On my vRS the cornering light functions makes use of the relevant left or right front fog lamp when cornering at slow speed.

They both come on if you engage reverse.

Is this legal if it is not foggy ?

Tbh mate imo anyways if they weren't legal Skoda wouldn't have made them available for the UK Market

Way i see it is it's one that lights up temporarily, in the eyes of you and cops it's outwith you're control but i'm sure they can be turned on/off via vagcom

Yes they are, Mercedes have had them in the foglights for years. They maybe located in the foglight, but they use a different bulb.

Yes they are, Mercedes have had them in the foglights for years. They maybe located in the foglight, but they use a different bulb.

Actually a fair few cars with this feature use the fog light bulb.

Are the cornering foglights enabled by default?

I have just got a brand new L & K and don't think they are on mine.

Are the cornering foglights enabled by default?

I have just got a brand new L & K and don't think they are on mine.

There were not enabled when I took delivery of the new car.

I can enable them using VCDS cable and software.

Yes they are perfectly legal.

There are a couple of Methods employed by manufacturers.

1 is to have a separate bulb in the foglight housing for cornering or the other is to use the same bulb at a reduced brightness.

I have it on my L&K and I find it particularly useful especially as both come on when reversing

I have it on my L&K and I find it particularly useful especially as both come on when reversing

I don't quite understand how front facing fog lamps would help me reverse ?

So that when the front end is moving you can see if your going to hit a High Kerb or Low wall. Something my wife has done in my vRS twice :S :S

IMHO this does not meet UK regulations. I'm old enough to remember that car lighting had to be symmetrical and was not allowed to move beams around.

The original Citroen DS ran foul of the UK regs.

However the Euro regs now supersede the old UK regs to allow such things.

I personally think it looks plain stupid and wrong when Mercedes flash one fog light off and on going round corners.

"Technically" it is illegal, as the Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations have not been amended to include this along with cornering headlights (IE headlights that move with the steering wheel). However, there are many things that are technically illegal so I would not worry about it.....

I am not sure what will be done about this situation as it is re-creating the age old obsession of driving with the front fog lights on.....

The cornering light function uses the foglamps.

The foglamps don't actually move, the beam pattern is fixed.

The lamp brightness is sort of proportional to the amount of steering lock applied.

The figure will probably be metric since I retired; but basically; lights fitted lower than 2 feet from the ground, ( ie Fog Lights) CAN ONLY BE USED DURING CONDITIONS OF FOG OR FALLING SNOW..

This legislation has existed for donkeys years and it is for a very sound reason. Headlights can be dipped, but foglights are liable to dazzle when set low, because the beams are set roughly parallel to the ground. Obviously if it's foggy or snowing, the fog or snow catches the light. The nuisance is when flash drivers insist on using them in clear conditions for which they were not ever intended. As far as I know this legislation has not been changed, neither have turning fog lights been tested in the Courts. Perhaps someone else knows more up to date info.

The Police know this, but then the odds of being stopped by the Police for this are slim.

For those Non-Maxidot people, the dealer or someone with VCDS can enable this for you.

The figure will probably be metric since I retired; but basically; lights fitted lower than 2 feet from the ground, ( ie Fog Lights) CAN ONLY BE USED DURING CONDITIONS OF FOG OR FALLING SNOW..

This legislation has existed for donkeys years and it is for a very sound reason. Headlights can be dipped, but foglights are liable to dazzle when set low, because the beams are set roughly parallel to the ground. Obviously if it's foggy or snowing, the fog or snow catches the light. The nuisance is when flash drivers insist on using them in clear conditions for which they were not ever intended. As far as I know this legislation has not been changed, neither have turning fog lights been tested in the Courts. Perhaps someone else knows more up to date info.

The Police know this, but then the odds of being stopped by the Police for this are slim.

I got stopped for this a few years ago in North Wales. They of course took the opportunity to breathalyse me, check tyres etc etc before leting me carry on my way. Told me it was illegal to use them in clear conditions. Pity I always thought they gave me better visibility and safety on the unlit twisty country lanes round where I live, but I stopped using them after that.

Lee

The cars will have eu type approval which will overrule any local legislation.

they wouldn't be on the car if it didn't meet EU regulation. granted they are an opion you can turn on, but if the garages will do it for you when you collect your car, and if mercedes cars have this as a standard feature then i really cant see it being illegal.

the fact that they are not on during normal driving and require a certain degree of lock before activating, and then the brightness is progressive to match the steering lock i think would negate it from any of these foglight rules. fog lights are on or off and have one brightness level, so cannot be construed as the same.

Sy,

It's not worth arguing with all the UK Traffic Law Experts (or Google experts as they really are) on here.

It's the UK psychy to just moan/argue about anything they can

Edited 21 June, 201015 yr by vRSCarl

Sy,

It's not worth arguing with all the UK Traffic Law Experts (or Google experts as they really are) on here.

It's the UK psychy to just moan/argue about anything they can

Interesting.. You sure about that?

National type approval was phased out in the 90s, it was replaced by "Whole Vehicle Type Approval" where the whole vehicle in all its specs and forms was approved once for sale in any EU market.

There have often been car lighting odditiies that have caused confusion when they don't appear to meet the norms of the domestic care makers: SAABs and Volvos had DRLs way back into the 70s - my father was always being "flashed" to tell him he had his lights on. In the 80s the the UK tried an odd concept called "Dim-Dip" whereby if you switched on your sidelights when the ignition was on then the headlamps came on at lower power (very odd as the highway code says if conditions warrant lights then it is headlamps you must use, i.e. the only people who drive with sidelights really are dim-dips...). Recently Volvos have even had the US-style amber side marker lights. I'm not sure the centre-high-level brakelights were covered by regs when they first came in - but they were one of the best recent ideas.

And extra lights that come on in reverse, my SAAB 900 had bulbs at the rear of the wrap-round DRLs that came on in reverse to illuminate back down the side of the car - odd but most helpful. I'm activating both DRLs and corner foglamps when I can got hold of VCDS.

Trafficators, yellow headlights, blue foglights, amber brakelights, wing-top tell-tales, cyclops lights - any many other oddities from the past which one can still see on classic cars from time-to-time.

Worst idea of all - rear foglights. I've used them less than half a dozen times in twenty-five years of driving. Mostly they are just used by people incorrectly and in circumatnaces where they diminish the obvious and safety critical contrast that shows that a car that is braking. Such a mis-used light that manufacturers have had to try everything to stop us leaving them on.

Interesting.. You sure about that?

About what?

The fact that everyone is an expert on here or that people just like to moan

Either way i am sure

would my skoda octavia fsi elegance 2006 have cornering light fitted

Highly unlikely

My Mar 2007 vRS doesn't

About what?

The fact that everyone is an expert on here or that people just like to moan

Either way i am sure

Interesting law about the 2ft height! how do super cars fair, almost certain the R8's bonnet is with in this threshold.

I would echo you and Sy on this topic though, if the vehicle is spec'd for the UK market then it should be ok, and if you get a tug from plod, the responsiblity would ultimately be with the dealer....! wouldn't it?