Looks like we need a specialist number plate thread!

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Hi folks

I've just been reading the "You might be an aspie if..." thread, and felt I had to say somehting about number plate spotting, and then thought it wasn't the most appropriate place to post it, so here it is, the number plate thread.

Well.

UK number plates are fun.

The most commonly spotted are the systems that ran from 1960-1982, 1982-2001, and 2001 to current.

Between 1963-1982 the format was as follows:

AAA 1A to YYY 999A in 1960, AAA 1B to YYY 999B in 1961, and so on. (My motorbike numberplate, a 1981 Honda CG125 is MGJ 207Y)

Before 1963 the first three letters in the sequence indicated where the car was registered, eg SOO 999 would have been from Birmingham. The final letter indicates the year of registration.

Between 1982 - 2001 the format was:
A1 AAA to Y999 YYY, and the initial letter indicates the year of registration

From 2001 onwards the system has reverted to one whereby there is a code denoting the car's registration area, but it is only a two letter code. The registration year is a little more interesting, being split into two halves, running from March to August, and from September to February.

They look like this:

AA 02 AAA or AA 52 AAA

The AA is a London code, 02 means registered between March - August 2002. 05 means registered September - February 2002-2003

..you notice and actually spend time thinking about how the license plates on the island of Hawaii all start with H, Maui's all start with M, Kauai's all start with K, Lanai's all start with L, and Oahu's all start with....N! And you reason it must be because the letter O could be confused with zero. So why not another letter in Oahu, like A? Is it for HoNolulu? And it just drives you crazy because you don't know the answer. And you can't wait to see a car from Molokai to see what letter their plates start with, since it can't be M.

Do you have an ability to memorize people's number plates? It's the first thing I look at on a car and they stick in my head if I see them a few times - friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, etc. I have hundreds of them taking up space in my memory.

The only system you see around here (Ontario Canada) is the one that would have started in the late 1970's, probably a year or two after I was born. It started out AAA 111, then when they got all the way through all the letters and numbers they reversed it, 111 AAA. After about 20 years they exhausted the possibilities both ways so now it's AAAA 111. That's just cars though. Trucks use a different system. Strangely I've never been drawn to truck plates and I find it difficult to remember them. They used to be AA1 111 but I think it's slightly different now.

I'm in Queensland at the moment, most number plates have 3 numbers then three letters. The letters seem to start at E and go to J (most recently registered). I'm madly hunting for a plate that has HFA on it... I will take a photo if I find one, only have 10 days to go before I leave, though.
I saw a numberplate six months ago in Western Australia that had ADHD on it - and that was all. :)

Yup, plates issued under the British system (Great Britain; Northern Ireland; Gibraltar; Channel Islands; Falkland Islands etc) are fun. Nice font, too.

I saw a license plate here in Ct that was off by just 1 from my wifes the other day the must have been in DMV the same day 17 years ago In CT they use the aaa 111 for cars too and trucks and commercial us a different system with a letter then five or six numbers

In Western Australia the plates have changed in recent years to blue writing on a white background (yes, the colours used also fascinate me), the numbers and letters are arranged, as an example: 1AAA 000. They used to be, as an example: 6AA 000. My first plate number was 9JS 015. When I got that, I was eagerly awaiting to see what would happen when the 9 series would finish....I didn't have to wait long (see first example above).

That's cool for the same one to be around after all those years and for you to see it... around here at least, most people get new plates when they get a new car so you don't see many older ones like that.

When I was growing up there was another car in town the same as my parents' car - same make, same model, same color, the guy who owned it even looked a bit like my dad, and the license plate was just one number different. 965 in the number half instead of our 945.

I get very side tracked by number plates when I go out,I look at the last part /the letters of number plates
to find ones that make up words and abbreviations.

My neighbour has got 666 and part of her name in her number plate,but it's a......can't remember what they are called,the ones that people make up the letters/numbers themselves.

A personalised plate.
There are a lot of these plates in Western Australia. They can cost quite a lot depending on what you want. There are polycarbonate (I think, don't quote me on that) plates as well as the metal ones.

Nice to know other people think about number plates too. I used to think I was the only one.

The realy weird part for me is my Grandmother started me looking at licence plates, she even kept a book in her purse to keep records

I saw a California plate (I can't believe they got away with this one) IB6 UB9

A personalised plate you could probably only get away with in Melbourne. I never saw it but a friend of mine swears he did: TOPWOG