Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Morgan Three Wheeler & Super 3 What size of number plates are you using ?

What size of number plates are you displaying on your M3W.

I have a 9"x7" motorcycle plate on the rear and a 21"x41/2" normal car on the front with the smaller 21/2" motorcycle size characters, but it looks too big. I'm thinking about a 12"x3" or similar on the front.

Having looked at the regulations, it seems that a trike with a car type body requires a front plate. It looks better with no plate, but I don't think it's legal.

Looking at some old pictures it seems most of the old trikes displayed a front plate.

I was speaking to an ex cop at he weekend, his comment to me was that he doubted anyone would know what class of vehicle it was, after all it's got a bike engine, 3 wheels,. His view was I'd probably get away with my set up apart from the black plates.

If you look at some of the cars rolling around with dodgy plates I think I'm way down on the list of problems.

Before the war, Morgan owners were trying to persuade officialdom that the numberplates should be bike size. They never did win the argument so car sized it is.

I've never seen a vintage trike with no front plate, although I have seen a bike sized one at the front, and a few with a rally plaque tied round and obscuring the front plate.

I have however seen a whole bunch of Grinnal Scorpions with no front plate.

I believe the fine for no front plate to be a small £30 but I do wonder if one was caught for this - with a personalised plate one might be cautioned that a repeat would lead to the withdrawal of the plate, as with naughty fonts.

There seems to be no definitive answer to this question. If you look around there are a couple of previous topics last year, for instance this one.

One of the problems, in the UK at least, is that vehicles have to meet different sets of criteria for different agencies ... and they don't match. I spent some time reading all the regulations I could find and the conclusion I came to was that under the Construction & Use rules for road use the M3W is classed as a trike and doesn't need a front plate.

However, the MOT test rules are different and under those the M3W isn't a trike because it's not motorcycle derived.

Therefore, in my highly unqualified interpretation of the UK regulations, you will need a front plate to get your M3W through an MOT but not for driving on the road!

~iw

This post does not constitute legal advice, no warranty express or implied!

Actually Ian, I would think you have summed it up very well there, after all a car is only fit for an MoT at the time it is at the MoT station, if a bulb fails or a number plate falls off on the way home, it cannot be taken into account when the test is done. Where the legal interpretation would come in though is anyone's guess. I have heard of many kit cars who routinely drive around with the missing front number plate in the boot, and if stopped would drag it out and say that it was knocked off at the last parking space by a clumsy driver. After all, the worst that can happen is a fixed penalty notice of £30 and no points. Not exactly a stiff penalty.

Just thought I'd resurrect an old thread regarding front number plates.
Whilst trawling through the minutia of the DVLA web site I found guidance note 104. On page 9-10 it states, "Motor cycles and tricycles (not derived from 4 wheeled vehicles) thats us, MUST ONLY display a number plate at the REAR of the vehicle.
Nuff said. My front one is now off and a copy of note 104 is in the car for plods benefit if I get pulled.

Interesting, I found the doc Here You referred too, and I think it's body style that counts. The word 'derived' is the sticky one, any lawyers here?

It would be an interesting argument, but I fear you could end up in court. But if that geology Student can get off from stacking shelves from a badly written law, why shouldn't you!

Good luck, but take care......

Hi Mike, I thought that too but ours is not derived from a 4 wheeled vehicle so is a trike. Thats my interpretation anyway. Have had close scrutiny from plod but not been pulled.

Reading the regs I tend to agree with Mike. I think the regs are referring to motorcycle derived trikes and not car bodied trikes which the MTW is. The factory really should make it clear .....or is it delivered with front plate fitted?

I suspect it is more complex than does it have 4 wheels or 3 wheels. The weight of the M3W does not allow it to be taxed as a trike so it has to be taxed as a car which then presumably means it should have paltes front and back which is waht Morgan fit.