Hi all,

just bought a new car and the rear visibility is terrible (as I had expected) so I want to fit rear parking sensors this weekend. My missus came up with a good question, will they have to be removed or checked at some garage so I get a certificate for them, or do you think they will be ok?

Has anyone fitted parking sensors themselves and passed an MFK without issue?

Parking sensors are an option on our car from factory.

Thanks.

As long as you don't make a dog's breakfast of the job, how are they going to know?

And as they have no real safety purpose, environmental impact, impact on other drivers, or anything else related to the MFK, would they even care?

You're absolutely right, and that is exactly my thoughts on it, but we do live in a special place where (from reading people's experiences on here) any modifications seemed to frowned upon.
To me it makes the car safer but i am sure they have some way to check if they were really bothered.
I am just checking before i spend half my Saturday drilling through my bumper and removing half the trim in the car

I would say the chances of it being a problem are very very small.

To quote Auto Scout 24:

It must be ensured that all the functions and components tested in the MFK function properly. These include, but are not limited to:

• The identification of the vehicle (control signs, documents)
• The brakes
• The steering device
• The visibility
• Lighting and other electronics
• Chassis, axles, wheels, tires and suspension (rust!)

Unless you really bodge it, cut some essential wires, or put a big hole in some important structural bit (do cars even have those nowadays?), then hard to see what you would fail on.

Of course any garage will be happy to give your their view, which will start with "you don't want to chance it", through "we only fit the OEM version" and finish with "OMG, I've been Switzerlanded" when the bill lands.

Out of interest, what sort of car is it that doesn't already have parking sensors?

One of our cars is 11 years old and it has them!

One of mine's 21 years old and has them on the rear and the front too :-)

I had heard of people having problems with the MFK but that might have been for the ones with a video camera.

Mine is 9 and doesn't. And I'm glad as they beep far too early and only annoy me

Its a 2006 Civic, it has Xenons and other stuff but sensors were only usually on the Executive model of that era and I have the Sport.

I put some on a 1996 BMW, it passed an MFK 2 years later, they were cheap ones bought from Ebay.

You don't need to have a garage fit them, you'll have no problem if the fitting is done properly (I'm not sure if they even actually test them).

If your bumper has the holes for the sensors then it's a question of just sourcing the correct sensors for that car, connecting them (the wiring harness usually has the connectors in the right place, but unused) then fitting any control modules required or in some cases just enabling the function in software.

ok, perhaps I used the word "just" incorrectly above.

The simple ones just need an earth connection & a tap to the reversing light. I drilled the holes myself, whole job took 30 minutes

So... do yours beep, or do the brake lights just come on shortly before you hit something?

Haha, yes my mistake, reversing light

Thanks for the replies guys. The fitting of them is no issue. I have Steel Mate flush fit parking sensors, and I will be painting them tonight myself before fitting tomorrow myself.
Its just the MFK side of things I wasnt sure of

Theyre fitted now anyway so to hell with the MFK

The deed was done on Saturday anyway

No of our cars have them, and one is only 6 years old!

Tom

Very neat, they will never even notice the car was not delivered like that.

I'm shocked at the number of you lot that are incapable of parking without assistance!!

Shocking!