Good news on black and white registration plates

[MarinaCoupe]

Just been reading the latest FBHVC newsletter and it says that if a car is old enough to be an Historic Vehicle then it can have black and white plates.

So all Marinas built before 01.01.1975 can now have black and white plates legally.

I'll post a link to the article on the FBHVC article as soon as it is posted.




Chris

[Kilroy]

We have a similar problem over here.

The older plates are milled aluminium on black..




The new plates are black on white which look totally out of place on older vehicles, but are often in place because the original rego lapsed and the vehicle had to be relicenced.





However - these plates are still pressed from aluminium - so it is possible to spray paint the whole thing black - then polish off the embossed lettering to give a more original look.
Obviously - the law are averse to such shenanigans - but if you are not being a nuisance - they tend not to notice.

The warrant-of-fitness testers can be another story - but by law - a car only needs 1 plate - so you can modify one and leave the other for wof purposes.
Its a hack...

[PHUQ]

It's no issue to buy replacement number plates in whatever style you like over here Kilroy- I have 5 numberplates for the estate (3 different types).

This seems an odd move to me- the legislation regarding number plates was bought in back in '73, (optional from some time in the late 60's as I recall) and so far as I can tell it's pure coincidence that it happened to tally with when they stopped the rolling tax exemption 25 years later- it's nothing to do with tax exemption.

I did get pulled (well, it was a "random" vehicle inspection, they were pulling everything over) and got a ticking off for the black and silver numberplates on the estate on night, hence fitting pressed reflective ones- which I actually prefer on 70's cars anyway. Will be getting a set of the nice 3D plastic letter reflective ones eventually.

[MarinaCoupe]

Matt

It seemed strange to me too, the FBHVC article was a report about a meeting they had direct with DVLA. FBHVC were also surprised by DVLA as well.



Chris
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[leylandmarina]

Is it still just Framptons that do these plates?

[aqua-marina]

Not all number plates will pass the mot the letters have to be a certain hight width and spacing also has to be correct

[MarinaCoupe]

Extract from latest FBHVC newsletter.

Report From the Regular Meeting Between DVLA and FBHVC
Ian Edmunds

Replacement Bodies and Other Matters
It became apparent from our conversation that some of the terminology that we have all been using, e.g. rebuilt, restored etc. can lead to misunderstandings of what has actually been done to the vehicle. For example a motorcycle purchased dismantled in boxes and reassembled may be described by the owner as ‘rebuilt’ but to DVLA a rebuild can imply something more fundamental to which different rules have to apply. It may be beneficial to provide a short description of the work done, such as ‘reassembled from previously dismantled original parts’.

On the thorny subject of replacement bodies DVLA explained that, although they fully understand that the traditional coach built wooden framed body has a finite life which is undoubtedly shorter than that of the metal components of the chassis etc and that as such replacement bodies are unavoidable, within the rules to which they have to work a major change of body style is not acceptable. A newly built body true to the original should not be a problem. We enquired about cases where nothing remains of the original body, or where there were many options available when new or if a vehicle is rebuilt to represent a particular, possibly well-known, example of the marque. The DVLA response is that they will consider all such cases individually and do their best to assist but that certain rules still had to apply. I believe more discussion is needed on this topic and the opportunity for this will present itself – see ‘Show and Share’ elsewhere.

Vehicle Inspections
It has always been the case that in some circumstances DVLA have required a particular vehicle to be inspected and since the closure of the Local Offices this has been delegated to DVSA (was VOSA). From the 27 April this year this DVLA examination process for GB vehicles changed to a new service provider, SGS UK. For Northern Ireland the service will continue to be provided by DVA.

SGS are a Swiss based company operating all over the world providing inspection services. For the DVLA service they will come to the address where the vehicle is stored and there is no charge to the keeper.

Non-Reflective Number Plates
At every meeting with DVLA we learn something completely new! In this case it is that the end date for black and white (or silver and white) number plates is linked to the historic tax class date. So we were told that non-reflective plates are now permitted on vehicles built before 1 January 1975.



Chris

[JoshWard]

Very bizarre! I'm a bit of a plate anorak and think black and white/silver plates look horrendous on post 73 cars. The black/silver pressed ones are totally wrong on any 70s car (they were only really used in the 60s). Somebody buying a new car in the 70s would have wanted to show off the fact it was new, they didn't want the same style number plates fitted to their neighbour's ancient Austin A40. Most Marinas came with either pressed ally plates or the peaked digit ones. The only ones I have seen that came with black and white plates had white peaked digits.

[JubileeNut]

Plates like Minispeedstar
Mine are original pressed aly yellow and white type reflective.
Not sure if I will get a second set in black/white the car never had them fitted originally and not sure what it would look like.

Nice we have the choice though

[Gee tc]

I remember those new fangled 'wipe clean' perspex plates coming out!! in the 70's
T

[Kiwi Ute]

We have a similar problem over here.

The older plates are milled aluminium on black..




The new plates are black on white which look totally out of place on older vehicles, but are often in place because the original rego lapsed and the vehicle had to be relicenced.





However - these plates are still pressed from aluminium - so it is possible to spray paint the whole thing black - then polish off the embossed lettering to give a more original look.
Obviously - the law are averse to such shenanigans - but if you are not being a nuisance - they tend not to notice.

The warrant-of-fitness testers can be another story - but by law - a car only needs 1 plate - so you can modify one and leave the other for wof purposes.
Its a hack...

My ute is still on original 'black' plates, JH **** so not too fa from your wagon. (Well it was from Christchurch!)

[JubileeNut]

Anyone found any information to say it is actually now legal in the UK to fit a Black silver number plate on a post 1973 car which is classed as an Historic vehicle?
All information I can find is it is only legal pre 1972!

[david painter]

If a car registered after 1st Jan 1973 had none reflective plates fitted, when presented for MOT.Under the current regulations I would have to fail it.
Dave

[JubileeNut]

So nothing changed then

[MarinaCoupe]

I have written to the FBHVC querying their statement, asking for clarification.




Chris