Sorry DVLA again.

[royhall]

I am at present rebuilding my CB450 Black Bomber. It's a UK bike that came with the old style V5 and is not identified on the DVLA website. What's the best way of going about getting it over to a current V5C. Would I be better waiting until the rebuild is finished or can I do it now, it has also had an engine number change due to damaged crank cases. I have no experience of this procedure as I have only had to deal with imports or bikes that already had a V5C up to now. Any advice you can give me would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Nurse Julie]

So you need to get it on the system. Either wait until its finished, have it MOT'd and about 5 days later it will show on the DVLA system , then do change of owner / engine No. Etc. OR...try and do the admin now but with some bikes, if it is not on the system, DVLA will want to inspect it but it has to be a fully assembled, road worthy bike for them to come and assess it. At this stage they may even not let you use what is the original reg number as its not a complete bike.Either way, the regs will probably change again soon 🙄🙄🙄 and what I have said won't work 😀😁😁

[royhall]

Thanks Julie. I was leaning towards waiting until the bike is finished then try and MOT. Just wondering if anybody has managed to do it during the restoration and what it would take. Don't really want to contact DVLA whilst it's apart just in case it sets the ball rolling towards a dreaded Q plate.

[Nurse Julie]

Thanks Julie. I was leaning towards waiting until the bike is finished then try and MOT. Just wondering if anybody has managed to do it during the restoration and what it would take. Don't really want to contact DVLA whilst it's apart just in case it sets the ball rolling towards a dreaded Q plate.

I know of one person that tried during a rebuild. They contacted DVLA and were told that the reg number on the old style log book was not necessarily the reg number the bike would be issued with on completion of the build as it may have been assigned to another vehicle in the past 50 years or even taken out of circulation when DVLA went over to the new computer system. When he finished his project, he got in touch with DVLA, they inspected the bike and issued a different age related reg number so all got sorted in the end.

[royhall]

I would like to keep the present number but as long as it ends up with the correct year reg that will do. Better get on and get it finished then if the rules are changing. Do you know anything about that?

[Woodside]

If you mean the old style 2 sided blue v5..
Every time I've had one I've just filled it out with a cover note saying where it was from and why it wasn't updated...and a new v5c has arrived...
Doesn't work on a buff log book beacuse that's all hand written..and open to Tom foolery

If it doesn't show on the dvla website I'm affraid it doesn't show on the mot database....I found that out only last week.....

Just my own experience

[Nurse Julie]

I would like to keep the present number but as long as it ends up with the correct year reg that will do. Better get on and get it finished then if the rules are changing. Do you know anything about that?

No, but they change the rules and regs so often I'm just saying they 'may' change them, not that they definitely will 😀😀😀

[Nurse Julie]

If you mean the old style 2 sided blue v5..
Every time I've had one I've just filled it out with a cover note saying where it was from and why it wasn't updated...and a new v5c has arrived...
Doesn't work on a buff log book beacuse that's all hand written..and open to Tom foolery

If it doesn't show on the dvla website I'm affraid it doesn't show on the mot database....I found that out only last week.....

Just my own experience

That's interesting Jason. In the past when registering a bike that was not on the DVLA system, ie, an import, the bike was entered on the MOT data base by the MOT tester with the VIN. You had to have an MOT to send to DVLA to register the bike. I wonder, as now you don't need an MOT to register an imported vehicle (or insurance cover note) if that function has been removed off the MOT testers options screen completely?.

[royhall]

I don't think it would be wise to try with the bike apart though in case it needs inspection. It's been off the road since the 1970's so six more months won't make a great difference.

Sorry Julie misunderstood your post about the changes.

[Woodside]

Yup agreed always had bikes to be registered mot'd on the vin number only...
But if it's not on the database you put in the vin and reg..it doesn't match you cannot proceed with imputting...I witnessed this last week
I mot'd the bike last week that my other thread was about and it just wouldn't accept the reg because it didn't tally with the vin..  so vin only on ticket ...

If you have the v5 it's a printed DVLA document I've always just filled them in and sent them off just like a v5c...I have always added as cover note just to say where I bought it from and why it wasn't renewed...normally a bereavement..
I only done this last year on an old gs450...but as you say julie they change the rules weekly

[kettle738]

I had the same situation with a CB400f that had been off the road since 1978, it came with just the old style blue and white log book.   I took a good quality colour photocopy and sent that off to the DVLA together with an application for a V5C and a covering letter explaining that I was reluctant to send the original in the post as it was my only proof of entitlement to the registration mark, but offering to do so if they insisted.

The upshot was, they wanted the bike to be inspected, which wasn't a problem, the chap who did it barely knew the front from the back of a bike and had no clue where to find the numbers, but he took a few snaps after they were pointed out to him and a short while later a new V5C landed on the mat.  They never asked for the old style log book.

Mick. 

[royhall]

I had the same situation with a CB400f that had been off the road since 1978, it came with just the old style blue and white log book.   I took a good quality colour photocopy and sent that off to the DVLA together with an application for a V5C and a covering letter explaining that I was reluctant to send the original in the post as it was my only proof of entitlement to the registration mark, but offering to do so if they insisted.

The upshot was, they wanted the bike to be inspected, which wasn't a problem, the chap who did it barely knew the front from the back of a bike and had no clue where to find the numbers, but he took a few snaps after they were pointed out to him and a short while later a new V5C landed on the mat.  They never asked for the old style log book.

Mick.

Thanks Mick. That's just reinforced my decision to hold off with the registration until the bike is finished. Hard to have a million little pieces inspected.

[Orcade-Ian]

We’ve just had to do this with a 93 MG RV8 which had a blue/white old style single sheet V5.  Not been on the road since 1999.  Unfortunately some clown had signed and dated it in 1999, so where had it been for almost 20 years? Sent off the V5 and got a letter back stating they wanted front, back, left, right pics plus engine bay and a pic of the stamped in VIN number (poorly stamped on a chassis rail in the boot which worried me) Eventually a V5c arrived. Although all numbers matched, the original V5 stated 3500 as engine size where it should be 3950.  Needless to say I waited until we had a V5c in Christine’s name before we opened any other cans of worms about the engine.  Took a pic of the engine number (almost impossible to access) sent the new V5c off and now all details are correct on yet another V5c. No wonder they need an army of people at DVLA!

So, it would appear best as others have said to wait until the bike is at least looking like a complete machine.

Ian

Btw, forgot to say although it is obviously not mot exempt, all this was done without resorting to an mot.  It needed lots of mostly cosmetic work but I was reluctant to start any of that before we had a new V5c in our hands.

[royhall]

Maybe I should have tackled this problem before I stripped the bike. The main reason I didn't is because the engine number was missing from what was supposed to be a chain break. I actually think the engine was swapped for a duff unit then they snapped off the engine number part of the casting as there was zero evidence of a chain break and plenty of evidence of extreme engine wear for a 25k engine. So that will be an added problem with registration as it's now got a different engine number. I think an inspection will be required.

[Orcade-Ian]

Hi Roy,
I’m not entirely sure they are bothered about the engine number - they didn’t ask for that before issuing the first V5c, only when I wanted the engine size changing did I voluntarily send a pic of the number in case they thought I was up to something.

Ian