MGB Register Forum

Hi there I brought an mgb roadster last year but it has no v5 & the vin plate isn't on the body at all I have a body number and engine number which I've checked as far as I can it seems to be a 1966-1967 but I'd like to find out the vin number before I start to restore the roadster. Would the heritage centre at Gaydon by able to get the vin number from build records ?
Many thanks Karl

Not sure what to say about this one, and probably not going to be much help to you I'm afraid. The engine number I don't think will be any good at all as these engines will have been swapped around several times on an MG like this. The body number - I'm not sure whether this might help - you will just have to contact the folk with the records and see what they say.

It seems a little suspicious that there is no VIN plate - you are certain that this is missing, presumably removed by a previous owner? I'm also assuming that there is no registration number with the MG, and if this is the case I would have to ask why not? I don't think I would spend any money on it until I had established some provenance as to what the bodyshell is actually from and who has owned it in the past - this may be quite a difficult thing to establish.

Sorry for being so negative, perhaps others on this forum might have a more optimistic take on this?

IanF

Just got this from the Heritage Centre website:

*You are required to supply your chassis number; we cannot research your car with any other number.
*We recommend that you take the chassis number from the vehicle itself, paperwork can be unreliable. Check the number you provide carefully, we cannot be held liable for any customer errors or omissions. We are unable to give a refund if a Heritage Certificate is issued for the wrong vehicle as a result of incorrect information given by the customer.
*The amount of information listed on a certificate depends on the factory record and can vary according to marque and model.
*In some cases we may be unable to research your vehicle, if this happens you will automatically receive a full refund.
*If you are unsure about whether we can research your vehicle or you do not know your chassis number, please contact us at archive@britishmotormuseum.co.uk.

So from the last point above it looks as there may be a slight possibility that they will be able to help, but I think it will be a bit of a long shot.

IanF

Karl
If your car is a 1966/7 build the body number will have been recorded in the build records now held at Gaydon.
However the build records are held in Car number (sometimes called Chassis number now used for VIN but no such thing as VIN back in the 60s) order.
Car numbers and body numbers do not run in an exact sequence so researching the records is a little more painstaking and will cost more than for a Heritage Certificate but it is, by appointment, possible to search the records yourself.
You must ensure you have the correct body number. This the stamped steel tag spot welded to upper inner wing behind the radiator housing. If this forum could accept pictures again I could send you a picture meanwhile you could find an illustration on page 15 of the technical section of the UK Moss catalogue. It is NOT the alloy tag placed in the upper nearside wing. See also the book Original MGB by Clausager.

Sounds promising! Thanks George,

IanF

I think the big danger in this case is that the V5C and the commission plate may have found their way onto another car, and the DVLA certainly won't like have two cars with the same identity! If this has happened and I think you should at least consider the possibility of this until proved otherwise, you might find it impossible to get the necessary documents. Take a look at this thread to see the problems when you have a chassis number but no V5C. http://mgbforum.mgb-register.org/viewto ... ?f=3&t=322

I assume you have a set of number plates for the car, so do a free vehicle information search by going to:
https://www.gov.uk/get-vehicle-information-from-dvla
You don't need the V5C information, just put in the registration number you have and the make (MG not MGXPOWER) and see what comes up. This won't give you the Chassis Number but it will tell you if the car is taxed, MoT'd and basic details like colour etc.
Also remember that cars off the road before 1998 may not have been SORN'd and you can't SORN it now as you don't have the V5C!

What did the seller tell about the lack of documents and tags?

Sorry to be a bit of a merchant of doom here, but the DVLA can be pretty immoveable when it comes cases like this. Good luck with trying to unravel this!

Hi Peter, your first paragraph echoes my thoughts exactly, but I didn't express them as eloquently as you have done!
Karl needs to get this very clear before he spends any more on this I think,
IanF

Peter
Karl states that he does not have a V5 for this vehicle so checking the public DVLA records can't happen.

Having "inspected" MGBs for the Register and succeeding in obtaining registrations I am sure that with the correct documents and evidence Karl's car will be issued with the V5c. So he needs a Heritage certificate based on the build records and the car inspected by the Register to support a lost log book application or a V765 application for registration.

if another car exists carrying the same Chassis number it will not be able to supply supporting evidence ie the body number etc and it will be subject of a DVLA enquiry.

The swopping of chassis plates was ,I am told, quite common to obtain tax free status for later cars. One has only to look at How many left to see how the numbers of cars drop after the original cut off date for free tax of before 1973. Loads of 72 cars not so many 73 - why I wonder? However a later car if inspected will not have the narrow gearbox tunnel and other features of a 66/67 MK1 MGB.

George

George
The search from the link I provided above can be done without the V5C and would establish if another MG B is taxed and/or MoT'd. All he needs is the registration number and the manufacturer. Although it doesn't specify the model, it does give the engine size which should correspond to the MGB. If this search comes up with details such tax and MoT status there is surely a chance that a second car exists with the identity of Karl's car. If the car is on SORN then this needed to be redone by Karl when he bought the car a few months ago, as tax and SORN doesn't transfer to the new owner. I would assume Karl's car doesn't have an MoT; if it did he would know the chassis/car number. If he doesn't have a set of number plates, then his life will become harder.

As has been said already, the DVLA have little interest in engine numbers but for the MoT the emissions test is done according to the date the engine was made, so a late Rover V8 in a BV8 would need cats. Shouldn't be a problem with an 1800cc B series.

Peter
I assume from Karl's first post that all he has is the body and engine numbers. The body and/or engine number - if original can be traced back to the chassis number for the early cars.
As Karl does not state that he has a registration I have assumed he has not, thus none of the public DVLA enquiry sites will work for him
George