Licence plates for older cars

Alun

Does anyone know how the numbers are allocated for older cars that are imported or re-registered for whatever reason. Say, if I imported a car from the UK that was first registered in 1964, do they start counting from 1, or from the number of cars that were registered in the county you're registering it in for that year?

The reason I ask, is that there's a TV ad on at the moment for some sunday rag featuring a red Austin Healy with a registration number of 64-D-13159 (or something like that). Either it's a fake or there have been 13000+ 1964 cars imported or re-registered in Dublin which seems unlikely to me.

Silvera

Yes, the numbers start at '1' for each year of car registered.

I'd agree that 13,000+ 1964-registered is very unlikely.
They probably picked that reg so as not to have a real reg on display , i.e. it's fake.

Alun

Thanks, I thought that was the case, since most of the older cars I had seen on the roads with new style registrations had quite small numbers.

drdre

i would not say that many cars were sold then. for ads id say they made up a number.

unkel

drdre wrote:

i would not say that many cars were sold then

That's not the way it works. 64D1 is the first car (first registered outside ireland in 1964) imported into ireland in or after 1987 (reg chance to current system)

PaulK_CCI

Alun wrote:

Does anyone know how the numbers are allocated for older cars that are imported or re-registered for whatever reason. Say, if I imported a car from the UK that was first registered in 1964, do they start counting from 1, or from the number of cars that were registered in the county you're registering it in for that year?

The reason I ask, is that there's a TV ad on at the moment for some sunday rag featuring a red Austin Healy with a registration number of 64-D-13159 (or something like that). Either it's a fake or there have been 13000+ 1964 cars imported or re-registered in Dublin which seems unlikely to me.

It's partly true: they do count upwards in sequence for all older cars that were registered between 1987 and now, but they didn't always start at 1. I think it was up to the county to decide at what figure they started but in a lot of cases the counting started at 500. I registered a 1969 beetle in Wicklow in 1990 and I got the number 69 WW 507. To me it was a clear indication that in those three years there couldnt have been 506 cars from 1969 registered in wicklow, whereas 6 cars from 1969 in those three years would be reasonably feasible.

Generally, if you see a lowish (3 digit) figure following the county designation, you can be pretty sure it was registered/imported in Ireland in the earlier years 87-95 or something. The higher the figure, the later it was registered.

stratos

I am pretty sure they all started at one. And from what I have seen ww has to be the county with most imported older cars.
Love driving through Wicklow at the weekends, You always see a couple of older pristine cars.

Victor

Perhaps they use a single number series nationally for the imports?

69-D-1
69-C-2
69-D-3
69-WW-4

And so on.

Silvera

Victor wrote:

Perhaps they use a single number series nationally for the imports?

69-D-1
69-C-2
69-D-3
69-WW-4

And so on.

???

All counties start from '1' up. End of story.

Kermitt

i was checking this very scenario with the tax office for a friends 1959 Wolsely 16/60.. and they said they would register it in the old system (ie, zio, or ezw or whatever it may be) due to the fact that it was a classic. I think you have a choice. If its for everyday use you get the new type, and for a show car they'll give you the old type. Methinks

alias no.9

For cars 30 years old and older when first registered here you can chose either the year and county type registration or a ZV registration ie ZV 1843.