DVLA Question
 

Hi,

I have read the info regarding 're-body' regulations on this forum, which is very helpful. I know about the 8 point rule and the procedure the DVLA requires to retain your reg plates and historic vehicle status.

I have bought a donor and will hopefully start a build soon. My donor was not a complete car though, but only a rolling chassis, so the car was already stripped of the body when I bought it. I have the original chassis/body number plate and all the paperwork is correct and present. I also have proof of purchase from the garage I bought the rolling chassis from, ebay screenshots and the receipt.
However, I do not have a photo of the complete vehicle showing reg plates before it was stripped, which seems to be something that the DVLA insists on.

My question is, am I going to have trouble registering the kit car and keeping the original plates/historic status if I can't provide the photo of the complete vehicle?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank you.

Cheers,
Deni

I think if you submit everything you have and can include a picture of the rolling chassis with the bulkhead sat on it , showing the vin plate attached and a close up of the vin plate , along with pics of the number plates ..you should be ok ...

Hi Deni
You could try contacting the Previous Keeper detailed in section 2 of the V5C, they might just have a photo of the complete car.
Neil

lancelot link - Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately the chassis came without bulkhead and plates.

Cheers,
Deni

NeilF535-thank you too for your reply. I have contacted the Previous Registered Keeper but had no luck, as he did not have any photos of the car. He bought it only to restore his much older car, used the bodywork and sold me the rolling chassis and the engine, so he owned the car only for a couple of weeks...Cheers, Deni

Deni - Whilst your starting point isn't ideal, you should be OK if you do your homework. :pray: < Touch Wood >

But you will have to approach this very methodically and will definitely have a few more hoops to jump through.

So based on your posts, I have a few more questions for you.

By paperwork, do you mean a V5C?

Does the V5C match both the chassis/body VIN number and engine number?

Getting a V5C for your donor in your name is the starting point to keeping the original registration number for your kit.

Believe it, or not, but this is now a separate issue and is causing havoc over on the Rods 'n' Sods forum.

So what does the V5C show for the taxation class?
( Private/Light Goods or Exempt/Historic? )

In other words, has your donor previously been on the road with historic status?

Or has it been stored off the road as a PLG and now qualifies as historic by virtue of its age?

Unfortunately, this last option may really stuff your plans. :icon_sad:

But let's skip over that can of worms and assume you have a V5C with historic status.

So before you do anything else, change the V5C details into your name.

https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-log-book

You will also need to declare it SORN at the same time.

https://www.gov.uk/make-a-sorn

With the V5C in your name, make your first purchase some road legal number plates.
( Not show plates. )

Then your first re-body photo will be a rolling chassis with number plates that matches your V5C details.

Also, with a V5C in your name you can also ask the DVLA for details of all previous keepers.
( Researching your car's history is a valid reason to ask. )

https://www.gov.uk/request-information-from-dvla

Hopefully, one of the earlier keepers will have a photo of the complete car with the number plates visible.
( Which will be a big help to your case. )

I know this is already a long reply, but to put this into context the rules for old cars may be changing.

http://www.madabout-kitcars.com/foru...ead.php?t=6101

Which is also linked to a previous crack down on "dodgy" historic cars.

http://www.rodsnsods.co.uk/forum/lic...-us-all-360250

It is even linked to the cut backs in the number of old inspection offices, used by original Sammio builders.

http://i1186.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/003-39.jpg

This whole inspection process was gone by the time my build reached that stage.

Which is why the DVLA data base is now a critical part of the re-body process.

These days, if the "Computer says no." then you will have a lot more work to do.

Good luck, Paul. :)

Dvla
 

Hi Paul,

Thank you for your reply.The V5 is already registered on my name, the 'car' is SORNed and the engine and VIN plate numbers are matching. Also, in the V5 document it is registered as a historic vehicle, so I assume the car was used by the previous owner.
Thanks for the advice regarding the reg plates and I think that is the next step.
Do you think it is 'clever' contacting the DVLA to seek advice?

Thank you again.

Cheers,
Deni.

P.S. I have been (and still am) following your build thread and what you have achieved is great.
Was sorry to read about the accident, the damage to the car and the silencers but I am sure you can fix it. I was a bit confused about your reg plate change though ( don't know much about it yet and will research about it a bit more).Enjoy driving your car and I hope one day to get to that stage myself.

Deni - Sounds like your paperwork is certainly a great starting point. :cool:

In my (admittedly limited) experience, the DVLA will not actually give you any advice.

The official line is that every case is assessed on its individual merits.

So they want you to built it before they tell you that you shouldn't have! :rolleyes:

Which is the real risk and why it is worth double checking everything before you start.

As for my own number plate change…

I couldn't change the original donor car's registration number until the re-bodied cat had got an MOT.

So anyone who is planning to use a donor car that has an MOT should make all their changes before starting the re-body.
( Different reg. number, different engine, switch from PLG to Historic, etc. )

What kit are you planning to build?

Good luck, Paul. :)

PS
If you have a rolling chassis, then it is about time you started a build thread!! :icon_wink:

Dvla
 

Thank you Paul. I am hoping to build a Miglia. I bought a body and rolling chassis 1.5 years ago now, but could not start building for various reasons (mainly storage issues, short of time etc.). In the meantime, I have researched a lot and read all the forums here, and you are right, it would be good to start a new build thread, especially on the Miglia forum, as it is a bit quiet there.
I looked at Sammios but the Miglia seemed to be a bit easier as I have never done anything like this before. Also, I don't have any experience with the mechanical side of things, so probably I am the least experienced kit car builder ever! But I would like to give it a go so we shall see...

Thanks for the advice and hopefully I will start the build soon (and thread :icon_wink:)

Cheers,
Deni

Deni - I'm an accountant by trade, so if I can learn how to work with fibreglass and weld (to a fashion), then anyone can.

You may be pleasantly surprised at how far being prepared to "give it a go" will take you. :cool:

Good luck, Paul. :)

Deni , When it comes to building kit cars , the single donor approach is by far the easiest route to take , so you are doing the right thing for a starter project ...There is no shortage of advice on these forums , we are a decent bunch , mostly , and always happy to help ...

I will say , that having experience of both S*mmio's and Miglia's ..You may find the S*mmio the easier one to build . The body goes straight on ..kind of , , no moving of bulkhead , pedals , re-plumbing , steering extension or gearstick extension ...Tribute only supply bodies and frames at present , I believe , not the gearstick mods that you require or a steering solution for the Miglia.

There is plenty of discussion on here of body corrections required to fit a S*mmio nicely , but trust me , as I am currently cutting up a Miglia and straightening it out , they are no better ..they are shiney , but not any straighter ..both bodies require a lot of work if you are ruled by the tape measure ...
Having said that , I have built several without major mods and some of the finest examples on here only have minimal corrections .....

I second the comment about starting a build thread ..we all like pictures !!

Paul L and Lancelot thanks for the encouragement. I enjoy reading this forum and the friendly atmosphere on it. Also, the amount of support offered here is what encouraged me to even think of trying. Now I have sorted the issues with the garage I will hopefully start in a few days and also start a new thread on the Miglia pages.
Lancelot - the Formosa project looks great so far and I'm looking forward to following the development.
Paul - not that you should rush with it, but it will be great to see your car painted as you have imagined.

Cheers,
Deni.

Did you get anywhere Deni ?

I am trying to sort out a S*mmio rebody for an old customer and we did all the requirements as they were laid out previously ...we have had a letter back saying they will alter the V5c when we MOT the vehicle ..so now its on hold until the vehicle is put through it's test ....not a problem , but just draws the process out for him a bit longer than previously .....

Also , I am developing with my engineer friend a version of the extended remote shifter , that can be used with a Miglia or a Formosa ..the first one is nearly finished and they will be offered on an exchange basis ...I am happy to send one out if you need one , then , if you are happy with it , send payment and stock version back to me ..if not happy just return it .

Hi Lancelot!

First of all, sorry for such a late reply - I was away for a while. Thank you for your message. Does this mean that we do not have to provide so much evidence as before because by now DVLA knows enough about this type of build?

Regarding the extended gear shifter - first of all, thank you for the offer, very kind of you. I have a Spitfire 1500 engine and single rail gear box - would I need the extended gear shifter you think? I am not yet at this stage but if I need one I will definitely contact you - how much you sell them for please (as I don't have a stock version)?

Regarding the build, I did not come very far, but have made some progress nevertheless - mainly cleaning and painting the chassis and the other parts. I will now start my build thread over on the Miglia pages and try to upload some photos.

Cheers,
Deni

P.S. To make communication a bit simpler, I will stop this thread and we can continue on my new build thread over on the Miglia pages.

Thank you all.

Hi, the MK4 gearbox throws up a little issue on a Miglia ...you can't fit the extended shifter , but still need to move it back ...you will need to flip the front suspension towers round to get the engine mounts at the back and remake the gearbox mount at the rear ..you may need to put a little clearance in the rails to get it back a little as well .... I think you can use the later Spit or GT6 propshaft as well .....or use an earlier gearbox !

Thanks Lancelot!