Martin R wrote:Keith wrote:Martin R wrote:I think I'm correct in saying that the chassis data book will only confirm the date of first registration, which you already know.
To establish the actual build date, you'll need the build file from Martin Robey Ltd.
That's not correct Martin.
The chassis data book shows 'ex-factory' and not date of first registration.
Thanks Keith,
Although the chassis data book shows the "ex-factory" date, isn't the actual production date classed as the date when the chassis number was added to the build sheet for a particular car?
I'm sure I recall someone saying that their cars build sheet showed a date earlier than the one it left the factory (obviously), which was accepted as the "build date" and therefore accepted as a 1972 car for tax exemption purposes.
The DVLA have a set of rules for deciding if a car qualifies as historic or not. The cutoff date is 31st December but the DVLA already allow that due to the Christmas shutdown (was there really one in those days?) a car registered in the first week of the new year can be regarded as being manufactured in the previous year and so will qualify as historic.
This rule of course is designed for the more mass producers where there are not detailed records available for exact build dates and where production might be measured in 100s per day. For Jensens we have the ex-factory date readily available it is different, we have a precise date when each car left the factory and so can know when it was built regardless of when it was registered.
If there is other evidence (e.g. build sheets) that the car was manufactured before 31st December but perhaps not registered for several months into the new year then that can be produced and the DVLA will accept that. That will apply to the 20 or so Healeys that most probably were made in 1973 but did not leave the factory until early in 1974 and similarly it might apply to some of the early Interceptor III Series 4 cars that left the factory in January 1974 as I described in my previous posting.