Things that make you go . . .. er. . what?

[Snowboy]

I'm selling a car.
I won't bore you with the details of the car, but I will tell you a story of the chap who just called to ask about it.

A brief chat about the engine and car and wotnot, then he asks for the exact age.
I tell him.
Then . .. .
"Oh, sorry, that's not right for me then, I've just bought a private numberplate and your car is too old to fit it to."


Now, I know some people love their numberplates, and I'm sure he'll find a newer car, but I just thought some of the people here might find his reasoning just as strange as I did.

Hmmmm. I wonder if he'll read this?

[R11ysf]

I can sort of understand his reasoning if he's just bought a new plate and wants to use it.

Though if it was important then I probably would have looked at the year of the car first

[muley]

Well it might be too new, but it could never be too old for a private plate. Weird.

[obob]

muley said:

Well it might be too new, but it could never be too old for a private plate. Weird.

Course it can, if he has a 54 reg private plate and the car is a 04 reg, then his car is too old.

[jon-]

Huh, makes sense.

You're not allowed to make a car look newer than it is, so if he's bought a 2008 plate and it's a 2007 car, the car is too old to fit the numberplate too.

This thread makes me go .... er .. what?

[Snowboy]

I had to check I'd written old and new the right way round then.

You can put an old plate on a new car, but not a new plate on an old car.

For example
His plate is a 2002.
My car is 2001

You can't put a 2002 plate on a 2001 car.
My car is too old.

[jimmyjam]

Yep, when I bought my last car it had to fall within the date of the private plate

[muley]

obob said:

Course it can, if he has a 54 reg private plate and the car is a 04 reg, then his car is too old.

Alternatively

I have a J prefix 1990 plate - I can't put it on a 1991 K reg car - the car is too new.

[Hugo a Gogo]

muley said:

obob said:

Course it can, if he has a 54 reg private plate and the car is a 04 reg, then his car is too old.

Alternatively

I have a J prefix 1990 plate - I can't put it on a 1991 K reg car - the car is too new.

yes you can

[Alfa numeric]

Eh? Of course you can! Otherwise "yearless" plates would be unusable.

[Snowboy]

muley said:

Alternatively

I have a J prefix 1990 plate - I can't put it on a 1991 K reg car - the car is too new.

I was always under the impression you could do that.
You can show a car to be older than it is but not younger.

[crofty1984]

muley said:

Alternatively

I have a J prefix 1990 plate - I can't put it on a 1991 K reg car - the car is too new.

Yes you can. There's no issue with making a car look (via the plate) older than it is.
You're just not allowed to make it look younger than it is.
Stops people buying (for example) a 1992 E36 BMW and putting a nodescript private plate on to try and pass it off as a 1998 model.

[J4CKO]

Why do they persist with this daft rule, surely anyone with a brain would buy a car and check the documentation not the reg plate and if they dont then thats their luck out, its not like the Police really use it to date cars used in crime as you can put an older plate on, just not a newer one, you can put any old Irish tat plate on, people space and mess around with them so you cant read what its meant to say never mind derive the year of manufacture from it.

[Mikeyplum]

muley said:

Alternatively

I have a J prefix 1990 plate - I can't put it on a 1991 K reg car - the car is too new.

As per the thread title... er.... what?

You CANNOT make the car seem NEWER that it is. Any other plate is fine...

ETA - WOW!! I need to brush up on my typing speed - fast responding PH

[Roger Dodger]

Right,

My car (the '5) is a '96 'N' plate, it came with a private plate which begins with 'A'.

You CAN make a car look older, you CANNOT make it look newer.

[Alfa numeric]

muley said:

Alternatively

I have a J prefix 1990 plate - I can't put it on a 1991 K reg car - the car is too new.

I didn't know they made these in the 1980s!

[Roger Dodger]

Alfa numeric said:

A picture says a thousand words

[Big Rod]

Reminds me of the couple who spent something like £10k on two plates just after England won 5-1 against Germany The plates were somethng like EN51 GER and GRM.

When interviewed they reckonned it'd be five years before they could afford a car to put them on!!

[anonymous-user]

muley said:

Alternatively

I have a J prefix 1990 plate - I can't put it on a 1991 K reg car - the car is too new.

Have you been drinking today? Or have you been buying old cars because you think you can't put your private plate on them?


ETA I have a J reg E46 M3

[otherman]

Big Rod said:

Reminds me of the couple who spent something like £10k on two plates just after England won 5-1 against Germany The plates were somethng like EN51 GER and GRM.

When interviewed they reckonned it'd be five years before they could afford a car to put them on!!

By which time the plates would be worth a fraction of the 10k, being that it was a joke for the day