benjilovett Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 I need to do something with my front number plate ive just read that import cars are legally aloud a smaller plate is this true if so how small is legal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottishtaffy Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 have a look at the pics of the front of mine. ihave had it on for near two yrs and aprt from the test where i put on a bigger one ive not had any trouble. but then again is it luck or legal safe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay762 Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 its nothing to do with import or not - its to do with the uk regs - letter, number spacing and font size which gives overall size and... what the mot person will pass which is based on what they can clearly read at a set distance whcih gives you angle options on the positioning hence means ST's passes the MOT because it is clear and legible from where the person stands to read it. dibble can confiscate the plate and go through the usual stuff, produce docs, non endorsable fine etc but I believe the worst you can be hammered with is attempting to pervert the course of justice but that tends to be micro or missing plates on top of you doing something else really bad which they may or may not have got evidence of you committing but they want to get you on something 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 also goes on the area available to display the plate, my eunos had the jdm rear finisher at the back, passed for 7 years on the original uk plate it acquired when it was registered in 2005 failied in 2012 due to this, spot the difference bottom plate fail, top good, even then the tester gave me and advisory as it wasn't uk spec ! like jay says depends on who you get and how much a jobsworth they are Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambit Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Bottom one says MX5 on it but it's a Subaru has to be the only reason ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Nope ! Try harder lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miggs Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 the mx5.com part is not allowed, only the British standard mark and the place it was made are allowed as extra typing on the plate, you can have the euro band on the left or GB but nothing else is allowed there and the letters on the bottom plate are bigger than the ones on the top plate so i'm guessing they breached the rules Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 That bit was fine as it was the garage name of seller. It failed on the distance between the top and bottom line being too small by about 1.5mm laughable really Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miggs Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 For vehicles with new or replacement number plates fitted from 1 September 2001, “3-line” number plates are no longer permitted (except where the vehicle was first registered before 1 January 1973). In addition, the characters on number plates purchased from 1 September 2001, will need to meet the following specifications. Character height 79mm Character width (except the figure 1 or letter I) 50mm Character stroke 14mm Space between characters 11mm Space between groups 33mm Top, bottom and side margins (minimum) 11mm Vertical space between groups 19mm Number plates fitted before 1 September 2001 must display characters that meet the dimensions shown in one of the two groups below. Group 1 Group 2 ( number plates ( traditional fitted before number plates 1 September 2001) for vehicles made before 1 January 1973) Character height 89mm 79mm Character width (except the figure 1 or letter I) 64mm 57mm Character stroke 16mm 14mm Space between characters 13mm 11mm Space between groups 38mm 33mm Side margins (minimum) 13mm 11mm Top and bottom margins (minimum) 13mm 11mm Vertical space between groups 19mm 19mm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambit Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Another sign of the world gone mad :( Common sense just not as common as you think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 He was an idiot, Considering the size of the front one i had on drove for 3 years with no trouble from the law. That was tiny Took it to a different place this year and they didn't even flag up the advisory for th anti roll bar that the tester gave it the previous year. Stick one ones aren't legal anymore but i know of plenty of 5 owners who nver have any problems. Benji. try craigs plates .if you want someone to make you the smallest legal one you can get away with without any hassle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miggs Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 That bit was fine as it was the garage name of seller. It failed on the distance between the top and bottom line being too small by about 1.5mm laughable really they are stupid some of the rules, my old mk2 golf had german pressed plates on with a D banding and german font, they were made in Germany so had the equivalent kite mark, in this case a DIN stamp, i ran them for 4 years with no issues, i always argued my way out of prosecution with them by picking flaws in the officers methods, i once got told that they couldn't be read clearly, he said, and i quote, "i can't tell what that number 9 is" i took a second to listen back to his comment in my head and replied "how do you know it's a number 9 then" this was met with bringing up other facts as he didn't have an answer, he said i could be prosecuted under the anti terrorism act for the D banding, i asked why it wasn't allowed and he asked if it was a german car, i informed him of where VW's came from but he had excuses for all this, basically after calling out a traffic officer who threatened prosecution, then getting searched i was told he was going to write me a ticket, i pointed out that i was in fact on a private car park so it would be interesting in court when i fight it, he said he would get me when i leave, i went into the shop and did my shopping and when i came out i saw him parked outside waiting for me to leave, i went in the boot and got the original LEGAL plates, put them in the plate holders and drove out, he followed me to the roundabout then circle right round and drove off, funnily enough i got done twice within 12 minutes from the same camera van on a 30 road that looks like a 60 but i thought was a 40 with them very same german font plates, can't read them my !Removed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miggs Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 there was a company some years ago that made a cutout style plate, the letters and numbers were legal size and spacing and the background was the right colour, BUT the background followed the letters and numbers all round with a margin of 2mm from the characters, there is nothing in the rules to say you can't do this and the kite mark and makers details can be stamped around the lettering edit like this 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 My mate has a mk1 golf cab with the german plates i've always wondered how he gets it through the mot ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambit Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 I want to get the spray now :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0I0OxVK04Q Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miggs Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 that stuff only masks against flash photography, radar can be bounced of any part of the vehicle, it's laser that needs the plate and they don't use laser anymore or very little, plus gatso cameras need flash to take a pic but truvelo cams don't, i have a snooper radar laser detector in the car that uses GPS as well as a sensor on it to tell me if theres a gun being pointed at me, best thing to do is know your rights when it comes to them trying to give you a ticket, 9 times out of 10 they are obtaining money from you illegally as they are banking on you holding your hands up, not knowing the rules in which they need to work and just handing them the money if they are using side of the road devices they need to be in a calibrated van or if out of the vehicle they need to be using a tripod NOT holding in the arm as a mm in movement can be 5mph in speed, if there are vehicles other than the target in the field of view they can't definitively say it was you doing the said speed, if the weather is not dry and clear then the reading could have been affected, if they are using hand held devices then there needs to be 2 officers present and the said officers should have calibrated the instrument the morning they went out to use it and they should have signed off on it, the vehicle in which they went out in to calibrate the gun needs to have a certificate to say the speedo is calibrated as they check the gun with the car before pointing at the public, if you ever see them pointing at you and you want to go and check they are doing it right you have the legal right to ask for the correct documentation, also despite if they are in uniform or a marked vehicle they MUST have their warrant card on them, if they are not carrying it you can walk away as they are as good as a member of the public without it, and if you ask for it they are required by law to show it to you 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay762 Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 "I cant tell what the number 9 is" - Hefty chortles !!! :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benjilovett Posted October 12, 2013 Author Share Posted October 12, 2013 Just silly ainnt it really i was thinking of getting some pressed jap plates guess not loli cant be getting pulled up all the time its not worth the hassl lol maybe a new location will do afer ive got afront lip on cyrstal indicators nd im temptedto put some fogs in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 https://www.craigsplates.com/import-number-plates Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benjilovett Posted October 12, 2013 Author Share Posted October 12, 2013 Yer tthat plate on the gts on there thatll be alright i have the big square one like the before pic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miggs Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 there is now a company that makes uk legal pressed plates for vag cars, they have the correct type face, all the legal markings and sizes but are pressed metal, i'm sure there will be someone out there that will offer the same for jap cars platemyride do german uk legal ones, not sure if they do uk legal jap plates but they do have jap plates available, might be worth firing them an email Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benjilovett Posted October 13, 2013 Author Share Posted October 13, 2013 Yer sweet ill look in to it then Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash007ks Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 As said above this is down to look of the Draw, a stone smashed mine on the front and so I took it off and put my show one in the window which is the same but said STI on the side, 4 miles down the road I was pulled and was in the process of getting a £60 ticket, luckily they then believed me and gave a warning. but its one of those I see plenty of small plates etc but its all luck of the draw, and depends how keen the cops are in the area, for this time of year I would say its not worth it as they will be high alert for drink drivers and random checks, and could always be a fall back on if you blow a good 0 on breathalyzer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 i think half of the battle is 'how small it looks' in relation to the size of the frontal area of the car, if it looks tiny and ridiculous your prob asking for a chat with the law, if it doesn't look out of place it won't draw attention Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambit Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 Agreed with both above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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