Number plates

[johnv]

Number plates. To me (I passed my test in 1972 ) b&w number plates on 70s cars just look plain wrong. Here’s my genuine MK3 S. To my mind the b&w ones make it look like a 90s ringer with a ‘71 v5 .... it should have reflective to look right

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[hanlminiman]

IMG_0278 (1).jpeg

Totally agree. I passed my driving test in the black & silver number plate era but had upgraded to seat belts and later reflective plates; but that's another story/memory.
When the engine cut out all the electrics on my Mk3 Mini in treacherous, snowy & icy conditions on a very, very dark night while driving south on the A9, at temporary traffic lights, returning from taking part in Le Jog; all I could hear was the rumble of a big juggernaut in the distance. Was I worried?? You bet I was. No lights at all other than the glow of the Red traffic light and black/silver number plates.
My advice, if driving at night in your mini, whichever year, please use "clip" on reflective plates and install Hazard lights discretely and hope that the electrics don't fail.
"The Esso sign means Happy Motoring."

[gs.davies]

Pet hate of mine. And you’re right, smacks of a “reshelled I the 90’s” ringer.

[111Robin]

Also agree. My BMW had black/silver plates but I was able to contact the family of the first owner and he still had the dealer plates in the garage so on they went and look just right.

20181231_121224 by Robin Derrick, on Flickr

[hanlminiman]

And here it is in period.

[66Traveller]

I sort of agree - anything later than a 1970 J is a no no in terms of non-reflective plates. But there were a lot of H and some J reg cars that had black and white or black and silver from new. My pet hate is the modern pressed aluminium plates - they have a weird font and the manufacturing method (where the silver digits are pressed up through a black layer) looks terrible. I am something of a number plate font obsessive however....

[Andrew1967]

Yep, Dad has the original reflective plates on his '72 Landcrab and wouldn't change them for black/silver.

[66Traveller]

My 1970 MG 1300 - original plates

[mab01uk]

All down to personal choice....but I much prefer black & silver plates on early Mk3 Minis, agreed they are less safe at night especially now modern car drivers don't see the low down small lights on Minis (plus lack of high level brake light).
The '72 K reg Mk3 Mini I had in the 1970's had black and silver pressed plates from new which I upgraded to the smooth black & silver perspex mirrorline style plates that were popular at the time and often fitted to 'upmarket' cars including coachbuilt W&P Minis. They seem quite hard to find now but just found some below available online from Tippers Plates:-
https://www.tippersvintageplates.co.uk/ ... ent&part=2


In 1974 I 'upgraded' my first '65 Mk1 Mini to reflective plates to make it look newer but later went back to black & silver when I had an all black Mk1 with black tinted Shadowlite windows which was my ultimate look for a Mini at that time!
My First mk1 Mini in 1974:-
http://mk1-forum.net/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=10695

[Pete]

Plenty of new cars had reflective plates before the 70s aswell, from about 1967 onward.

[mab01uk]

I sort of agree - anything later than a 1970 J is a no no in terms of non-reflective plates. But there were a lot of H and some J reg cars that had black and white or black and silver from new. My pet hate is the modern pressed aluminium plates - they have a weird font and the manufacturing method (where the silver digits are pressed up through a black layer) looks terrible. I am something of a number plate font obsessive however....

Reflective plates were first permitted as an option in 1968 and were often fitted to 'update' an older car but quite a few K and even early L reg cars still had black & silver plates from new where car buyers preferred or specified them at the time, it was January 1973 before it was law to have reflective.

[66Traveller]

That is true.

But even Longbridge publicity as late as 1970 had black and white ones

[66Traveller]

And you have to admit that black and white does look very good indeed with Bronze Yellow - as well as Teal Blue...

I wonder if TOF140H still survives - it is still on the DVLA computer...

Vehicle Details

Vehicle make AUSTIN
Date of first registration February 1970
Year of manufacture 1970
Cylinder capacity 1275 cc
Export marker No
Vehicle status Untaxed
Vehicle colour BEIGE
Date of last V5C (logbook) issued 4 August 2005

[mab01uk]

Interesting extract below from:
April 1967 Commons Bill to allow the use of reflective number plates on all road vehicles as an aid to road safety.

In January this year the Road Research Laboratory issued Report No. 44 under the heading: "A road trial with reflectorised registration plates for motor vehicles"." In paragraph 2, on page 2, the Report states: "This Report describes a trial started early in 1964 with registration plates reflectorised with the material generally used for road traffic signs in the U.K. This material consists of spherical glass beads embedded within a transparent plastic having a smooth flat outer surface, and complies with the relevant requirements of B.S. 873–1959. It was accepted that at the outset such reflectorised plates are easier to read at night in the light of headlights and no more difficult to read by day than non-reflectorised plates." The results of the trial are shown in Section 6 of the Report, where it is stated that, after two years and 80,000 miles of use on the roads, the average reduction in reflective power was 42 per cent., but that this was still 60 times brighter than white paint and that the reflective power of the plates could be restored to 80 to 90 per cent. of the original by polishing with car polish. I remind the House that 80,000 miles of motoring represents six to seven years' motoring for the average driver. In its conclusions, the Report states that evidence was obtained that the use of reflectorised registration plates might be expected to increase safety at night.

I would point out that since April, 1964, when the trial was first begun, over 22,000 people have been killed, over 250,000 seriously injured and in excess of three quarters of a million slightly injured on our roads. This is no time for delay or procrastination; it is time for action—now. The evidence is already known, and I can see no reason at all for further delay.

The advantages of the reflective plates are obvious, but I shall list them. They are:

(1) They are not dependent on their own lighting system. No battery, bulb, or wiring is required.
(2) They require little or no maintenance, except for an occasional wipe over for they are washed clean by the rain.
(3) Statistics can be produced to show that in the United States of America, where tests have been carried out in Minnesota, Maine, Illinois and Iowa, night-time accidents, especially rear end collisions, have been greatly reduced.
(4) If the plates were centrally positioned, they would give full warning of the approach of the "one-eyed monster", the vehicle with one front or one rear light out.
(5) They reflect at all angles, regardless of the position of the vehicle.
(6) They increase by five or six times the visibility distance of vehicles whose lights are switched off, or are not functioning and the legibility distance is increased by two or three times in the full beam of headlights.
(7) They are no dearer than the present type of plates and would cost about £2 per pair, which, according to the Road Research Laboratory report, in Section 7, is the cost of ordinary registration plates at present in use.
(8) None of the materials which would be used for the manufacture of the plates would have to be imported. They are available in this country, and would not cost either the Government or the motorist any more money than at present.
(9) They would be of a uniform size and shape and virtually indestructible.
(10) They would be a positive aid to police and to law enforcement. Mobile patrols would be able to read with much greater ease the number of an oncoming vehicle and similarly one that was going away from them.
Full Bill:-
https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hans ... ber-plates

[WMU 211G]

There were still plenty of cars on J, K and L registrations with black and silver / black and white plates from new but I agree a lot of cars had the newer reflective type to make them look smarter during the changeover period. The earliest ad I've found for the new reflective plates was in Motorsport in March '68. My '68 Mk2 S now has reflective yellow / white plates with the raised plastic digits but my (much missed) '73 Rover P5B Coupe had black and silver raised digit plates from new (it was built in April that year). There were a few (very!) odd exceptions to the 'post January 1973' rule in period too, one of the first UK registered Lamborghini LP400 Countaches which appeared in a magazine road test article in 1976 had black and white plates, 'KWT 689N'.

[goff]

Plenty of new cars had reflective plates before the 70s aswell, from about 1967 onward.

Pete it was like an upgrade , people wanted the reflective plates when they first came out , I built and registered my mini Jem January 1969 , loved the reflective plates.

[Peter Laidler]

It all depends on the colour of the car - and a bit of personal preference - surely. Yellow plates on a red car with a black roof..... or a white car? A non starter so far as I'm concerned

[miniminor]

One of the nice things about owning a classic car is the black number plates. Agree they don't look right on a newer than 72 car.

[GraemeC]

Doesn’t help that most of the new ‘pressed’ black and silver plates use the wrong, modern font.

I’m surprised people mention pressed plates back in the day though - they didn’t come in on ‘colour’ plates until later. Did they really go from riveted white/silver digits on black to pressed black & silver to riveted digit ‘colour’ plates and then back to pressed?

[mab01uk]

Doesn’t help that most of the new ‘pressed’ black and silver plates use the wrong, modern font.

I’m surprised people mention pressed plates back in the day though - they didn’t come in on ‘colour’ plates until later. Did they really go from riveted white/silver digits on black to pressed black & silver to riveted digit ‘colour’ plates and then back to pressed?

I thought they went from riveted digit ‘colour’ plates to the modern smooth perspex plates after that, when people got fed up with with keeping the raised digit plates clean or perhaps when the DVLA introduced a new British Standard for their quality & manufacture spec?