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I think this has been discussed before but does anyone know the outcome - taken from DVLA form V796 [url=www.dft.gov.uk/dvla/forms/~/media/pdf/leaflets/V796.ashx]DVLA form V796[/url]

Motorcycles and Tricycles
There are separate provisions for motorcycles and tricycles. Basically motorcycles
registered after 1.9.2001 must only display a number plate at the rear of the vehicle.
Motorcycles registered before 1.9.2001 can display a number plate at the front but are
not required to.
Tricycles derived from four wheeled bodies i.e. saloon cars must meet the normal
requirements above whereas tricycles derived from motorcycles must meet the
requirements for motorcycles.

As the M3W has a bike engine and is not derived from a saloon car it's more bike than car ?

Would be handy to not have a front plate and small rear

There is also another DVLA quote 'If you have a 2 or 3 wheeled motorcycle or tricycle that has a body type of a four wheeled vehicle you must display a number plate at the front and back of the vehicle '. It seems to me that the M3W doesnt have the body type of a four wheeled vehicle, engine outside, no doors, etc. Also in my registration document, under body type it states tricycle . I have therefore not used a front plate since I got it in September and have bike one on the back, it came with a car size rear plate which partly obscured the fog light .

Despite this set up I still managed to get caught by a speed camera!

This argument has flared up from time to time since before the second world war! Originally motor bikes had a front plate too, but the then argument was for the smaller motor cycle plates as being more appropriate to a little vehicle. The tricyclists lost the first argument.

As an aside, don't know about motor bikes, but car letter sizes were a bit bigger than today, the size was reduced when the ABC123A format came in as the area taken up was more, and very slightly further when the present AB12ABC format came in.

Currently I think it is fairly safe to say officialdom does not know what it is doing with trikes! The current licensing status whereby new drivers are required to pass all stages of a lengthy motor cycle licence and not allowed to drive one with L plates as an accompanied driver (as you would be with a Ferrari providing you found an insurer) is at least partial witness to it.

A few years ago, I met a number of Grinnall Scorpion drivers and none of them had front plates, but a fair percentage were wearing crash helmets.

If you are required to have a front plate I believe the absence of one currently is only a £30 fine, and non-endorsable. This is perhaps why a fair number of Ferraris are without a front plate - the fine is peanuts to most owners.

So you may decide the likelihood of getting caught is slim, even if one is still needed, and the potential fine is not enough to worry about. The only caveat to this is if the car is sporting a so called personal plate, DVLA may grab it back and re-register your pride and joy forcing you buy new numberplates (two) and perhaps incur an insurance charge to amend the certificate. Although this sanction is normally mentioned in regard to misplaced or distorted digits (ie where 8 ARY becomes Bary) I've not heard a definite case of it being carried out.

Just gone out and removed it - looks a lot better

Martyn, you wealth of knowledge on such topics (and spelling!) is amazing!

Very curious given that the M3W is too heavy to be registered (or at least taxed) as a trike in the UK. Another case of bureaucratic confusion?

You have my sympathy on the speeding fine. I seem to get one every time I drive a rental car in England

Yep, certainly confusing, registered as a tricycle yet taxed as a car! Mind you being in a bit of a limbo land presumably explains how such a fantastic vehicle is allowed on the road without having to meet all the normal car regulations .

Thanks for your sympathy re speeding, there are cameras everywhere , in my case it was raining and I was overtaking some
slow cars in order to keep dry !

If you want to read more on numberplate history, try here.

Bad news about speeding, but you are not alone, a two speeder got done when it took a run at a hill!

I was talking to 2 of the boys in blue at a motorway services yesterday who were admiring the car and they both said they would not "pull me" for no front number plate as its a trike. I have had lots of attention from traffic cars whilst driving and no problems.
My next breach of regulations is to change the rear plate for black and silver now that I have just acquired MOG 14D

While the boys in blue you talked to would not pull you for no front numberplate, would their colleagues?

OK so you have a better chance at getting away with it, but I'm still not sure what is actually right.