73 replies to this topic

[chrscmbs]

Hello everyone,

I keep seeing old log books and vin plates for sale for our beloved classic mini's via the internet like gumtree and e b a y etc, not with the remains of the original cars though as they are usually scrapped but just the original log books and a vin plate, maybe even with a number plate and I wanted to ask you all about this subject.

Now, I can personally see the attraction of buying an old Number plate as it's motoring memrobilia in I guess and I have a few old american number plates on the wall of my garage (From Texas, New Mexico Etc.) and they quite look nice and I cant fault anyone wanting classic mini plates to display in a similar way as if thats what they fancy, then like all things mini... go for it.

But is there not a potential here for someone to buy an historical Vehicles logbook, with a vin plate and for them to then simply stick the vin plate and the new Reg plate. on a "newer" mini if they wanted to?

Why... would be obviouse to me as it would give them "Historic Vehicle" status and the vehicle would then also be "Tax exempt" and like most things in life if their is a way of saving money and in this case "tax" disc money each year, I would like to bet that people would exploit or have already exploited this without a thought if they could.

This scenario scares the hell out of me as it seems so wrong and I'm guessing illegal, as what if I bought what I thought was say a 1970, 1971, 1972 mini in goof faith from a chap/woman local to me or a distance away, but in reality it turned out that the car was a 1982 or say an 1988 one? (not that their is anything wrong with these years before I get shouted at, lol) I would feel absolutly cheated, angry and utterly cheesed off to say the least.

I have a 1984 Austin Mini Mayfair and I bought it because I wanted it, if I had wanted a tax exempt 1970 model, I would have bought one of those but is it just me or can you see a potential here for some tax evasion and some dodgy tactics?

I tried to do a little research on this and its a bit confusing to say the least, but passing a car off as something its not is illegal and i read that you have to retain things like steering, engine, axles etc to attain points? which I kind of understand, and that the dvla would do inspections, even give Q plates etc. under certain circumstances.

If someone asked me if I could save £100 on tax each year would I be interested, i would say yes, but if they told me it was not legal though, or it was a tecnicality though, I wouild say forget it as Its wrong and its not worth it, call me old fashioned if you want but no and I wanted to see if others had heard of this before?

Chris.

[oltonlad]

theres always mini's on ebay that are supposed to be 1972 or older (tax exempt) but they are clearly newer cars that have had their identity changed, it is illegal but it doesen't bother some people.

[The Matt]

I was going to buy a wheel off a bloke on Facebook, but then didn't even bother to get back in touch with him after I saw him selling a tax exempt log book.

Not only is it immoral and illegal in terms of letting people ring their cars to get free tax. It is also a great way of helping people with stolen vehicles register them. People selling log books are nothing short of thick!

[Ethel]

It also has the potential to send a Mini to the crusher if they are caught out.


The Americans call them licence plates because that's what they are, their equivalent of a tax disc. If someone is fool enough to pay me scrap paper I've some old ones of those I'll sell.

[1275john]

Personally if the mini is say beyond ecominical repair and it's re shelled I don't see the problem with it.
Yes the simple answer is its illegal but looking at it from this point I think it fine.(although iliigal)

Now on the other hand if a mini is stollen and a tax exempt identity is put on it ,now that is wrong.

Put it bluntly if my tax exempt mini was in such a state it wasn't worth saving I would quite happily swap the it's and bobs over to my other shell.

If I were to sell it I would be honest and disclose what I had done .

There are thousands of people out there that will blast me and say your breaking the law it shouldn't be done fact.

But like many on here if done right if your get me (ok not right in eyes or law but u get me) then I have no issue with it

After all it's keeping another mini on the road right.

[Ethel]

In that case you wouldn't be trying to sell the V5 without a car. Though it's hard to see the logic as the "donor" is likely to have it's own identity (unless it's stolen), and if you take two Minis to put one on the road then that's one less regardless of the paperwork. But I do agree "legal" doesn't always mean "moral".

[orangeboy]

someone has gone to the trouble of completely coverting this genuine 1968 to a modern day cooper complete with ecu and airbags

http://www.ebay.co.u...1#ht_2505wt_932

pull the other one

Edited by orangeboy, 19 May 2012 - 01:09 PM.

[Cooperman]

And he's made absolutely no attempt to disguise what has been done. if ever there was a target vehicle for DVLA to take and crush it's that one.
Tax evasion and false representation without a shadow of doubt.

[minimartin1]

someone has gone to the trouble of completely coverting this genuine 1968 to a modern day cooper complete with ecu and airbags

http://www.ebay.co.u...1#ht_2505wt_932

pull the other one

I like the fact it's a rare 1968 converted to look newer lol
And they have done a really good job of drilling them two rivets out and changing the vin hahah

[Cooperman]

someone has gone to the trouble of completely coverting this genuine 1968 to a modern day cooper complete with ecu and airbags

http://www.ebay.co.u...1#ht_2505wt_932

pull the other one

I like the fact it's a rare 1968 converted to look newer lol
And they have done a really good job of drilling them two rivets out and changing the vin hahah

In fact that's all that has been done.

[1275john]

Now that is a typical case of when it's wrong.
I'm sure we've all acquired shells in the past and didn't think to ask about the identity , especially if it were from some one we know.
My spare shell lost it's identity wen I declared it scrap due to front end damage. I intended on using the rear half as a trailer.

[oltonlad]

this bit in the description of the car on ebay made me laugh!!..............

First of al i would like to say that whoever has carried out this conversion has done a remarkable job. At first i thought it was about a 1996 car its that good! If it were next to a genuine cooper i am sure you wouldn't be able to notice the difference.


yeah, you probably thought that it was a 1996 car................because thats what it is!!........hahahaha

Edited by oltonlad, 19 May 2012 - 04:29 PM.

[miniyellowmini]

Thats the dodgiest Mini ringer I think I've seen to date.

[Artful Dodger]

Thats the dodgiest Mini ringer I think I've seen to date.

* dumbest

[miniyellowmini]

Thats the dodgiest Mini ringer I think I've seen to date.

* dumbest

yeah and that.

and it's got 7 bids!