Plate fonts

[Captain Slow]

I know we're all fans of Serck in here, but I'm after something a bit different. Does anyone know where I can get a set of plates made with the old Unipart font as per 90s Rover press cars - the one that's like Lutz Headline? 

[Weird Car]

This place do a really lovely “pre millennium” font 

 

of course they’re “show plates only” but nothing stopping you putting the original dealership and post code along the bottom*😉

 

https://www.fancyplates.com/constructor.html

 

[Captain Slow]

  On 23/04/2025 at 16:29, Weird Car said:

This place do a really lovely “pre millennium” font 

 

of course they’re “show plates only” but nothing stopping you putting the original dealership and post code along the bottom*😉

 

https://www.fancyplates.com/constructor.html

 

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They do seem to do nice plates - but sadly, not the font I'm after!

[Markeh]

I'd imagine Retro Plates could do it if enough decent photos could be found of one.

[Gompo]

I got mine from a chap called Matt Dickins at this email mgrashowplates@gmail.com

Not saying he'd definitely manage it, but he went to the effort of finding an old dealer logo for the bottom of mine along with replicating the original font.

[Lacquer Peel]

  On 23/04/2025 at 16:54, Captain Slow said:

They do seem to do nice plates - but sadly, not the font I'm after!

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UK Pre2001(c) from Fancy Plates is the closest I've seen to the font you're after. 

 

[mk2_craig]

That looks pretty much like the stick on digits you could buy for tow board plate.

I bet you can still get them from suppliers of caravan and trailer related stuff.

[Tenmil Socket]

  On 24/04/2025 at 06:27, mk2_craig said:

That looks pretty much like the stick on digits you could buy for tow board plate.

I bet you can still get them from suppliers of caravan and trailer related stuff.

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Nice colour that Fiesta.

[sierraman]

  On 24/04/2025 at 07:46, Tenmil Socket said:

Nice colour that Fiesta.

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Is it a special edition? Can’t picture that colour before, it’s not the same as that metallic green they used to do the Ghia in? 

[Tenmil Socket]

  On 24/04/2025 at 07:52, sierraman said:

Is it a special edition? Can’t picture that colour before, it’s not the same as that metallic green they used to do the Ghia in? 

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Not sure… looks similar to a colour used on MK 3’s.

[mk2_craig]

  On 24/04/2025 at 07:52, sierraman said:

Is it a special edition? Can’t picture that colour before, it’s not the same as that metallic green they used to do the Ghia in? 

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Correct. “Festival” 

https://www.carandclassic.com/l/C1802662

Fascinating* fact, this particular short run model had a unique centre console for reasons. 

[Captain Slow]

  On 24/04/2025 at 06:22, Lacquer Peel said:

UK Pre2001(c) from Fancy Plates is the closest I've seen to the font you're after. 

 

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It is nearly right, so nearly I originally thought it was bang on, but the 5 is totally different. And I have a 5 on my plate... hence the thread!

[Lacquer Peel]

Aye it's not quite right is it? 😢

I chose plates with an approximation of the Serck type font when I registered a French vehicle in the UK, it wasn't quite right but it still looks cool. 

[loserone]

  On 24/04/2025 at 18:03, Lacquer Peel said:

Aye it's not quite right is it? 😢

I chose plates with an approximation of the Serck type font when I registered a French vehicle in the UK, it wasn't quite right but it still looks cool. 

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[St.Jude]

I just think the printer 3D font you used to get is the coolest font for a number plate. Serck be damned. Yeah, I said it. Fight me.

[HMC]

  On 24/04/2025 at 17:55, Captain Slow said:

It is nearly right, so nearly I originally thought it was bang on, but the 5 is totally different. And I have a 5 on my plate... hence the thread!

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Its very character sensitive. The “5” does look wrong. “Plates for cars” also has a number of older fonts and plate sizes, but again certain letters or numbers can end up looking wrong.

[Captain Slow]

  On 24/04/2025 at 18:03, Lacquer Peel said:

Aye it's not quite right is it? 😢

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I need S502OOV. The S*0*OOV are right. The 5 and 2 are not. It's frustrating because with almost any other plate I would be sorted.

[Captain Slow]

  On 24/04/2025 at 20:57, HMC said:

Its very character sensitive. The “5” does look wrong. “Plates for cars” also has a number of older fonts and plate sizes, but again certain letters or numbers can end up looking wrong.

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By Jove, he may well have got it. 

 

UK Old 1900 looks right. If they can do the Land Rover badging to the bottom right that might well be it. Thank you.

[LightBulbFun]

  On 24/04/2025 at 17:55, Captain Slow said:

It is nearly right, so nearly I originally thought it was bang on, but the 5 is totally different. And I have a 5 on my plate... hence the thread!

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the W and M are also different, note the Rover W/M is quite pointy where the reproduction option shown was a less pointy W/M

you can really fall down a number plate rabbit hole with these differences, but they are also handy for ID'ing a plate, especially if its one of the "key" characters, for example Tippers always used to serif their 1's in a specific manner, so especially if you had a number plate with 1 in it you could tell right away its a tippers plate for example  

[alcyonecorporation]

Or just ask me ya great fanny 

[Eddie Honda]

That "2" looks lonely with that spacing...

Anyway, it's a Hills font.

[brownnova]

I had some made by Donegal Signs on eBay for the 9000 recently (due to the front making a bid for freedom). And whilst it’s close, there are some subtle differences… 

Mainly the mid point of the letters is slightly higher on the replacements and the 9, 6 and O are slightly less rounded. 

[mk2_craig]

They look great though. And well done for resisting the temptation to mis space them as R9 COCK 

[sierraman]

  On 24/04/2025 at 09:28, mk2_craig said:

Correct. “Festival” 

https://www.carandclassic.com/l/C1802662

Fascinating* fact, this particular short run model had a unique centre console for reasons. 

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You've sent me down a right rabbit hole now… 😂

[Rust Collector]

Can I jump in on the ‘what is this font?’ action?

I cannot find anyone that uses a font which gives the correct ‘2’ and ‘9’.

I dimly remember finding a downloadable font that matched closely, but that was on my old work computer and no idea if I backed it up before I left.

[MrBig]

  On 24/04/2025 at 06:27, mk2_craig said:

That looks pretty much like the stick on digits you could buy for tow board plate.

I bet you can still get them from suppliers of caravan and trailer related stuff.

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I thought that until last year when I tried to buy some for my trailerboard. For complex reasons I did not have the V5 for the vehicle in question and I had a board with one of those stick on numbers, "easy" I thought, "peel the old ones off and pop to the local motor factors". Not so, I called 4 and none of them keep them anymore. I managed to find a vinyl cutting place on ebay that would do them but obviously had to wait for them to be posted out. I guess the number plate laws have put paid to that practice. 

[mk2_craig]

  On 25/04/2025 at 09:04, MrBig said:

I thought that until last year when I tried to buy some for my trailerboard. For complex reasons I did not have the V5 for the vehicle in question and I had a board with one of those stick on numbers, "easy" I thought, "peel the old ones off and pop to the local motor factors". Not so, I called 4 and none of them keep them anymore. I managed to find a vinyl cutting place on ebay that would do them but obviously had to wait for them to be posted out. I guess the number plate laws have put paid to that practice. 

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I can still get them here - or at least I could when I recently (checks notes) semi-recently changed cars and needed a new* plate for the trailer board:

To be fair I’m not sure if the place I got them from will stock any letters other than J.