Ringing kits for sale on ebay...No not on our watch!

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Thursday 9th May 2019

The Owner said:

ARTHHUUURRR 😥 - A baddie has taken my beautiful boy from our drive in St George in Bristol overnight, and I am absolutely heartbroken 💔
12 years together through thick and thin, getting me both in and out of tight spots... please please let him be found 😩
I'd be most grateful of a share if you reckon it could be of help!

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Sunday 19th May 2019

It's getting through.

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Wednesday 10th July 2019

Here's a victim.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/71778874...

1976-81 MGB with a 74 spec' grille and chrome bumpers. But it has the identity from a 1972 Harvest Gold car.

A chrome bumper converted 76-81 pageant blue MGB in that kind of condition would be worth £3,000+ any day of the week.

A pageant blue resprayed chrome bumper MGB in that condition £4,000+

That ringer? Worthless. rolleyes

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Friday 9th August 2019

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/23503680...

Another rubber bumper ringer. rolleyes

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Friday 6th September 2019

Another rubber bumper ringer. frown

Wrong engine, wrong gear selector, wrong radiator location, single not twin batteries, wrong badges, wrong trim, wrong dash and welded over rubber bumper mounts.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MGB-GT-1-8-FOR-RESTORAT...

This was obvioulsy done quite some time ago so...

eBay message said:

Good evening.

Sorry to tell you this but your car is not a 1971 MGB. There are several items that were not added to the model until 1974

What you have is a later model that has been converted from rubber to chrome bumpers and an older model identity ringed onto it.

This was common practice with lazy restorers who couldn't or wouldn't weld, unscrupulous owners who wanted to make their own cars tax exempt, traders who wanted to make cars appear older to increase the value and most depressingly to hide the identity of a stolen car.

The Police, VOSA and the DVLA are cracking down on this so if you have bought the car believing it to be a true 1971 model then I am afraid you have been mislead and are an innocent victim of a fraudster or thief.

Continuing the listing in entirely up to you but it has been recorded for future reference.

All the best and sorry to bring you bad news again LK

...benefit of the doubt the seller could have unknowingly bought a ringer.

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Monday 9th September 2019

eBay seller said:

Hi LK

Thank you for the email, i had bought it on car & classic site for my son & it was far to much work for him to do... If this is the case i will do further in investigation & might be better if we see as parts...

Seller

eBay seller said:

Hi LK

I have had the car checked out today & all the numbers every thing seem to mach. Thank you for your concern but may be you had to much pot.... i reaaly dont know...

Seller

My reply...

"Because the numbers have been changed. They won't come up on a check.

Your car is not an original chrome bumper MGB.

eBay seller said:

Thanks I will take it down to the police station in the morning

& let them know I bought the car from your self

I’m sure we bought the car from your ? Did we not

Seller

Hmmm that escalated unexpectedly eh? rolleyes

My reply?

"By all means. I'm sure wasting Police time is no longer an offense.

Once that's out of the way I'll print this conversation out and read it in any court you like as a defamation of character.
You have already implied I take drugs and now are suggesting you bought a ringer from me via carandclassic. I'm sure the website would be interested to know their name has been dragged into your gutter as well.

All the best".

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Monday 9th September 2019

Trying to make a positive from this situation I thought I would do a guide to help stop people buying a Rubber Bumper Ringer.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

If any MGB or MGB GT owners would like to help I would appreciate it a lot. Thank you. smile

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Sunday 6th October 2019

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Monday 20th January 2020

Whenever I see this...

....I look for this.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-CORTINA-MK2-1969-L...

eBay are accessories to the theft of thousands of motor vehicles in the UK alone.

Time to step things up again.

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Friday 31st January 2020

Fastpedeller said:

Touring442 said:

Yawn.

What's your issue? or are you just trolling (in which case I've fallen for it!)
I guess you've never had a car stolen (thankfully I haven't either) but I feel for those who have.

I don't mind because every troll post bumps the thread, more people see it and awareness is raised. For or against; law abiding or criminal it doesn't matter.

I imagine the only people who have issues with this thread are the ones who are either aiding and abetting thefts or actual thieves.

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Friday 14th February 2020

Touring442 said:

InitialDave said:

Touring442 said:

A mate did a Mark 4 Cortina based thing last year.

He might well have done, but there's no guarantee of that being possible. Likewise, you could quite probably keep using a kit car registered as the original donor for many many years without issue.

Or you might be the one who has it when the music stops and need to unravel the whole mess.

Nothing wrong with taking that risk on if you're aware of it and accounted for it. I probably would on the right car at the right price. But as with the good old "no MOT but will pass one easily", if it's really that simple... why hasn't the seller sorted it out?

Agreed.

But my point here is, nobody is being robbed. It's obvious a Lotus Seven replica registered as a Ford Escort, isn't an Escort. It is what it is and like any other car purchase, you need to do your research.

Proper ringing - which nobody condones - is a stolen car with a V5 from another. A whole different ball game.

This is a different topic and the risk vs reward argument has been played out to a degree...

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

...undeclared engine conversions and so on "for cheap insurance" for example is a minefield. A mine that could blow you apart if you send the log book off and it turns out the donor for the engine, drive train, suspension, brakes etc was stolen.

Also to do a full conversion would mean it would be a radically altered vehicle and require an (s)IVA (or whatever it's called this week) the same as a kit car. Could well be a stolen car with a lesser model's identity ringed to it. The conversion could take a weeks, swapping plates could take minutes. Either way to do it honestly/legitimately would cost money so it rarely happens.

Kit cars with the donor vehicle identity have most likely not been (s)IVA'd so you don't know to what standard the kit has been made to. Factory supplied or made in a shed by someone who learned how to weld as they went.

No reward is worth that risk.

Best to avoid anything that isn't registered properly.

On that topic and to brighten things up. Here's a real gem I'm actually considering for the soon approaching track day season.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ford-Courier-1-7-Puma-E...

smile

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Sunday 3rd May 2020

Facebook are as good at deleting illegal posts as eBay were to begin with...

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/22425075...

rolleyes

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Friday 10th July 2020

All this avoiding the (s)IVA is one thing but if a weld fails and the car kills someone that's Manslaughter. rolleyes

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Friday 10th July 2020

LLantrisant said:

at the end of the day...SVA wasnt detecting all the weaknesses...IVA is much strikter here...

what i´m wondering: how those cars do pass their anual MOT over a period of several years without anybody noticing that they are incorrectly registered`?

Much the same way as the turbo LET Corsas still registered as a 1.1 and 90's Land Rovers with Series VIN plates. Either MOT testers don't care and are incompetent or they are complicit (after the fact).

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Wednesday 29th July 2020

This 1990's Mini...

https://www.streetsideclassics.com/vehicles/1978-n...

...was given the identity from a 1968 one in 1994 to be exported to the US. rolleyes

It has been doing the rounds since and hasn't been flagged once.

This...

...is what it's supposed to look like.

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Monday 10th August 2020

Another late 80's early 90's Mini with the identity of an earlier model.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1964-morris-mini/233675...

rolleyes

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Monday 10th August 2020

A1VDY said:

Cliftonite said:

Liquid Knight said:

Another late 80's early 90's Mini with the identity of an earlier model.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1964-morris-mini/233675...

rolleyes

I guess this is deemed to cover that aspect?:

"reshelled some time in its life"

It's not been reshelled though has it. Just the vin and plates from the 64 mini slapped on a 1990 circa mini..

It has to be a like for like, certified, British Motor Heritage shell.

As well as the wrong shell, the car is the wrong colour, wrong windows, wrong lights, wrong wheels, wrong interior, wrong gear selector, wrong dash, etc, etc...

The only parts of that car that are from 1964 is the VIN plate (may even be a reproduction) and possibly stamp under the windscreen. No photo of the engine so I'm willing to bet it's an SPI under the bonnet.

https://navcis.police.uk/

Police aware. If they act on it the car will be added to the ANPR vehicles of interest list and hopefully if the 1990's Mini this identity has been ringed to it turns out to be traceable and stolen the rightful owner may get it back (or insurance company at least).

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months

Friday 14th August 2020

Listing updated to include a photo of the numberless engine. I'm thinking 1990 Cooper carb' but I thought 1275's were red. Yellow blocks were 998cc I think? It's been about twenty years since I've owned a Mini so could easily be wrong about that.

Original Poster

15,754 posts

184 months