Vehicle Registration Numbers

[Astoness]

wonder if anyone can put year please on the reg plate of the car on the right of this pic...771 AON..just trying to confirm that the year on the pic is correct...


thanks for any help..

 

[BernardR]

Can't be certain but I would guess at early 1960's. The registration changed to add a year letter in 1963 but as Birmingham still had sufficient capacity with it allocation of letters I believe they started at 'C' whereas Solihull started with 'A' (1963) or possibly 'B' year letter. Before the year letter it was possible for the same letters to be used over 2 separate years.

 

[Astoness]

thanks bernie..if anything i was hoping that you may have said 58 or 59...but you think the photo may have been taken in the early 60s. and not 1960 as the caption states.....thanks for checking for me..

:encouragement:

lyn

 

[BernardR]

Lyn it could well be very late 1950's - I was thinking it was a Vauxhall Victor but now believe it is more likely to be a Cresta (a larger car). I have tried a look up but not had any luck so far.

Correction - Scrub that now pretty sure it is a Victor after all - I learned to drive in one but never really wanted one very American like suspension.. Production started in 1957 so the date could work.

 

[BernardR]

Here is a photo of a 1959 model -

 

[Big Gee]

Hi Lyn and Bernie,

that is definitely a Victor. My dad had a Victor, probably the worst car he ever owned, and we got to know it intimately as it conked out most days and rotted away almost before our eyes. I had an Austin A40 registered 954 AOG, made in 1963 so it must have been one of the last of the 'non-suffix' registrations. It was second A40 I had, not a bad motor and a damn sight more reliable than the Victor mentioned above...

What's the location of your photo, Lyn?

Big Gee

 

[Frothblower]

Googled..... Vauxhall Victor F series 2 .. 1957- 1961

 

[BernardR]

Hi Lyn and Bernie,

that is definitely a Victor. My dad had a Victor, probably the worst car he ever owned, and we got to know it intimately as it conked out most days and rotted away almost before our eyes. I had an Austin A40 registered 954 AOG, made in 1963 so it must have been one of the last of the 'non-suffix' registrations. It was second A40 I had, not a bad motor and a damn sight more reliable than the Victor mentioned above...

What's the location of your photo, Lyn?

Big Gee

Looks as if your Dad's was registered probably around when the one in the photo was registered BG.

 

[DavidGrain]

Can't be certain but I would guess at early 1960's. The registration changed to add a year letter in 1963 but as Birmingham still had sufficient capacity with it allocation of letters I believe they started at 'C' whereas Solihull started with 'A' (1963) or possibly 'B' year letter. Before the year letter it was possible for the same letters to be used over 2 separate years.

All local authorities which had not already changed during 1963 (A) went over to year suffix during 1964 (B) but not necessarily at the begining of the year.

As a guide Birmingham Corporation buses 231-250 DON were registered 1961-62 so I think that this would make the car 1960/61

 

[Richie]

Lyn, if its any use the Vauxhall Victor "F" type-which this is-was first produced in the UK in 1957 until the next Vauxhall Victor series started 4 years later, although this particular model could have been roadworthy for several years afterwards.

What you could do is claim the vehicle is still yours and try and get insurance cover for it. Is Parker's or Glass's motor trade guide still published i wonder?

However, your life could spiral out of control if its discovered the very vehicle is still searched high and low by the rozzers in connection with a double murder 50 years ago!

 

[Astoness]

lol richie...i thought it would be easy to find out when the reg 771 AON came out..thank you everyone for your input...

lyn

 

[BernardR]

David I think that commercial registrations had their own specific allocation of numbers, further the Corporation [as did the Midland Red and also large car dealers] would also pre book blocks of reg'g numbers so your comparison may not work out.

 

[Dave89]

lol richie...i thought it would be easy to find out when the reg 771 AON came out..thank you everyone for your input...

lyn

Hi Lyn

I have 771 AON as February 1960. This figures as I had a scooter registered
358 BOX which was registered later in the year. I think the Victor in the pic
was the model FA, and was commonly known as the 'rotbox', as they were
made of inferior imported steel, and started to corrode after a few months

Kind regards

Dave

 

[BernardR]

I worked with someone who insisted there was nothing wrong with Vauxhalls of the time and indeed his Cresta was immaculate. I then discovered that once a month without fail he put it up on axle stands and pumped oil into all box members and sprayed all the underside of the panels liberally with oil. The car was then left suspended with trays underneath until it stopped dripping oil.

 

[DavidGrain]

David I think that commercial registrations had their own specific allocation of numbers, further the Corporation [as did the Midland Red and also large car dealers] would also pre book blocks of reg'g numbers so your comparison may not work out.

Yes Bernie I had thought about that but this was a block of only 20 numbers which has obviously been pre-booked and 10 were used in 1961 and 10 in 1962. This was only a small order for Leylands as there are no other purchases of buses around that time.

 

[Bill Parker]

Thats cheating in my book Bernie!!

 

[Rupert]

I think the date is about right. The Victor was a wow when it came out. It was American styling with wrap around front window...bench seat and column gear change. I think it was three speed but may have been four. It also had a vibrant colour choice...most un-English.

 

[Big Gee]

Correct, Dave89. Their bodies were made from thin, inferior-quality Brazilian steel obtained as part of some trade deal. My dad was washing his one Sunday and his hand went through a front wing - a rot-box indeed. It also had gear-box problems.
The first Victor was also referred to as a "knee knocker", courtesy of the wrap-around windscreen. If you were tall, as my old man was, it was very difficult to get out of the damn thing without giving your knee a whack.

Big Gee

 

[BernardR]

Yes Bernie I had thought about that but this was a block of only 20 numbers which has obviously been pre-booked and 10 were used in 1961 and 10 in 1962. This was only a small order for Leylands as there are no other purchases of buses around that time.

Yes Dave I failed to spot that in the instance you quote the Corporation used *ON rather than the letters used more usually for commercials.

 

[Radiorails]

The BCT bus registrations are misleading regarding dates. The JOJ series 1 - 999 inclusive were issued to vehicles supplied from the years 1949 until 1952. Neither were the registrations issued consecutively by year.

 

[Astoness]

Hi Lyn

I have 771 AON as February 1960. This figures as I had a scooter registered
358 BOX which was registered later in the year. I think the Victor in the pic
was the model FA, and was commonly known as the 'rotbox', as they were
made of inferior imported steel, and started to corrode after a few months

Kind regards

Dave[/QUOT

sorry dave ive just seen your reply..thank you for that info..this confirms then that the date of the pic i posted is most likely correct...

cheers

lyn

 

[DavidGrain]

The BCT bus registrations are misleading regarding dates. The JOJ series 1 - 999 inclusive were issued to vehicles supplied from the years 1949 until 1952. Neither were the registrations issued consecutively by year.

JOJ was specifically set aside for BCT buses and were allocated in blocks for Daimlers, Leylands, Guys and Crossleys and were called off by BCT as required. Because it was such a large order that it had to be shared between four manufacturers this explained why the numbers overall were not in date order but in delivery order within each manufacturers allocated block of numbers. Following this orders were of a much smaller scale and were allocated in the normal run of numbers but yes BCT would request reserved blocks so that they could run the reg numbers and the fleet numbers together eg 231 DOC was fleet number 3231

 

[nickcc101]

The FA Victor was certainly a rot box, corrosion was usually worse in the rear finned wings. The later MK 11 FB Victor, introduced in 1964, had an aluminium engine oil pump that was prone to premature failure (i wonder why) with the result that everyone that we sold having to have a modified pump fitted, we were grateful that the pump could be changed without removing the engine (unlike the FA Victor)

 

[Rob Scott]

AON letters issued February 1960 onwards - useful site link below, hope it helps.

https://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/registrations/on.htm

Regards
Rob.

 

[Lloyd]

I think I'm confirming what others have said, when I say that AON (reversed - i.e. after the numbers) was issued between February and June 1960. It was preceeded by YON (in front of the numbers) and followed by BON (reversed).

 

[Astoness]

thanks Lloyd

lyn

 

[oldbrit]

Can anyone tell me the make of the car and the year? Maybe around early 1930s Thanks John OLDBRIT

 

[Radiorails]

A Worcestershire registration. Two letters and four figures. The first figure being nine suggests 1935 or 1936. AWP commenced September 1936. It could be a Morris 8 car.

 

[Eric Gibson]

I think that's a Morris 10-4 from around 1936/8

 

[nickcc101]

My Cousin who we visited in Manchester in the fifties had a similar Morris, unfortunately he never told me not to jump on the running board until it was too late, he wasn't too impressed when it fell off.