Help, we have a Military PCS to Belgium and need REAR fog lights on PriusV

How are rear fog lights used? Like backup lights?

 

ah... red "fog taillamps". Now I get it, although the existing lights are pretty bright.

 

Does is need to be done prior to arrival? If not let a dealer or a repair shop do it once you get there.


Posted from my iPhone via the Tapatalk app.

 

How would someone in the States have any idea how a red rear foglight should be installed even if they could find one? Plus how would anyone install without a secure mount? Do they replace a normal running light?

 

Discuss it with your sponsor, or contact your Shirt/Chain.

If worse comes to worse, I would find the number of a local military outpost (US) and contact the housing office for a lead on somebody that could assist. Are you taking someone's place? Maybe they could help. How about somebody already in the office you are assigned to? Anyone else in the area there? Local shops that speak English? Toyota dealership in that town/village/area?

I looked on google images. It may be as simple as adding a light right below the rear bumper. Or, it could be new rear lamp assemblies, or maybe rewiring or rebulbing. All WAG's on my part, but gotta start somewhere.

Will

 

I think Hella still sells rear fog light kits. I installed one on my Honda CRX back in the 80's after nearly getting run over during a blizzard. Installation was pretty easy.

 

Now that I am on a real computer instead of typing on a phone, I would like to caution you against taking your Prius v to Europe. There will be no warranty coverage. Local Toyota agents will not be equipped to service your U.S. Prius. I learned this when I dearly wanted to take my new Lexus LS to Switzerland on a one year assignment in the early 90's. And, if I understand what I have read about the differences between the North American "Prius v" and European market "Prius+" (that is what the Prius wagon is called in Europe), the hybrid system in the European version is very different than in the North American version. The battery pack is a smaller unit of a different and more expensive technology that allows the Prius wagon/van to have two extra rear seats making it a seven passenger vehicle. If you take your Prius to Europe, it could easily end up being the equivalent of a nice "doorstop".

My recommendation would be to buy, lease or rent a local car while you on assignment in Europe if you find that you need one at all. You can always do a short term rental if you need a car. I've rented cars over there on an hourly basis.

 

I recently PCS'd to Europe with our Prius v. I had some of the same concerns expressed in the above post, however so far we've been fine. I've seen quite a few European Toyota Hybrids, and a number of Americans have brought their Prius with them to this assignment. We even ran into another v owner here who has already had service work performed at the local Toyota dealership ... this dealership performed the work on the exhaust actuator recall. Also, I'm not convinced that the hybrid powertrains are different here ... at least the standard Prius appears identical to the US Prius. Bottom line, after giving this issue significant thought before we moved, we decided to trust the Toyota support in Europe and trust in Toyota reliability that our v will experience few (if any) issues during this assignment.

 

I took at 2005 Toyota Camry to England in 2007 and had a rear fog light installed at a local bodyshop before we shipped the Camry. Search online and you can find kits for a rear fog light ... a quick Google search came up with a number of hits. We had ours mounted under the rear bumper with a switch mounted under the dash and it passed inspection with no problem. This represented the least "intrusive" solution as the light was not connected into the car wiring and was easily removed when we moved back to the states.

 

There are regional fixing requirements as to where the rear fog light can be placed. You might be wasting your money getting it installed stateside only to find its 3 inches too low or too high or even too near existing lights.

 

In EU we have also some other differences, f.e. the direction lights, they are needed on the front-lateral side, on Prius plus (EU version of your V) are on the mirrors. Another new thing is the day lights that are a new introduction. But are missing the lateral light reflectors (I do not know if the term is correct, sorry) Anyway all the lights must have the reference code fo EU. Just Swizzerland and UK have if fervent requirements.
The EU model uses a new lithium battery, more expensive, like the new plug-in and it has different seats in the center line and two small additional seats on the last row.
Also the audio system is changed.
For us is a new model, the sales will start the next week (I will drive mine the next Monday)
Anyway a foreign car that follows different regulation, if the owner-diver is not European, is commonly accepted if the original ID plate is maintained, just check the insurance, it is needed an extension

 

The US licence plate is ok only for a few months, six at most and after that you must register the vehicle if you're staying in that country longer. To register it, the car must comply with local regulations which are mostly just lights for single vehicle type approval.

 

To try to expand on the excellent information that Emanuele provided, the European Prius+ uses a lithium ion battery pack instead of the nickel metal hydride battery pack used in the visually similar North American Prius v. The lithium ion battery pack used in the European Prius+ is more similar to the battery pack design of the new North American Prius c "plug-in" and the battery packs in the Tesla roadster, Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf. The Prius battery packs of the two designs are not interchangable and not only because the charging systems are different. In the North American Prius v, the battery pack is behind the back seats. In the European 7-passenger Prius+, the lithium ion battery pack is below the console between the two front seats so that the area behind the 2nd row seats can be used as footwells for the third row seats.

Getting back to the original question ... is it really necessary to bring a U.S. car into compliance with local European country requirements if the car is being imported for temporary use? Back in 1990's that it was not necessary to make a single change to my U.S. spec Lexus in order to bring it to Switzerland. Even my Kansas license plate was acceptable for use in Europe. Has this changed? The U.S. does not require modifications for European cars imported for temporary use by their European owners.

 

YES, in many European countries it is REQUIRED to make certain modifications in order to be compliant with local country rules. I have made two recent military moves to Europe, so I do have current knowledge of the requirements. Some countries (i.e. England) will absolutely require modifications to your vehicle, however the current country I'm stationed in--Italy, does not require any modifications to U.S. spec vehicles.

My best advice would be to contact someone at the location you're moving to and obtain the requirements from them. When I moved to England in 2007, our vehicles were certified for use on British roads by an inspection station on base, so I just contacted them directly and obtained the guidance from them.

 

It's the definition of TEMPORARY. If you imported your car to Europe for a driving holiday over 4 weeks, then you will not be required to modify the vehicle and can drive on your US plates. I believe insurance can be obtained via the relevant authorities in the countries you're visiting. US insurance is of no use whatsoever. Driving without insurance in all of Europe is a big no no, even for one day.

But if you are coming here to work and will be living here on an extended basis (3 months+), then you will need to register and insure the car locally. The UK only require the headlights to aim the opposite way, the front marker lights must be white, the rear turn signals must be orange and a rear fog light is needed (not quite as simple as this but a US vehicle will comply on safety and emissions). Obviously similar requirements are needed in Europe (other than the headlights). I believe your base will arrange compliance as quickly as possible when you arrive, though you are able to drive on your US plates in the mean time. I think the base arrange temporary insurance to get you started, though obviously double check this.

Petrol is usually Premium unleaded, but be aware that all European service stations will have diesel pumps next to the petrol pump. Make 100% sure you have selected the petrol pump before refueling! The hose colours vary depending on country and fuel brand! In the UK petrol is mostly a green hose and diesel black, but not always. Be aware!

 

I stand corrected. Yes, rear fog lights required - no exceptions. This NATO document for Belgium may be useful: http://www.npc.nato.int/pdf/dwnl/newcomer_guide.pdf