Private plates

Jimbo1959

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It’s all a bit of fun to me, although I know of one or two with them on where the person is serious, about their “message.”
That’s when it doesn’t make me smile and I think what a, insert your own derogatory adjective. :D:D



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dionysus

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My car has the original style number plate of three letters and three numbers, it was on the car when I bought it. The original number plates are with the car but the dealer said if wanted those put on it would cost extra so I stuck with the 3 x 3. Wouldn't bother otherwise. I often get asked what they stand for as they bear no relation to my name.
 

Altamar

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I think they are just a bit of fun which fall into the "live and let live" category. As others have said, if we are going to analyse this too much we will have to start asking ourselves why we drive Mercs rather than Dacias, and why we spend most weekends polishing them!

If having a private plate on the front of your MB (other prestige marques are available) makes you smile, why not?

Personally I am not sure I want to buy one where you have to stand on one leg and close one eye to work out what the plate is trying to say but, hey ho, if that makes you smile...

I do draw the line at those which need illegally placed screw caps to make them appear like a name though, but perhaps that is a different debate for a different day.
 

sl500amgsport

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I guess it is vanity with a bit of fun, I never pay more than £300 and it can make the car look newer as standard plates date a car.

You can buy a Mercedes a few years old in mint condition for say £50k, pop a plate on it and voila, you have a £100k "looking" Mercedes sitting on your drive for a few hundred quid. Of course it is all snobbery.

Houses can be like that too, sell your £800k flat in London and buy a castle in Scotland, voila you have become a Laird and landed gentry until the locals burn your castle for having the audacity of being an Englishman in Scotland :).

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Bogus

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Maybe, but isn’t owning a Mercedes vanity too? Or polishing your car every weekend? We’ve all got a bit of vanity, but a private plate definitely seems to be a specific acquired taste.

I dont see owning a merc as vanity any more than owning any other car. polishing every weekend, yes possibly. Yes we all have a bit of vanity, and it doesn't make you a bad person, but a private plate is most definitely a “ look at me, Im not like the rest of you ordinary folks “ thing.
 

sl500amgsport

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I dont see owning a merc as vanity any more than owning any other car. polishing every weekend, yes possibly. Yes we all have a bit of vanity, and it doesn't make you a bad person, but a private plate is most definitely a “ look at me, Im not like the rest of you ordinary folks “ thing.
Owning a private plate is as common as owning a Mercedes these days, if not more so which is why you see them on sub £2k cars and quite a few old bangers!

If I see a lad in his Vauxhall Corsa with a private plate I do not think wow he is showing off anymore than if I see a Rolls Royce with a private plate.



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Jimbo1959

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Maybe, but isn’t owning a Mercedes vanity too? Or polishing your car every weekend? We’ve all got a bit of vanity, but a private plate definitely seems to be a specific acquired taste.

Sorry, I can't agree with polishing being classed as a vanity. :shock:

You spend a fortune on a car buying the damned thing so, you want it to last, which means, looking after it and maintaining it to the best of your ability or thickness of your wallet. ;)

Up here in Scotland at least there is so much rain and generally crap weather that you need to polish the things to keep their value and lessen depriciation as much as possible. :p

Treat others as you would like to be treated. ;)
 

Wighty

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I dont see owning a merc as vanity any more than owning any other car. polishing every weekend, yes possibly. Yes we all have a bit of vanity, and it doesn't make you a bad person, but a private plate is most definitely a “ look at me, Im not like the rest of you ordinary folks “ thing.
Polishing your car is no different to cutting your grass , cleaning your house windows , painting your calipers , none of them make any difference , it’s just another thing to do . It’s hardly a vain thing to do .
As to personal plates , to some it’s a total waste of money , to others it’s another thing to spend money on :D . No big deal either way , the world keeps turning
 

Jimbo1959

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I’ve got one which was a 21st birthday present from my late father. T which was the reg or the first car I bought, 25 for my birthday and then my three initials. So not convoluted or special to many but means something to me,

That's how I feel about mine, it looks ordinary to everybody else except me, and the folk who know me. It's special meaning is down to the fact that my sons bought it for me. :D
 

A.J.

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My car has the original style number plate of three letters and three numbers, it was on the car when I bought it. The original number plates are with the car but the dealer said if wanted those put on it would cost extra so I stuck with the 3 x 3. Wouldn't bother otherwise. I often get asked what they stand for as they bear no relation to my name.

My personal registration number bears no relationship to my name either. It just loses the year of the car. I acquired it for nothing many years ago, but that is a long story I won't bore you with :rolleyes:
 

Blobcat

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Sorry, I can't agree with polishing being classed as a vanity. :shock:

You spend a fortune on a car buying the damned thing so, you want it to last, which means, looking after it and maintaining it to the best of your ability or thickness of your wallet. ;)

Up here in Scotland at least there is so much rain and generally crap weather that you need to polish the things to keep their value and lessen depriciation as much as possible. :p

Treat others as you would like to be treated. ;)
If you want to stand out in Aberdeen don’t have a personal plate...:rolleyes::p
 

Mike-Carter

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Firstly you don't need a Mercedes to have a private plate, you don't have to be vain either. I bought my private plate from DVLA all in for £250, my initials followed by date of birth followed by my three initials. First went onto a Fiat Panda then on my Mitsubishi, awaiting for those geezers at DVLA to send my V5 log book and they'll go on my Mercedes.
What (p)isses me off are those morons that move around the digits thus making it difficult (for some) to read a plate.
 

A.J.

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Firstly you don't need a Mercedes to have a private plate, you don't have to be vain either. I bought my private plate from DVLA all in for £250, my initials followed by date of birth followed by my three initials. First went onto a Fiat Panda then on my Mitsubishi, awaiting for those geezers at DVLA to send my V5 log book and they'll go on my Mercedes.
What (p)isses me off are those morons that move around the digits thus making it difficult (for some) to read a plate.

I think the law should be a little more active with those clowns :rolleyes::(
 

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