Number Plates (Fancy schmancy ones)....

[BRG]

I've been thinking....

At my last MOT, last September, I got failed on my number plates. They're those ones with the faint Rover logos in the background.( Yes, those of you who are a bit psychic may be getting the word "ponce" coming through.)
I still had the original, plain ones, so I didn't question it. Just swapped them over then swapped them back.

But I'm thinking: I drive past police cars with these plates. The police cars have ANPR. The police haven't saw fit to pull me for them. Should they be failing the MOT?

Lad who tested the car also failed me on a couple of other points, and said he'd probably have let the plates go if they'd been the only fail!

How does that work, exactly? Your number plates are legal, provided all your balljoints are sound, otherwise they're not?

Bit mental, no? My numberplates aren't illegally spaced, don't have characters that are too small, and the MOT tester knows I'll stick the other ones straight back on as soon as I leave. Plus, as I say, the boys in blue don't seem to object, so WTF?, as they say......

[CHR15E]

Never had that. Though the plates I've had usually only had honeycomb and borders etc not the ghosting.

My dad had one of his old cars fail for the plate being spaced wrong. His private plate is MGE111S which he has spaced to read MG E111S. He used to have a fixing screw on the 3rd one to turn into an i at one point.

All he did was put normal plates in front and use elastic bands to hold them on. Another garages just said I won't bother making you take them off as I know you'll only refit them. Just said don't mention it if he ever gets stopped. He was stopped regarding the i but nothing else. They weren't even bothered by the spacing.

[Richard C]

I got bored with them after a while, and now just have plain ones on.

[CHR15E]

I got bored with them after a while, and now just have plain ones on.

Me too. I think they look classier somehow.

[BRG]

Hey, me too. I'm not that bothered about my 'fancy' ones anymore, either. I don't think they're "all that". I only got them in the first place on a bit of a whim, if I'm honest.

But they're still in top nick, whilst my original ones are a bit tatty. I just think it's stupid that I have to swap them over for 45 minutes once a year.

Like I say, I wouldn't mind if the traffic cops were pulling me up for them. That would at least make sense of them being failed by the MOT station.....

[CHR15E]

Try the elastic band trick.

[bren]

you should never say, i never get pulled for the plates, you can bet you soon will if your luck is anything like mine
as for the elastic band trick, any tester doing his job will make you remove the plates as he can get done for passing the car will illegal plates, could loose his papers. you wouldnt get far in south wales as the police as very strict, you get a producer and have to pay a tenner to a test station for a piece of paper to show police they have been changed, have to pay even if you changed them yourself. could be made to retest as my sons mate. total bull if you ask me.
i wont risk, honey combe, ghosting, three d letters or carbon fibre, not worth the hassle. shame they cant catch more uninsured drivers, mobile users in cars and drink drivers

[metelmickey]

as a tester it's a mine field on plates, they keep changing the laws on whats legal and whats not, but also i've had a car come in with new tyres on and after the test seen him in the carpark across the road putting old wheels and tyres back on, when i asked him why he just said he keeps a spare set for the mot as he's got a couple of car that use the same wheels, to be honest i like the "leagal" plates they look clean and tidy.

[mike-c]

... I just think it's stupid that I have to swap them over for 45 minutes once a year.

...

Reminds me, years ago, there was a group of us in the Sheffield area all running Austin Sevens on a daily basis. One of the common failings on the Seven was (probably still is) worn king pins... so we grouped together and built up a perfect MOT-able front axle. I think it went the rounds of perhaps twelve cars, and provided MOTs for them over probably ten years. I think we got it down to 45 mins to change (and another 45 mins to take off again)

[CHR15E]

you should never say, i never get pulled for the plates, you can bet you soon will if your luck is anything like mine
as for the elastic band trick, any tester doing his job will make you remove the plates as he can get done for passing the car will illegal plates, could loose his papers. you wouldnt get far in south wales as the police as very strict, you get a producer and have to pay a tenner to a test station for a piece of paper to show police they have been changed, have to pay even if you changed them yourself. could be made to retest as my sons mate. total bull if you ask me.
i wont risk, honey combe, ghosting, three d letters or carbon fibre, not worth the hassle. shame they cant catch more uninsured drivers, mobile users in cars and drink drivers

I think part of it will probably be what car it's on and how you're seen driving at anyone time.

I've never heard of anyone actually have problems with the plates themselves round here. Spacing etc yes.

[Nuts4my827]

Saying that he would have let them go if it wasn't for other things is just wrong IMO

[47p2]

The haulage firm I worked for had MOT tyres for the trucks.

[BRG]

Saying that he would have let them go if it wasn't for other things is just wrong IMO

I know. To be fair, it was just an off the cuff (and off the record. No MOT tester would ever admit to saying anything of the sort, although they all do!!) remark. The guy was nothing but fair, and agreed that the rules were overly fussy. Offered to fetch the book to show me and everything. I told him he didn't have to.

I was a tester myself, from 1996-2001. I thought the MOT was tight back then! Nothing like now. Back then, the criteria for number plates was correct character size, correct spacing, clearly legible. End of.

I don't see how it needs to be any tighter than that now, tbh. I go back to my point about the coppers ANPR not having a problem with my plates.

These plates shouldn't be sold if they're not street legal, I reckon. As far as I know, you can't have plates made up now without proof of ownership (or at least of the vehicle's having tax & ticket) and you can't alter the spacing. So why can you buy 'ghost' ones, honeycomb ones, 3D effect ones etc if they're equally illegal?

I hadn't even thought about this in ages, (my MOT was way back in September) but the other night my neighbours had a visitor in a Fiat Punto with what had to be the smallest number plates I'd ever seen. They must have been about 8 inches by 2 inches. The characters were about an inch high. I thought 'surely the ANPR gizmo objects to those!'