Silly position for running light

[BigTrev]

Is there any reason why I can't remove the upper front nearside running light on my Bailey Unicorn Valencia Mk4? It is positioned so near to the awning rail that I have twice dragged it off when fitting the awning and now I have lost the outer cover completely as I hadn't realised it was loose before an outward journey. That meant that it was too late to buy a new one and the sharp edged internal fittings of the light damaged the awning as it was being dragged over it despite efforts to hold them apart.

I can see no reason for the light being there other than for cosmetic purposes unless the design rules stipulate it. Other caravans of a similar age do not appear to have them and so why should Bailey put them in such a stupid position? In talking to other Bailey owners I am not the only one to have had this problem.

If there is no obvious reason not to do it then I would ask my local agent to do it to (hopefully) avoid any issues of the warranty being invalidated against ingress of water, etc.

[JohnPat]

It is a legal requirement to fit height marker lights. As to why it is at the front rather than the back is a "Question".

[Colinf70]

I always put my awning on from the rear just because of the same reason as you stated 

not the best place to have the top light 

[reluctant]

As already stated, it is a legal requirement and it's position is legislated (not to exceed x mm from outer edge and x mm from upper edge. The design of the awning rail is optional and that is  what needs to be amended.

[joanie]

I didn't know it was a legal requirement, but I can understand it, however does it need to be situated where it is because I agree with the OP it is a nuisance and we have to be very careful when sliding the awning through the rail. I have never tried starting at the back of the van with the awning, how easy or hard is it?

[Grandpa Steve]

1 hour ago, reluctant said:

As already stated, it is a legal requirement and it's position is legislated (not to exceed x mm from outer edge and x mm from upper edge. The design of the awning rail is optional and that is  what needs to be amended.

My front marker lights are nowhere near the awning rail!

 

Unlike this Bailey

 

 

[Jezzerb]

It is harder to put the awning on from the back due the tighter curve.

[macafee2]

1 hour ago, Jezzerb said:

It is harder to put the awning on from the back due the tighter curve.

We only have a porch awning but do not find it a problem.  Slides easy enough

 

macafee2

[Tuningdrew]

9 hours ago, joanie said:

I didn't know it was a legal requirement, but I can understand it, however does it need to be situated where it is because I agree with the OP it is a nuisance and we have to be very careful when sliding the awning through the rail. I have never tried starting at the back of the van with the awning, how easy or hard is it?

I don’t have any issue pulling our full Isabella (with all the panels in) from the back. Always just done it that way I suppose. 

Edited November 28, 2020 by Tuningdrew
Typo

[Lutz]

Trailers, and that includes caravans, over 2.1m wide, are required to have white front clearance lamps (and for that matter, red rear contour lamps) no more than 400mm from the extreme outer edge of the vehicle and mounted as high as possible.

[Grandpa Steve]

6 minutes ago, Lutz said:

Trailers, and that includes caravans, over 2.1m wide, are required to have white front clearance lamps (and for that matter, red rear contour lamps) no more than 400mm from the extreme outer edge of the vehicle and mounted as high as possible.

So why are the ones on my Swift about 4 feet 6 inches  off the ground and on the front face, and the ones on the Bailey on the side 8 feet up from the ground.

[Stevan]

4 minutes ago, Grandpa Steve said:

So why are the ones on my Swift about 4 feet 6 inches  off the ground and on the front face, and the ones on the Bailey on the side 8 feet up from the ground.

It's because of the different shapes of the vans, to put them higher on the Swift would move them back from the front of the van.

[Lutz]

9 minutes ago, Grandpa Steve said:

So why are the ones on my Swift about 4 feet 6 inches  off the ground and on the front face, and the ones on the Bailey on the side 8 feet up from the ground.

 

The lamps on the Swift that you are referring to are not the front clearance lamps, but the front position lamps. On Category O trailers (which includes caravans) these lamps may be between 250mm and 2100mm off the ground and 4' 6" is within those limits.

Edited November 28, 2020 by Lutz

[635mwd]

In the unicorn picture the front marker light can be seen below the grab handle it’s oval shape different to the side marker lamp high up at the front . On the swift the side marker lamp if it’s not at the front then it will be towards the rear.

[Griff]

6 minutes ago, 635mwd said:

........On the swift the side marker lamp if it’s not at the front then it will be towards the rear.......

 

.......and on the outside of the rail if possible, will cause least snagging opportunity.

 

[Hairyspinner]

I had the same problem on my Unicorn Valencia 2. The top came off when I removed the awning, thought I had clipped it back on but it fell off on the journey home. I looked at other makes & bought something like this. 
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/JOKON-SPL2010-RED-WHITE-CLEAR-SIDE-MARKER-LAMP-LIGHT-CARAVAN-MOTORHOME/232424838405?hash=item361d999505:g:Yk0AAOSw-mZZeG7z

 

No problems since. I can’t remember the actual make I bought but the hole centres were very nearly the same. Used a sealer when refitting. Hope this helps. 

 

[Jezzerb]

Ours on our Buc are at the rear only-and we don't put the awning on from there due the curve- I know as many of you say it doesn't make much different but some Baileys have much sharper curves there than is the norm and a heavy air awning is much easier to get on at the front -and the Bailey roof strap can cause issues too. So front for us and that light is a pain-but obviously we've now swapped vans.

Edited November 28, 2020 by Jezzerb

[Stevan]

Many Swifts have the marker lights outside the awning track thus avoiding the problem altogether.

Simples!

[Grandpa Steve]

2 hours ago, Lutz said:

 

The lamps on the Swift that you are referring to are not the front clearance lamps, but the front position lamps. On Category O trailers (which includes caravans) these lamps may be between 250mm and 2100mm off the ground and 4' 6" is within those limits.

So where are the front clearance lamps my caravan is supposed to have?

 

...and where are my red contour lamps?

           ******************

1 hour ago, 635mwd said:

In the unicorn picture the front marker light can be seen below the grab handle it’s oval shape different to the side marker lamp high up at the front . On the swift the side marker lamp if it’s not at the front then it will be towards the rear.

Lutz says all caravans should have front clearance lamps and red contour laps, clearly they all don’t.

 

How can you be certain that what is seen below the grab handles are lights on the Bailey, on my Swift they are reflectors?

[Jaydug]

17 hours ago, BigTrev said:

I can see no reason for the light being there

 

It's there because Bailey have always put them there.     Even before the start of the century I was finding the same problem as you have.   Certainly Bailey must have been hearing the same complaint for more than 20 years.

 

 

 

Edited November 28, 2020 by Jaydug

[Lutz]

25 minutes ago, Grandpa Steve said:

So where are the front clearance lamps my caravan is supposed to have?

 

...and where are my red contour lamps?

           ******************

Lutz says all caravans should have front clearance lamps and red contour laps, clearly they all don’t.

 

How can you be certain that what is seen below the grab handles are lights on the Bailey, on my Swift they are reflectors?

 

The legal requirements for trailer lighting equipment are laid down in ECE-R43 sections 6.9 and 6.13.

 

For a summary of these requirements see https://www.hella.com/hella-com/assets/media_global/673_Legal_Requirements_Brochure_HELLA_EN.pdf starting page 28.

[Grandpa Steve]

37 minutes ago, Lutz said:

 

The legal requirements for trailer lighting equipment are laid down in ECE-R43 sections 6.9 and 6.13.

 

For a summary of these requirements see https://www.hella.com/hella-com/assets/media_global/673_Legal_Requirements_Brochure_HELLA_EN.pdf starting page 28.

I’d rather not thank you, there is so much conflicting information in this topic. 
You stated all caravans have to have  front clearance lamps and red contour lamps?

   I asked a simple question, where are mine?

[Lutz]

47 minutes ago, Grandpa Steve said:

I’d rather not thank you, there is so much conflicting information in this topic. 
You stated all caravans have to have  front clearance lamps and red contour lamps?

   I asked a simple question, where are mine?

 

If you can't find them you obviously haven't got them. Maybe Bailey have discovered a loophole in the legal requirements that I haven't read in detail, so I'm unable to comment other than in principle, front clearance lamps are required.

[Stagn8]

The oval shaped units below the grab handle on the Bailey definitely light up, I see them light up when I check out the lights are working. Grandpa Steve has a Swift, so the mystery is with Swift, Bailey comply.

[daveat92]

"Why haven't I got any on mine?"

 

The regulations re lights have changed over the years and they will also vary according to the size of the trailer (length, width and height).

So what is now a requirement for a particular size will not have been needed before the regs were changed.

The regs are not retrospective, so that is why there is a seeming discrepancy between lights and positions on vans in use today.