I shipped my Passat to Spain in 2006 where I had a multi-year contract. Upon arrival I had to apply for a Spanish license plate. There is only one place in whole Madrid that handles everything about car registration and plates and everything else. Thus thousands of people gather every morning in hope to get into the building by 4 pm and get their paper work done. It took me 5 trips in 5 days that I finally was able to get into the building. By the time it was my turn and I presented my car shipment papers to the employee, she asked me where the car's technical inspection was. I had none. Thus I was referred to a remote location in the outskirts of the city to perform a technical inspection and get a certification. A few days later, I arrived to the location and to my demise I noticed there is 6 hours wait in line for the car to be inspected. Finally, when it was my turn the guy quickly rejected the car without even inspecting it. You can imagine I didn't speak a word Spanish and they didn't speak a word English. Using the body language the supervisor briefed me that this is an American car and its lights do not comply with the European law. They all must be replaced. I insisted (yes with body language :lol
that what are the front and back lights are supposed to do. He mentioned that in U.S. the back lights turn 4 bulbs but in Europe only 2. Further, there shouldn't be any Day Time Running Lights on and in addition you should be able manually turn the headlights on and off.
Pulling out my hair and biting hard on my lips, I headed to a VW dealership. They quoted me close to 3K Euros to change the lights and wiring. Then went to several shops but they refused touching it citing to be an overly complicated case.
Then I came to this forum and learned how to install a Euro-switch to manually turn the headlights on and off. I also removed the DTL relay thus that was easily solved. Then it was turn for the backlights. As there are no such thing as Wal-Mart or Home Depot there, I had a hard time to find a place to buy some wire but after a few days I finally found an electric store in a narrow alley. With the diagram and instruction received from fellas in this forum, I was able to take out the backlight holders and do some minor soldering to let only two bulbs burn when hitting the brake.
Next, I planned to go back to the inspection station. I arrived and waited another 7 hours in line. When it was my turn I told the guy (yes with the body language :lol
that I have fixed all the lights. He asked me to pay the fee and bring the receipt from the cashier which I instantly did. He checked the lights (passed!), seat belts (passed!), emission (passed!), tires (passed!). But still he rejected the car. I headed to the supervisor office with a grim face. He started explaining that in order to pass the car I must present an official proof that this car a VW! First, I thought he is kidding but quickly I found he is dead serious. He gave me the address of a company and advised me to go there. At this point I was exploding from agony and anger but had no other choice. I cursed myself at least a million times for going to that country.
A few days later, I went to that address. On the fifth floor, I told to the reception (yes with the body language :lol
that I need a certification that my car is a VW. As customary, I had to wait 90 minutes until a guy showed up in front of me. He asked where is your car? I said downstairs. He asked me to take him to the car which I did. He glimpsed at the car for 5 seconds and we went back to the office. I was asked to pay 150 Euros (about $200 at that time) to get a one sheet of paper that stated "We certify the car with this VIN number is a VW".
A few days later went back to the inspection station and, yes, waited another 6 hours in line. When it was my turn the guy looked at the VW certification sentence (in Spanish) and delivered a sarcastic smile. Finally, I had the technical inspection in hand. A triumph even bigger than WWII.
Tried several days to get into the notorious building to apply for a license plate but were unsuccessful. My neighbor suggested to use the services of the middlemen called "gestor". They have special access to the government buildings and don't wait in lines. Thus I went to a "gestor" and he quoted me 450 Euros to deliver the plate in 48 hours. At this point, I was suicidal so to save my life I paid the f$#@ing money. A few days later he called and when I went there to pick up the plate I was almost dropping dead. He handed over to me a temporary plate which was valid for only 30 days after which I had to go through another process to receive a permanent one.
This time I was determined not pay any more money and DIY. I tried to get into the line by going there at 5:00 a.m.
When I finally received the papers for a permanent plate, I had to go to special shops that made those plates. Usually, a pair of plates cost 25 Euros but the guy charged me 45 Euros and my protests didn't get anywhere since he only spoke Spanish and I only English
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So, the answer to your question is YES it is possible to have 4 bulbs light on and it's fairly easy just search the forum and get the diagram and a plier and a soldering gun.
