Number plate mystery - Any sleuths who can help?

oldagetraveller1

BOWFER said:

"vanity plate" is such an odd term for anyone in the UK to use.
Personal or private plate, yes. even cherished.
But 'vanity' has a sneering edge to it.

Would I be correct in assuming that you have a poser plate adorning your mode of transport?

I can assure you I'm not "sneering".

demontfort

Grumpy_chap said:

demontfort said:

plate is definitely not personalised unless previous owner has a very weird name

Some people do see patterns or meaning in very weird places, and the desire for a personalised plate can be beyond the limits of what plates can be issued.

I also think, if I were to get a personalised plate, something that is meaningful to me and those that know me, but innocuous to strangers would be the best.  So GR11MPY would be better than GC 2021 as the former will not be obvious to those not in the know.

I guess if you ask enough acquaintances what they think the "11" plate is meant to spell, they'll probably work it out.

Are you certain that the "11" plate still belongs to the car you have purchased and not just the old vanity plate left on the vehicle, but the actual number transferred off to retention or another vehicle?

 Yes the plate defintely belongs to the car, I've run a check to confirm and given it's under the manufacturer's approved scheme should be Ok. Seems like the former 17 plate has ended up on another car though. Anywa I'll leave vanity plates to others, if it makes them happy what's the harm in it, always fun trying to figure out what they spell out.

BOWFER

oldagetraveller1 said:

BOWFER said:

"vanity plate" is such an odd term for anyone in the UK to use.
Personal or private plate, yes. even cherished.
But 'vanity' has a sneering edge to it.

Would I be correct in assuming that you have a poser plate adorning your mode of transport?

I can assure you I'm not "sneering".

Yup, all four of them.
Using words like "vanity" and "poser"
Of course that's not sneering, of course not.....

NBLondon

demontfort said:

Thanks for all your replies as it's put my mind at ease. I'm still flummoxed as to why people get attached to certain numbers or fork out a fortune on a personalsed plate.

One friend of mine kept the uninteresting plate when he changed the car because he wanted the memory of the car it came off and happy times with that car.

I think you're right that it may cause questions if that car is sold on or cause future buyers to not look at it.  So Adrian's' advice is sound - Pay £80 to transfer the plate off onto retention so it will be replaced with either the original number (if that's not on another vehicle)  or an available plate of the right age.  Then give up that 11 number and get £80 back.   Cost to you is the cost of making up the new plates for the number you end up with.

NBLondon

BOWFER said:

"vanity plate" is such an odd term for anyone in the UK to use.

I was under the impression (I could be wrong) that the US term vanity plate includes the option (in some states) to have any combination of letters/numbers that has not already been issued and isn't obscene/forbidden. 



so in the UK - it isn't the right term.

AdrianC

oldagetraveller1 said:

BOWFER said:

"vanity plate" is such an odd term for anyone in the UK to use.
Personal or private plate, yes. even cherished.
But 'vanity' has a sneering edge to it.

Would I be correct in assuming that you have a poser plate adorning your mode of transport?

I can assure you I'm not "sneering".

Let's look at those euphemisms...
No plate is "personal" - they're all associated with cars.
No plate is "private" - they all have to be publicly on display.
Whether somebody "cherishes" a plate or not is entirely a matter for their personal preference.

But wanting to spend large sums of money - £80 every time you change car, on top of hundreds/thousands/tens of thousands to acquire the rights - simply to have two pieces of perspex display a corrupted, mangled form of your name or initials - or just a lower number and fewer letters - instead of a random allocation? How can that be anything but vain?

Especially if the display of the reg is then rendered illegal (risking fines and even withdrawal of the plate, losing the money spent on purchase) in an attempt to make the vague resemblance to the name slightly less tenuous...?

And if you have to EXPLAIN it at the bottom...


If it's something car-specific, then... the only people who understand it will know what the car is without needing that bit of perspex. And nobody else really cares, tbh - so, again, vain enough to want to shout about what the car is to people who don't care.


So, yes, vanity.

coffeehound

AdrianC said:

 How can that be anything but vain?

I think they can serve a useful purpose as non-aging plates for classic cars that are 20 to 30 years old.  When they have their original plate, you tend to see it as its age.  With a non-aging plate, it just leaves the car, IYSWIM

AdrianC

coffeehound said:

AdrianC said:

 How can that be anything but vain?

I think they can serve a useful purpose as non-aging plates for classic cars that are 20 to 30 years old.  When they have their original plate, you tend to see it as its age.  With a non-aging plate, it just leaves the car, IYSWIM

Anybody who knows what the car is knows roughly what age it is.
Nobody else cares how old your car is.

Or, if they are going to judge you on it, that's their problem...

justworriedabit

Hi OP

One of our family buy a brand new car every year, ie  they have three car s and at least  one car is changed and the 2 expensive ones both in excess o60k at leat i think poss 80 not sure get 5/6 year old reg on it from day one so not to attract as much attention.

Grumpy_chap

AdrianC said:

I suppose if you can't park, you would want to put something that refers to the model of the car and not you as an individual...