[W126 Coupe] City lights or not?

[myhog at surfeu.de]

I have heard a lot of talk about city lights.  In fact one member 
stated “On Euro models that was an option I think”
Well here is the real nitty gritty.  
In Germany, where our babies came to life, they have some really 
screwy laws regarding motor vehicles.  One of these is that front 
parking lights must be installed inside the headlight housing.  Thought 
behind this, when a headlight bulb burns out other drivers still see 2 
lights (bright headlight and dim parking light on other side) coming at 
them.  
Over here you won’t see Euro spec cars with yellow marker/parking 
lights.  Yellow is for blinkers only.  
I don’t know about US spec MB’s but the European ones also have, on 
the headlight switch, 2 positions left of the off position.  This is 
for parking lights on one side of the car only.  Over here they have 
street lights that go off late at night to save energy.   These are 
marked with a white and red stripe.  When you park near one of these, 
at night, you have to leave the traffic side parking lights on for 
other traffic to see your parked car.  With that in mind, Euro parking 
lights are only 5 watts to reduce the draw of power so you don’t have a 
dead battery the next morning.
This explains why the front parking lights give off that yellowish 
glow in the headlights of EURO MB’s.  Funny part is that many Germans 
prefer the yellow corner parking lights of the US models.  Hence if you 
want to import a motorcycle over here you have to place a 5 watt bulb 
in the headlight housing (parking light) and disconnect the yellow 
marker lights so they only blink.
Most European cars have the ability to turn on only one side of their 
parking lights.  BMW and Opel you turn on your traffic side blinker 
then turn off the car that sets the parking lights for that side of the 
car.
	
Here is a parting shot.  You know the big touring motorcycles with the 
2 passing lights, usually below the headlight.  Many riders leave them 
on for more visibility and safety.  Over here that gets the U.S. Forces 
riders tickets from the Polizei.  Over here the only vehicle allowed to 
drive with 3 headlights in a triangle formation is a Freight train.  
The Polizei don’t want other drivers to look in their mirror and think 
a freight train is following them down the road (Honest to god!!!)

Side note.. I just won an AMG 300 km/h speedometer off Ebay.  It is a 
1984 and I hope it will just plug up to my 1991.  I know my car will do 
over 260 km/h, thanks to gps and the speedo only goes upto 240.  Plus 
my gas gauge works from full to half and stays at half until the tank 
is empty then it falls to the empty.  Hoping to kill 2 birds with one 
stone.

Kevin
1991 500 SEC Lorinser in  Germany
.