142 (irish) car, MPH clocks.

Pique

Hi all,

I recently bought a 142 Subaru XV. I'm very happy with the car and all that, however it's got MPH clocks, like a 07 car.

It ws purchased from a Irish Subaru dealer from new, this time last year. However, it was originally intended for the UK market but Subaru Ireland needed one so this came from that shipment, apparently. Hence it has MPH clocks.

The original owner didn't care, but I do. I want KPH clocks like anyone else. I'm a bit annoyed tbh.
I asked the dealer to change them and he said that Subaru Ireland wouldn't comply as 'the clocks do have KPH on them'. Well, yes they do, in the smaller, harder to see font.

So my question is, (A) What is the law on this matter, and (B) would I have any joy if I complained to Subaru Ireland, and under what clause could I complain?

Thanks guys.

Tefral

Pique wrote: »

Hi all,

I recently bought a 142 Subaru XV. I'm very happy with the car and all that, however it's got MPH clocks, like a 07 car.

It ws purchased from a Irish Subaru dealer from new, this time last year. However, it was originally intended for the UK market but Subaru Ireland needed one so this came from that shipment, apparently. Hence it has MPH clocks.

The original owner didn't care, but I do. I want KPH clocks like anyone else. I'm a bit annoyed tbh.
I asked the dealer to change them and he said that Subaru Ireland wouldn't comply as 'the clocks do have KPH on them'. Well, yes they do, in the smaller, harder to see font.

So my question is, (A) What is the law on this matter, and (B) would I have any joy if I complained to Subaru Ireland, and under what clause could I complain?

Thanks guys.

I'd be shocked if this wasn't an import to be honest, it doesn't make sense that it would come from here to be exported to the UK and id say that's why the dealer wont entertain it.

Toyotafanboi

you've bought it. you're not going to get any satisfaction now, realistically.

i know it isn't a popular car but you shouldn't have bought it if you weren't happy. either that or you should have tried to negotiate KM/H clocks into the purchase.

the dealer is just going to fob you off now and Subaru Ireland definitely won't care, why would they?

the car displays KM/H, just not in a font size you are happy with, not really an issue to raise a complaint with anyone. every pre 07 car on the road has KM/H in tiny font. myself and others just get on with it.

Pique

I haven't got the Registration Cert yet, so I can't check that, but I'd be shocked if a well-known Subaru dealer would blatantly lie about something like that.

He said they all come with MPH clocks as the UK is the main market. Any destined for Ireland are supplied with KPH clocks which have to be swapped with the pre-fitted MPH ones. The KPH clocks have supposedly gone AWOL and Subaru Ireland won't pick up the tab for supplying and fitting replacements now.

Or so he said.

Toyotafanboi

Pique wrote: »

I haven't got the Registration Cert yet, so I can't check that, but I'd be shocked if a well-known Subaru dealer would blatantly lie about something like that.

He said they all come with MPH clocks as the UK is the main market. Any destined for Ireland are supplied with KPH clocks which have to be swapped with the pre-fitted MPH ones. The KPH clocks have supposedly gone AWOL and Subaru Ireland won't pick up the tab for supplying and fitting replacements now.

Or so he said.

in fairness a dealer will tell you most any ****e to sell a car and that sounds like a lie.

Irish cars coming from some sort of UK supply chain seems logical but to then suggest that a car destined for Ireland that had KM/H clocks fitted from the factory have been retro removed for what appears to be no reason to fit MPH clocks even though the cars sale destination is Ireland. waffle.

just type your reg into motorcheck.ie and it'll tell you for free if it's an import or not.

Reputable Rog

Toyotafanboi wrote: »

in fairness a dealer will tell you most any ****e to sell a car and that sounds like a lie.

Irish cars coming from some sort of UK supply chain seems logical but to then suggest that a car destined for Ireland that had KM/H clocks fitted from the factory have been retro removed for what appears to be no reason to fit MPH clocks even though the cars sale destination is Ireland. waffle.

just type your reg into motorcheck.ie and it'll tell you for free if it's an import or not.

Cut and Shut I reckon or a ringer.

Pique

Reputable Rog wrote: »

Cut and Shut I reckon or a ringer.

lol, just go for the hyperbole, why don't ya!

Toyotafanboi

did you do the reg check? you'l know in an instant.

Tea 1000

Toyotafanboi wrote: »

in fairness a dealer will tell you most any ****e to sell a car and that sounds like a lie.

Irish cars coming from some sort of UK supply chain seems logical but to then suggest that a car destined for Ireland that had KM/H clocks fitted from the factory have been retro removed for what appears to be no reason to fit MPH clocks even though the cars sale destination is Ireland. waffle.

just type your reg into motorcheck.ie and it'll tell you for free if it's an import or not.

I think you misunderstood, the dealer didn't say it came from factory with kph clocks, then was changed to mph clocks for the UK, then came to Irealnd.
Instead, he's saying that it was made for the UK market with UK clocks from the outset. Then last minute, to meet an order, came to Ireland. But didn't have the kph clocks fitted like they normally do, probably due to the time constraint.
Subaru really is a small market here, I'd say it's possible alright. Doubt you'll get anywhere though.

Toyotafanboi

Tea 1000 wrote: »

I think you misunderstood, the dealer didn't say it came from factory with kph clocks, then was changed to mph clocks for the UK, then came to Irealnd.
Instead, he's saying that it was made for the UK market with UK clocks from the outset. Then last minute, to meet an order, came to Ireland. But didn't have the kph clocks fitted like they normally do, probably due to the time constraint.
Subaru really is a small market here, I'd say it's possible alright. Doubt you'll get anywhere though.

ah i see, that makes more sense .

completely agree though. it's going nowhere.

Tea 1000

You could argue that it'll negatively effect trade-in, and try pushing that one, but I'd say trying to get a bargain price for paying for replacement is probably going to be more fruitful. As said, no harm doing a reg check anyway, just in case!

Snickers Man

Pique wrote: »

Hi all,

I want KPH clocks like anyone else.

Not quite "anyone else" Many of us still drive pre 2007 (sometimes WAY pre 2007) cars.

First World Problem, IMHO.

If you have difficulty reading the kph dial, then just learn to do the sums.

30mph=48 kph (call it 50)

40mph = 64kph (call it 65)

50mph = 80 kph

60 mph = 96kph (call it 95)

70mph = 112 kph (call it 110)

80 mph = 128 kph (call it 130) but of course you wouldn't be doing that speed, would you?

_Kaiser_

Personally speaking, I'd rather a dual-display - maybe with KM/H being the larger of the two.

Makes sense to me seeing as we share a land border with a country that uses MPH

Henry Ford III

I thought that since 2005 all new cars sold in Ireland have speedometers that display only kilometres per hour.

Isn't that a legal requirement here?

OP you shouldn't have taken that car as it was, but I reckon if you find the correct legislative definition the dealer or Subaru will maybe be obliged to sort this out for you?

ironclaw

It ws purchased from a Irish Subaru dealer from new, this time last year.

Did you purchase it a year ago? I'm sorry, but there has to be a limit on a reasonable time frame to raise an issue. For me, this is purely cosmetic. It would be the exact same as if you grew tired of the color of the seats. The car displays km/h, so you have no law to back you up that I'm aware of.

See can you get some clocks from a breakers or brand new, and swap them in.

ScottStorm

If you want to change the clocks, order the parts and pay to have them changed.

Nothing to do with the dealer as its your car.

I've had two cars, that were 06 or newer. A 2006 peugeot 407 and a 2009 Citroen C5. both have digital displays (aswell as analogue clocks) and you can switch whether you want miles or KM on the display.

Surely a 2014 Subaru has the option!?

colm_mcm

The car was bought used. The time for complaining was before it was bought.
Any issue with the car not having the kmph only clocks was up to the original owner to sort.

Subaru registered 29 XVs for the whole of 2014. If someone is actually looking for one of these second hand in a few years, I doubt lack of km-only clocks will make any difference.

Pique

Thanks all for the responses. Yeah it's a first world problem, I'm well aware, and not even a major one at that. Certainly not a deal-breaker on the motor. I've had one car in KPH ever, all the rest had dual clocks like we had back in the 80s. I just thought it was a bit of a pain to have a 142 car sold without KPH only clocks.

It seems it's not a requirement legally though.

BTW, the car rocks. Engine is a bit noisy at startoff, but after that, it's a dream. Quiet, smooth, massive torque low down, all the goodies (minus leather and moonroof), 4WD, a bit of uniqueness and for much less than the equivalent Kia/Hyundai etc.

colm_mcm

Is it a diesel

slimjimmc

The only Irish law I see on the subject merely ratifies EU type-approval regulations which state that speedometers must show km/h, and when sold in markets with imperial measurement they must show both mph and km/h. It doesn't prohibit dual scale speedometers in metric countries and doesn't specify any scale should be more prominent.

Pique

colm_mcm wrote: »

Is it a diesel

yup

colm_mcm

Sorry, I'm on a laptop today and for some reason the question mark>slash button doesn't work since updating to Windows 10


I quite like the idea of a boxer diesel, but Subaru interiors don't excite me

bazz26

OP, I think you may be making more out of this that you should. It's no big deal really, the country is full of ex UK imported used cars with mph dials so don't expect extra depreciation. My current car and last 2 cars were UK imports and I never had a problem selling them privately or trading them in at dealers.

If it were me I'd forget about it and just enjoy your new car.

Sh1tbag OToole

Complete non issue. Don't know why anyone would get upset over this.

Pique

colm_mcm wrote: »

Sorry, I'm on a laptop today and for some reason the question mark>slash button doesn't work since updating to Windows 10


I quite like the idea of a boxer diesel, but Subaru interiors don't excite me

Yeah I was well impressed with it, and quite surprised how nippy it is. It takes off very well and has ample power that you need in a vehicle like that. Torque is low in the revrange and apart from 2nd/3rd being a bit tricky to judge for urban driving the thing is a joy to drive. Strong brakes, little bodyroll and the reports I've read about it being harsh on poor roads is unfounded.

Supposedly the first gen boxer diesels were much cruder, and they're still nowhere near BMW levels of refinement, but it ticks all my boxes, and it looks a bit different from the herds of ix35/Sportage/Kuga on the roads today.

No, you don't get leather, sunroof or nav, but apart from that it's a nice place to be. Seats could do with more 'sportiness' (they're a bit flat), but it's not that type of car. For a 6'1" adult driving, I can easily sit behind the driver seat at that setting too, so rear legroom is impressive.


As for the original post. Jeez guys, chill. It's annoying, but not life changing. I'll survive converting MPH-KPH in my head (or more likely, just get used to the car at each speed and rarely glance at the speedo, like I assume most of us do anyway.

Tea 1000

colm_mcm wrote: »

Sorry, I'm on a laptop today and for some reason the question mark>slash button doesn't work since updating to Windows 10


I quite like the idea of a boxer diesel, but Subaru interiors don't excite me

Subaru interiors don't excite me much either, but their chassis speak for themselves!

ION08

Am i the only one that prefers mph with smaller kmh readout as opposed to ONLY kmh!?

Filmer Paradise

ION08 wrote: »

Am i the only one that prefers mph with smaller kmh readout as opposed to ONLY kmh!?

You're not the only one. I drive a '01 car so have that anyway.

I find it handy to gauge how far you're from your destination.

Say if you see a roadsign saying you're 60km away, you can look at your dual scale speedo & make an accurate guess in miles instantly.

colm_mcm

Surely if would be easier to use the kmph on your speedo vs the Kms on the sign when you're gauging how long it will take?

goochy

the fact that its rubbish should be a bigger problem !

Mech1

Sorted!

Filmer Paradise

colm_mcm wrote: »

Surely if would be easier to use the kmph on your speedo vs the Kms on the sign when you're gauging how long it will take?

Ah, I still think in miles when gauging distance. I read the signs in km, look at my speedo & compare the scales. Easy to do on the old school speedos.

Manure

Get the clocks changed to kph, would drive me simple having the dual milage clocks.

colm_mcm

You're probably talking a grand or more to do that.

You wouldn't pick one up in halfords, and you'd be unlikely to find one in a scrapped given how few were sold.

snipey

Bought an xv in Waterford 12 D 21234, it was some heap of rubbish, smoke bellowing from it, just in case its still around don't buy it.

ScottStorm

snipey wrote: »

Bought an xv in Waterford 12 D 21234, it was some heap of rubbish, smoke bellowing from it, just in case its still around don't buy it.

How were the clocks?

Atlantic Dawn

I've had the dual mph/kmh all my life, it wouldn't bother me, would much prefer that than kmh only, I do a bit of UK travelling from time to time and prefer dual.

snipey

ScottStorm wrote: »

How were the clocks?

they were the best part

bazz26

Manure wrote: »

Get the clocks changed to kph, would drive me simple having the dual milage clocks.

So how did you manage on cars built before 2005?

Jesus.

Pique wrote: »

Hi all, The original owner didn't care, but I do. I want KPH clocks like anyone else.

You should count yourself lucky. I wish I still had mph on my car. I hate kph