Question for all you in the UK

Tricky. I would stick this one on

and see what you get there, i've seen threads on this subject. I seem to remember there being some sort of formula you follow, like % of original car, using a list of components ie engine, chassis, suspension body etc. There also may be some info on on this also. My personal opinion is that if you have the floorpan, with associated V5, then thats got the required numbers on it. Engines come & go & suspension isn't numbered. Lowering isn't an issue with this, and you don't see Baja's with Q plates.(normally)

James

I will check them out - cheers.

I was thinking along the lines of the kit cars that require a donor chassis / car dont ( i think ) retain the orig reg !

Rich

Juper Wort wrote:

Found it at DVLA

thanks

here is the link if anyone else is interested

tricky wrote:

If you change the body, then you will get a Q-plate.

However, there are ways around this if you want to make a buggy...

Beetles are usually registered as a "2-axle-rigid-body sedan". Get that changed to "2-axle-rigid-body cabrio" and the DVLA inspectors don't usually ask too many questions :-)

What's the significance of a "Q" plate (for those of us in the US)?

in the uk you have to pay road tax . depending on engine size it would be from 140 uk pounds to 180 ish ( cant remember the exact amount ) per year.

Registration plates are age related so my 72 bug is a "k" reg (they got A B C D etc. )

If your car was manufactured before Jan 1 1973 you dont have to pay road tax so you save money ! :-) !

also we have an MOT test every year. They test that your car is safe for the road, and on newer vehicles (cant remember the exact year ) they test emissions. that usually costs you 5 to 15 uk pounds for an adjustment !

so if you have to have a "q" plate because your car is far from stock, it will cost you 300 to 400 "bucks" every year extra !

That makes a difference to me !

Rich

Ted Bogart wrote:

it means "uknown year of manufacture". cars here have a specific letter on the number plates to indicate what year they are.

most importantly, on a pre 1972 (or "L" registration) car, you get free road tax. On a Q-plate, you do not :-)

-- Howard Rose

1966 VW Beetle 1300 Deluxe 1962 Austin Mini Deluxe 1964 Austin Mini Super Deluxe (cars on website)

............Wow. How much is road tax? It sounds like The UK actually rewards old car drivers with a tax incentive.

Cool.

I know! I think everyone was shocked when they brought in that ruling. It used to be free tax for cars over 25 years old, but when the Labour Government came in to power a few years back they "froze" it at pre 1973. I'm not complaining about it though, I think it's great! My car is exempt from emissions too :-)

Road Tax? It depends on several things. It used to be a set amount for all cars, but they changed it a few years ago to be cheaper for smaller engine sizes. I believe now it also depends on your car emissions.

For my parents car, a 2 litre Mazda 323 Sport (March 2003), it's the maximum amount of £165/yr... My sister's 1285cc Mini (1994) is £110/yr.

More (confusing) info here:

And for the original poster (about Q plates): We have an annual inspection too. That cost about £30 a time, pass or fail!

-- Howard Rose

1966 VW Beetle 1300 Deluxe 1962 Austin Mini Deluxe 1964 Austin Mini Super Deluxe (cars on website)