From the UK MOT (
red is my edit):
Keep a vehicle’s original registration number
A rebuilt vehicle can keep its original registration number if you can prove you’ve used:
- the original unmodified chassis or bodyshell (car or light van)
- a new chassis or monocoque bodyshell of the same specification as the original (car or light van)
- the original unmodified frame (motorbike)
- a new frame of the same specification as the original (motorbike)
So unless a replacement body is NEW, the original registration number is not to be transferred to the rebodied vehicle. I do not know when this became law. And there may be some appeal buried in the MOT regulations. And, no, I am not a lawyer, just a reader.
of course, the shell he used is most definitely NOT the same specification as it should have a series 4 type shell and the car was "rebuilt" around a series 5 shell... so 2 couple of fails!
What ever you think happened back in the day.
Well, I suppose this is the difference between an Alpine and a Tiger... But the difference in value between a restored Alpine and a REAL Tiger is somewhere between $60-100K. Every time some yahoo creates a fake Tiger it affects the value of a real one.
I have nothing against Alpines... They were a much better built car that either an MGB or a Spitfire. Rootes was a weird outlier in that they were more focused on fit and finish than the larger British manufacturers. The thing that killed the Alpine was the fact that they were underpowered when compared to the larger makes. Of course, and then Chrysler's indifference... The Tiger solved that problem, but the result was a cost that exceeded the Big Healey and came way too close to the Jaguar E-type.
Now, the fact that Chrysler was intent on killing the Tiger due to its Ford power plant and the relative lack of parts availability due to its small production volume, makes restoration difficult. As a result, a lot of Alpines are sacrificed to restore Tigers... It's inevitable. it's simple economics...
BUT... to wholesale use an entire Alpine shell to "rebody" a Tiger is unethical and a fraud.
I recently had a discussion regarding the differences between a factory Austin Healey 100M (Lemans) and a regular Austin Healey 100 (100/4). Monetarily, the difference is about $150K or more. Like Sunbeam Tigers, there are no hidden chassis stampings.. I have been active with the Healey concours group since 1989.. We know the differences, and like the TAC guys, we keep them close to the vest, so we can weed out the fakes...
I don't just have a "hard on" for people that fake Tigers... I have just a much contempt for those that would fake an AH100M (640 made) or an AH 3000 MK2 2 seat tricarb (355 made and I OWN ONE... my 2nd), or a Jaguar XK150S ...