Number plates

[Richard]

I collected my new car yesterday, complete with fresh MOT (its fifth consecutive first time pass!), the second time I've owned it. It's pictured here shortly before the first time I owned it.

 

 

The tester suggested it would be an idea to replace the back number plate. I'm happy to do that but I REALLY don't want one of those post 2001 plates. I don't particularly want a computer printed one either because they only last a couple of years but I accept that I'm stuck with that.

 

I've seen links to show plate manufacturers before but I've never managed to find the standard pre 2001 format in them. Can anybody point me in the right direction?

[Milford Cubicle]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/YELLOW-WHITE-PRES ... 0248757136

[mk2_craig]

Scotrad of Gorgie Road in Edinburgh were quite happy to make me up a pair of pre-01 plates using some old stock numeral/letter digits, this was in 2004 mind. Alternatively try Plates of Leicester (0116 254 8750); they were still apparently able to produce the 1970s/1980s standard Bestplate font style when I asked last summer.Be careful though, it sounds like some MOT testers get arsey if they can't find the relevant BSAu marking on the plates, or if they know it's a recently fitted plate that doesn't bear the manufacturer's name/postcode on it somewhere.

[Torsten2001]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/YELLOW-WHITE-PRESSED-ALUMINIUM-NUMBER-PLATES-PAIRS_W0QQitemZ330248757136

Is it me or are they just not right?

[Pillock]

They're an uncommon font, but pre-2001 there were no set rules saying which font it had to be, merely that it had to have letters of a certain size, and be easily readable from a given distance. There was a font - Charles Wright - which was suggested and used by most plate makers, but it wasn't an offence to use another, similar one.Post-2001 there's much stricter rules, it's either the right font (Charles Wright New, which has the thinner characters and some angular bits like on the number 5, to make it stand out from an S) or it's an illegal plate. fitting newly made plates to a pre-2001 car, you can still use the old font rules (i.e. keep it readable, don't take the pee) but you need the name and postcode of the shop that supplied the plates.As for the ones in the picture, they remind me of the font that Ford used to use on a lot of press cars in the early 80's.... very rounded top to the A and the narrow bits of the N are radiused out. I think my local dealer (Hooleys) used the same ones, with the addition of a very small 'H' between the letter groups to signify it was one of their cars. Definately wouldn't get away with that now!

[Ross_K]

These guys do metal plates:http://www.classic-number-plate.com£28 a pair seems a bit pricey though.