If anyone fancies a bit of bedtime reading... the directive is here:
EU roadworthyness directive And the bit that leads to the fun (?) is this:
7) ‘vehicle of historical interest’ means any vehicle which is considered to be historical by the Member State of registration or one of its appointed authorising bodies and which fulfils all the following conditions:
-it was manufactured or registered for the first time at least 30 years ago;
—its specific type, as defined in the relevant Union or national law, is no longer in production;
—it is historically preserved and maintained in its original state and has not undergone substantial changes in the technical characteristics of its main components;
As you can see, the assertion that the date on the V5c would do is correct but the UK even now seems to be gold plating things.
