Speedometer - kph and mph

[Araucaria]

We live in France and we have recently bought a new European Union spec Bz4X.

On a recent visit to the UK I was really surprised to find that the speedometer cannot be changed from kilometers to miles.

There's a YouTube video showing how to change the US-spec version from mph to kph (for visits to Canada presumably). Does the RHD version as sold in the UK allow a switch from mph to kph?

For what it's worth, the car "knows" all about mph speed limits. When I came out of the Channel Tunnel, the display on the driving map immediately started showing the speed limits in mph, and the little display at bottom left of the speedometer picks up road-sign mph limits, and shows them in mph. Then if you exceed that mph limit, the icon turns red. But that's hardly a substitute for knowing what speed you are actually doing in miles per hour.

I have asked the dealer here in France about this, but so far without any result.

It would be very helpful to have some feedback from the UK on this!

[philip42h]

It's a bizarre EU thing that has been raised before. And it's almost unbelievable but true!

UK/US cars can show either miles or km. EU cars display km only ...

The infotainment / satnav system is different, knows which country you are in, and which units are in effect. But an EU speedometer and odometer are in metric units only.

[Araucaria]

Can it be legal to drive in the UK with a speedometer that only shows kph?

After all, you are supposed to use beam deflectors on your headlights if they don't conform otherwise. The AA used to do a roaring trade at Dover selling kits with them in (along with hi-vis gilets, warning triangles, and bulb sets).

I'll try re-searching the forum for previous posts, thanks.

[philip42h]

18 minutes ago, Araucaria said:

Can it be legal to drive in the UK with a speedometer that only shows kph?

As a visitor, yes, it's perfectly legal - the visitor is responsible for doing the conversions in his/her head and abiding by the speed limit.

As an import, no. A car imported into the UK must be converted to display speed in mph.

It's all very silly when the technology so obviously exists ...

The most ridiculous case is Ireland (not that Ireland is ridiculous) - the Irish drive on the left as we do in the UK but display speed limits in kph. And there's a land border between north and south that locals regularly cross. A car sold in the north will be able to display speeds in mph, kph or both at the same time; a car sold in the south will be able to display speeds in kph only. When importing a car from Ireland the steering wheel is already on the 'correct' side, but the owner is forced into the [unnecessary] expense of converting the speedometer.

[Araucaria]

I am still trying to find out if a RHD Bz4X sold in the UK can switch the speedo from mph to kph.

Does anyone know?

[philip42h]

15 minutes ago, Araucaria said:

I am still trying to find out if a RHD Bz4X sold in the UK can switch the speedo from mph to kph.

Does anyone know?

Yes, absolutely - it follows exactly the same pattern as all other Toyotas sold in the UK and as documented in the Owner's Manual:

I can tell that you are still having difficulty in believing the almost unbelievable ... 😉

[Araucaria]

Thanks very much Philip. I will go and see my dealer and see if the speedo can be reprogrammed, even in France.

I have to go and visit as there is a urgent safety recall which I received yesterday: the pre-collision system (PCS) has a software fault that (it says) can make it lose some of its memory, with the result that next time the car is started it might make the hazard flashers operate, accompanied by noises and warning messages on the dashboard. I can hardly wait.

[dannyboy413]

I have a C-HR bought in the Republic Of Ireland in May. The speedo can be set to either kph or mph. When driving in the Republic, the speed warning shows the kph limit and when I cross into the North, it changes to mph. I have it set for mph permanently, so the main figures in the middle of the display always show mph, but the kph are also shown, in a smaller font, at the bottom of the display. The satnav shows what is relevant to the country I am driving in. Whether this is a 2024 change, I have no idea.

[Araucaria]

1 minute ago, dannyboy413 said:

I have a C-HR bought in the Republic Of Ireland in May. The speedo can be set to either kph or mph. When driving in the Republic, the speed warning shows the kph limit and when I cross into the North, it changes to mph. I have it set for mph permanently, so the main figures in the middle of the display always show mph, but the kph are also shown, in a smaller font, at the bottom of the display. The satnav shows what is relevant to the country I am driving in. Whether this is a 2024 change, I have no idea.

There is a setting in the Bz4X satnav (and I can't recall precisely where) that lets you select manual or automatic for some of ther settings. So with it set to automatic, what appeared on the satnav screen when we arrived in Folkestone was speed limits shown in mph. And the speed warning on the screen in front of the driver - the one that picks up the limits from roadsigns - showed the speed in mph and it would go red if you exceeded that figure.

It was just the actual speedo that didn't switch, either automatically or manually.

[dannyboy413]

10 minutes ago, Araucaria said:

It was just the actual speedo that didn't switch, either automatically or manually.

Now that I think about it, I do not actually have a speedo displayed. I just have the display set up to show me the numerical value.

[Araucaria]

I think maybe we're talking at cross purposes, dannyboy. By speedo I too mean the numerical value. Probably called a digital speedo as opposed to an analogue one.

[Araucaria]

Sorry to be going on about all this Philip. My paper users' manual in French runs to 258 pages, and there is only one section at number 9.

But I managed to track down Section 9.2 on an online version of the manual, and this is the comparable piece to the bit you showed.

You'll see that when it comes to units, all that is customizable is to change the power consumption from a default number of kWh to travel 100km (which is the same as the normal ICE measure of litres/100km), to EITHER km per kWh OR miles per kWh.

That's almost rubbing it in!

 

This came from here: https://www.toyobz4x.com/personnalisation-133.html

[philip42h]

20 minutes ago, Araucaria said:

That's almost rubbing it in!

That's definitely rubbing it in. 

We know that the car / the car's electronics is perfectly capable for displaying information in both imperial and metric units.

The homologation rules in the UK require it to be able to show both. The equivalent rules in France appear to prohibit it from doing so - vive la France!

Assuming that is the case - 'cos I'm only guessing that it is - the question is why? Your dealer might be able to explain. The only reason that I can imagine right now is the legislation that bans the speedo from understating a cars speed - if a French car is inadvertently set to show mph while driving in France, the speedo would be understating the actual speed. But that's just a wild guess ...

[Araucaria]

I don't believe there can possibly be a French, or EU, legal ban on the capability of switching from one to the other.

Many other French-market cars have a speedometer that can be switched from kph to mph. My previous French car was a Skoda and it was easily switched from one to the other. But your suggestion might well have attracted the attention of Toyota's ultra-cautious legal department.

The US-spec models do it surprisingly easily too - and they are of course LHD - by pressing on the "ODO" button to find the display of overall mileage, when a long press on that brings up the choice for selecting miles or km.

[Kental]

Back when cars had analogue speedos (dials not small swimming trunks) uk cars showed both mph & kph yet EU cars were kmh only. Near ferry ports there were signs giving the conversion.