For UK number-plate aficionados

Just as tenuous and also in the UK.

On my 1988 300TE the plate used to be: RAD 101 = RADIO 1

David

exactly so.

indeed it is. don't know the lucky soul who owns it ;-)

you're right. JPO xxxX, for example, would originally have been registered to a car sold in Portsmouth, UK. the PO would tell us that. the J would be random. i think the idea in the beginning was that the police would be able to know the general area of registration of any car they might come across.

sorry, yeah: you're absolutely right. although i have seen a 'Z' in the suffix group YA 03 GZH ... just today. hm, i'm confused.

No less tenuously that before, today saw a plate that was arranged as "CIUSO" but must be C1 USO.

As deviations from standard of spacing and shape are no longer permitted I hope he doesn't get stopped.

This is a genuine Italian word/name, but can't recall meaning.

Oh, it is on an older SL.

DAS

--

They never were permitted my good man ;-)

if i remember my school italian, ciuso means 'closed' ...

Saw 450 SL on a 450 SL

I think they were frowned upon but not a punishable offence, otherwise how come so many variations in spacing and typeface?

The typeface was subtly changed 2 - 3 years ago or to make it more 'machine-readable' and that's when, I think, the rules were tightened up.

DAS

--

Its always been an MOT failure, and as such and police officer can issue you with a vehicle defect rectification form, giving you 14 days to correct the fault and get it inspected by an MOT test station.

My failure to get my form stamped about 7 years ago for having some "fancy" plates ended up costing me £80 in court costs...