Off to Perpignon in the box

[Hugh Barnes]

Ivor, this might be a bit of overkill, but might come into its own in some situations. When I went to The Scottish A7 rally a couple of years back, there were portions of 'fast' roads I could not avoid. I contrived to mount one of these on the back of the Cabriolet and,when on those bits of roads, set it to flash in one of its 'asynchronous' modes. It seemed very effective and I never had an occasions where someone bore down on me at a rate of knots not realising the speed I was maintaining...

https://www.merlincycles.com/lezyne-zect...ieshopping

Might be worth considering...

[Robert Leigh]

The main rule to follow in France is 'don't get caught breaking the rules'. Follow that and you'll be alright.

[Denis Sweeney]

Are flashing lights legal in the UK or France, I had wondered about using flashing lights similar to those on farm vehicles but was “advised” on this forum that these were not legal??
As a result we used a magnetic “SLOW VEHICLE” strip across the rear of Ruby and had no problems on the Eurotour.
I have posted these on this site previously

[Ivor Hawkins]

Yes Denis only authorised vehicles can use a flashing light (apart from direction indicators, of course) and it must be amber, definitely not blue! And as far as not breaking the rules, I’ve had to find out what they are first!

Whilst researching, I note that Europe is tightening up the rules across all its countries to enforce better border control next year, so that’s another thing to watch out for.

[Chris KC]

Yes Denis only authorised vehicles can use a flashing light (apart from direction indicators, of course) and it must be amber, definitely not blue! And as far as not breaking the rules, I’ve had to find out what they are first!

Whilst researching, I note that Europe is tightening up the rules across all its countries to enforce better border control next year, so that’s another thing to watch out for.

...and flashing brake lights, another horrible invention....

Things aren't about to get easier, that's for sure.

[Tony Griffiths]

Thanks Hugh and Chris, I am not a big fan of satnavs, I prefer maps any day, but I have done the same thing as Hugh for years, just used the iPhone for the last few miles as the real advantage is to find your way around the towns and cities.

I have sorted out the fluorescent jacket, the warning triangle, the spare bulbs and now found that I may need a “clean air sticker” to be allowed into the towns and cities.

It looks like I’m going to have to do even more research!

Just avoid large towns - unless you really want to see something there. I've found that villages (as well as out-of-town hypermarkets of course) have free parking and are much more convenient and easy to use.

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With the possibility of thread drift (for which I apologise for in advance) where Satnavs can be really helpful is in the last 2 miles of a day's journey, when you are trying to find your accommodation. Anyone can naviagte themselves to Lisieux or Chartres, for example, signage to towns en route will be sufficient (one hopes) But trying to find the local Ibis or wherever can be more of a challenge. When in Europe (and in the UK, come to that), I alwyas pre-load my overnight accommodations in the sat nav and turn it on on the outskirts of the town to guide me through the back streets. After a long hot day, that can be a welcome relief. I also use Google 'street view' to 'rehearse' the journey. so I can recognise landmarks and my destination, so its not quite so unfamiliar when I get there...

A very good point, Hugh. I remember a motorcycle journey to the Italian Moto GP race a few years back. Once in the crowded town with one-way systems, etc, the satNav saved the day - as it did once for my son when he landed in Norway late at night, in a snow storm, and the SatNav took him straight to his destination.

[Hugh Barnes]

I must confess that, on the point of legality of flashing rear lights, I would take the view it is better to apologise than to ask permission. I think if queried, my view is that it is better to have a minor transgression than to black a road after an RTA with possible fatalities. But I take the point, if there is doubt over legality, then a decision must be made by each individual...

[Ivor Hawkins]

I can understand that Hugh, I have been planning to fit brighter LED lights, your comments have speeded up my decision!

[Bruce Nicholls]

We drive regularly to Montenegro (between Croatia and Albania) admittedly not in the A7 and find our Garmin satnav invaluable. Good for finding pre booked hotels (apart from Mestre outside Venice where it tries to take us to the wrong side of the railway tracks) and free to use. Speed camera warnings can be turned off and there are no roaming charges. Toll roads etc can be turned off as well. We would not leave home without it. It works fine in the Austin as well.

[Hugh Barnes]

Indeed - more recently I have upgraded the lights to LED on the Cabriolet and can now use 'running lights' without putting undue strain on the battery. Several people on the Eurotour commented on how well they stood out - particularly the brake lights. Probably worth mentioning that as well as the Pork pie lamp on the spare wheel cover, I had added a couple of ST38s to the bumper. On an RP, of course, you might have to look for a different solution...