Has anyone made a repro vehicle 'road legal?'

[Schäfer]

I have a new project on the go at the moment, has anyone on this forum ever made a repro vehicle 'road legal?'

[Stigroadie]

Someone made the Beetle I have? More a conversion than a build though.

[jimmyvonk]

Going to depend very much on what vehicle has been converted, how much of it is still used in the conversion, and what it has been converted into - also age of base vehicle.

You'll need to get a copy of the "Construction & Use" regulations and start reading.

Light position and many other things are all dependant on age and type of vehicle - depending on how much of old vehicle remains you "may" be able to retain old identity, if not your looking down a SVA test and all it entails to get to modern standards, no sharp corners etc etc.

Looking on some kit-car forums could be a good start... much the same idea.

Good luck!

[Schäfer]

Thanks for your replies.

The vehicle I'm buying retains about 75% or so of its original donor characteristics, i.e. working parts, engine and chassis, etc, it's just the body shell that's different.

I thought I'd just pick your brains to see where to start. Many thanks indeed.

[fallschirmjaeger]

I think it will be illegal to stick 4 wheels onto a U-boat and try to drive it on the road....

[Dietmar]

Interesting pub quiz trivia:-

Under the build regulations it is possible to build a repro and register it as an "old" build. Minor draw back - it has to contain a percentage of period parts (forget exactly how many at the mo). So long as it conforms to this, it is numberplated and tested as to the age of the period components. Bit of a challenge to do but not impossible and an interesting idea. I knew a chap in Bristol who used (and possibly still does) these regulations to build copies of '20s and '30s open topped sports cars. Most of the parts were sourced from period aero engines! Which I believe was not uncommon post WW1 due to the many surplus aero engines at the time. Scary but impressive machines.

Edited to add:- whoops. Looks like Europe strikes again. I got the previous info a couple of years ago, and have been searching for it again, without success. I have found no reference to building using original parts. The closest I found was to re-registering an existing vehicle so long as the major components were still there. Everything else refers to new EU guidelines. Ah well, another opportunity consigned to the dustbin................