11 replies to this topic

[alpder]

Prompted by having a tow-bar, meaning I had to put the rear plate on the rear door. But didn't fancy drilling or gluing. And certainly not repainting.

 

Vehicle-grade magnetic-sign backing is cheap and happens to be near-enough black. Strong, but cuts easily with a knife. And - obviously - vinyl stick-on letters bond to it because that's what it's made for...

 

 NPRearx.jpg   80.4K   4 downloads

 

Then I tried the front. A slight 3-4mm curve matches it to the bonnet lip...

 

 NPFrontx.jpg   77.53K   3 downloads

 

And, for when some oik nicks them, a few spares in the boot...

 

 NPSparesx.jpg   64.94K   3 downloads

 

And, finally, if you want plod to stop your car after the oik decides to nick the car from the car-park as well as the plates...

 

 NPOopsx.jpg   81.53K   4 downloads

 

Legality? As far as I can determine from the C&U regs, in 1968 the requirement was for white or silver characters, 3.1/8" high, on a black background. Font, spacing, and even stroke-width still appear to be unspecified at that date but happy to be corrected. As to whether you can make and fit a new plate to old specs... that's one for the bar to discuss (both kinds of).

Edited by alpder, 18 February 2024 - 02:22 PM.

[Quinlan minor]

You would need a rear number plate light to be legal/get an MOT, but you'd be very unlucky to find a policeman who knew that/gave a toss.

[alpder]

You would need a rear number plate light to be legal/get an MOT, but you'd be very unlucky to find a policeman who knew that/gave a toss.

It's under the corner-bumper

[nicklouse]

Numberplate light is not just MOT. It is a requirement for use on the road.

 

i would also reread the regs about fitting new plates not reading what was fitted.

[Lplus]

I wonder if the regs say anything about being securely attached to the vehicle.

[alpder]

I wonder if the regs say anything about being securely attached to the vehicle.

Easy* to find out. Enjoy: https://www.legislat...i/2001/561#top 

 
Many of the most recent and stringent requirements are annotated "except where the vehicle was first registered before 1st January 1973". (Which itself then gets a whole paragraph to itself explaining that "registered before 1973" can mean "built before 1980" if some other conditions are met.)

 

Unsurprisingly, it is a complete spaghetti of legislation having evolved over decades. Did you know, for example, that your trailer can legally display a number-plate different to the towing vehicle? But only if the towing vehicle is agricultural and the registration mark belongs to a vehicle kept by the same keeper - irrespective of whether that vehicle is road-legal. There must be loads of vehicles parked in farmyards whose registration mark is "       ", judging by the farm trailers around here.

 

Mostly the requirements are backwards-compatible. I.e. they don't impose new regs on old cars. Or at least not on old cars' old number-plates. But maybe on old cars' *new* number-plates. But even then... say a car came to you with painted-on plates and you then repainted them... is that a new plate? Best left to the lawyers to argue about it. They get paid for it.

 

*Where "easy" may be redefined to mean "bl**dy difficult" in Schedule 7e Section 3 Para 14.2.13.(i)(b)

[Lplus]

 

I wonder if the regs say anything about being securely attached to the vehicle.

Easy* to find out. Enjoy: https://www.legislat...i/2001/561#top 

 
Many of the most recent and stringent requirements are annotated "except where the vehicle was first registered before 1st January 1973". (Which itself then gets a whole paragraph to itself explaining that "registered before 1973" can mean "built before 1980" if some other conditions are met.)

 

Unsurprisingly, it is a complete spaghetti of legislation having evolved over decades. Did you know, for example, that your trailer can legally display a number-plate different to the towing vehicle? But only if the towing vehicle is agricultural and the registration mark belongs to a vehicle kept by the same keeper - irrespective of whether that vehicle is road-legal. There must be loads of vehicles parked in farmyards whose registration mark is "       ", judging by the farm trailers around here.

 

Mostly the requirements are backwards-compatible. I.e. they don't impose new regs on old cars. Or at least not on old cars' old number-plates. But maybe on old cars' *new* number-plates. But even then... say a car came to you with painted-on plates and you then repainted them... is that a new plate? Best left to the lawyers to argue about it. They get paid for it.

 

*Where "easy" may be redefined to mean "bl**dy difficult" in Schedule 7e Section 3 Para 14.2.13.(i)(b)

 

For vehicles reg before 1973

 

schedule 2 pt 3

 

 

 

2.  A plate displaying white, silver or light grey letters and numbers on a black surface having every character indelibly inscribed on the surface or so attached to the surface that it cannot readily be detached from it, which may either—

(a)be made of cast or pressed metal with raised characters, or

(b)consist of a plate to which separate characters are attached, or

©consist of a plastic plate having either reverse engraved characters or characters of a foil type, or

(d)consist of an unbroken rectangular area on the surface of the vehicle which is either flat or, if there is no flat area where the mark is required to be displayed, an area which is almost flat.

 

looks like magnetic would be insufficient.

 

Oddly the spec for reflective plates doesn't include the requirement to be hard to detach.  It just says fixed.

Edited by Lplus, 18 February 2024 - 04:56 PM.

[johnR]

I think magnetic plates may be frowned upon because of the ease with which they could be changed before entering anpr controlled car parks etc. When I was a police officer classics were given a lot of latitude, I'm still waiting for my home made(white plastic raised letters on a black background) plates on a G prefix Mk1'd car to be noticed. Nearly 9 years with them on now. 

[alpder]

I think magnetic plates may be frowned upon because of the ease with which they could be changed before entering anpr controlled car parks etc.

My other car with black-and-silver plates (they're proper commercial plates in the current plate font) is never recognised by car park cameras locally... I always have to type in the reg and then tell the machine what time I arrived to get a ticket. Seems like the camera software is only interested in pale retro-reflective rectangles. (Coded by a racist?) What's other people's experiences with pre-73 non-reflective plates and car park cameras?

[Quinlan minor]

 

I think magnetic plates may be frowned upon because of the ease with which they could be changed before entering anpr controlled car parks etc.

My other car with black-and-silver plates (they're proper commercial plates in the current plate font) is never recognised by car park cameras locally... I always have to type in the reg and then tell the machine what time I arrived to get a ticket. Seems like the camera software is only interested in pale retro-reflective rectangles. (Coded by a racist?) What's other people's experiences with pre-73 non-reflective plates and car park cameras?

 

Would be interested to know if ULEZ cameras read black and silver plates?

[imack]

The Dartford tunnel ANPR picks up my 1972 mini on original Hills black/silver plates and charges me accordingly.

[Steam]

Looks ok except there is something wrong with your vinyl letters.
Also,you may want to carry a spare as the magnetic backing only lasts about 2 years and can fall off, be removed by undesirable individuals.