Safety Fast March 2017

A bright, warmish and sunny day here in West Cornwall, and feeling the sun on my face makes me think forward to what is to come in the way of MG-related activities and so forth this year. Looking in the online Register Newsletter, I am reminded that … the Practical Classics Show at the NEC is on March 31 to April 2. The Register will be on the MGCC stand with the Jean Denton Marathon car. There will be parking for MGB Register members at Brooklands on April 2 and the Spring Run is on April 9 to Woburn Abbey. MGLive! is scheduled for the weekend of June 17-18 at Silverstone and the September weekend in Lincolnshire is almost booked up.

I have been reading the Newsletter of the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs, FBHVC, and found the following, which I considered would be of interest to MGCC members who may not have access to this material. The following extract relates to rebuilding or reshelling of vehicles and recovery of original registration numbers. I quote it verbatim.

“We have reached an understanding with DVLA on how the treatment of replacement bodies on chassis will be dealt with through their different schemes. DVLA accept that original bodies may properly be replaced, not least because bodies deteriorate and may need replacing over time.
“For vehicles applying under the V765 Scheme for the recovery of an original registration number, the applicant or supporting club should set out clearly the nature of the replacement body fitted, especially if the style is different
to that quoted on a supporting original log book, which of course must always be supplied if available, as it is DVLA’s preferred primary evidence of the identity of the vehicle. The application should demonstrate that the replacement body is one that could have been placed on it from the outset or is of a style which historically has become associated with the marque.

“A supporting club should also provide similar information for applications for an agerelated registration number,
supported by dating evidence/certificate.

“If this is done, DVLA should normally give favourable consideration to the application.
“It follows from this that vehicles which, by reason of the completeness of their original rolling chassis components, appear entitled to apply for an age-related plate should not be submitted as reconstructed classics.
“The reconstructed classic category is confined to vehicles created from a collection of parts which did not originally belong to one vehicle. Reconstructed classics will continue to be subject to strict rules in which the body cannot be new but must be
contemporary with the other components which have been used to create the vehicle.”
Whilst the sun is shining, time to have a root around under the stuff in the garage and see how my B is…