use a beam bender of the headlight?

So what's the problem?
 
WindyChuffer said:
The speedo is marked in both MPH and KMH.

Use a beam bender of the headlight?

So what's the problem?
Click to expand...

The non-UK / Eire bikes are not dual calibrated. Only us Anglo-Saxon's get the extra ink.

Beam bender? You are dealing with men with clip boards, remember.
 
I too, know someone who's in the process of doing the opposite.
Let me know if you wanna do swappsies !
 
£500 sounds alot of money, what is the actual cost of the cluster on it's own, they really shouldn't be charging more than 30mins labour, I'm away with work until friday, if you want I can post the number of the dealer who did mine in Germany, they deal with Brits alot so speak excellent english, you can ask whats involved then. As long as the garage has the software to rewrite the ECU it's straight forward, if they haven't it needs to be obtained straight from the factory as it's not something they will hold normally unless they've already done it. There's a few people on here that have had it done by UK dealers, it might be worth using one of those. Also the dealer who did mine said there was a possibility of it reverting back to KM's if on a future service they carried out a software update. :confused:
 
The forms - straight from the horse's (with clipboard) mouth

PDF document from direct.gov.uk

The form is for bikes from the EU, says speedo must be capable of mph, and light must be adjusted permanently, no beam benders, stickers...

The service dept at SLM said about £33 labour for the speedo and also £33 for the headlamp labour, so I presume about 1/2 hour each. The cost of the speedo is almost £500 and the headlamp about £250, + VAT on all. They did say they will need the bike all day to program the ECU (so I guess they know what's needed)

I've found a source for the headlamp here, but still waiting for a pointer on the speedo. Note that the form I've referenced above does not say anything about stickers for the speedo, but does require some sort of documentation, other than a photograph for the speedo, so I'm not sure if I can get the dealer to put a sticker?

I was hoping someone here had done exactly what I need to do and have some sort of solution for the speedo (I don't think there's anyway to get around changing the headlamp)
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
You must log in or register to reply here.


Back
Top Bottom