In auctions as on advertising sites, there is no shortage of vintage cars without registration cards. But if a few steps can often allow you to find a registration certificate, be careful not to rush on a model that will no longer be able to hit the road.
A vintage car sold without a registration card? This is nothing unusual. Over time and with changes of ownership, this precious document has often tended to get lost. Laurent Heriou, general manager of the French Federation of Vintage Vehicles, even recalls that this is the foundation of the organization he chairs.
“The FFVE certificate was originally created for all vehicles without what was called the gray card in the past, that is to say the registration certificate today., he explains.“
“ Because we were at the beginning of the Sixties, and that there were many vehicles which were in perfect working order, but whose papers had been lost during the war or during the estates. ”
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The FFVE remains the privileged interlocutor
Today, the FFVE remains the privileged interlocutor if you buy a vintage car located in this case, provided that it is over 30 years old. On the other hand, since 1984, the attestation of its beginnings has been replaced by the famous “gray card collection”. With some bonus advantages, such as a technical inspection only every five years and access to certain metropolitan Low Emission Zones (ZFE-m). But beware, it will not always be possible to obtain this sesame. To benefit from it, the mining type of the vehicle must no longer be produced and must not have undergone any transformation.
Do not expect to register a hot-rod or a replica in this way., even though they were built on a fairly old mechanical basis. Another important point recalled by Laurent Heriou:
“The vehicle must have been preserved. Today, we cannot deal with vehicles to be restored, because we do not know how they will be restored.“
If the mechanical chosen one of your heart is out of the barn, therefore, there is no need to rush too much to put together an application for a collection vehicle registration document.
Easier for a vehicle registered in France
If these conditions are met, the procedures then depend on the last registration of your new mount. If it had been carried out in France, things are normally simpler, as this would mean that an approval has already been carried out. With, however, some differences depending on the registration system that had been used: vehicles before 1er April 1950 were included neither in the former FNI (National registration file), nor in the current SIV (Vehicle registration system) used since 2009. In their case, now quite rare, the ideal will be to provide a photo of the vehicle with its period registration to prove that it has been approved. We still have to manage to find such a cliché …
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Copy of vehicle registration document required for a foreign vehicle
On the other hand, for a copy imported from abroad, distrust. The copy of the original registration certificate will be requested by the FFVE, in order to prove that it has been approved. While you will also have to prove that you are the legitimate owner, a point also crucial in the case of a French vehicle.
“It is not because there is an auction slip from an auctioneer that the one who put the car up for sale was the owner., warns Laurent Heriou. We have had cases where this was not the case. “
It has become even more vital since the establishment of the ANTS (National Security Titles Agency), whose sometimes very fastidious electronic algorithm can quickly lead to blockages.
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A very different status for youngtimers
As for more recent acquisitions, such as youngtimers, they are not the responsibility of the FFVE. If you don’t want to wait until their 30e anniversary, you will need to turn to the manufacturer’s network, hoping he can provide you with a Certificate of Conformity (COC). Otherwise, if it is a model that has never been approved on a regular basis in France, you will have to undertake a reception on an isolated basis. Unfortunately, this procedure is often long, complex and quite expensive, with uncertain chances of success. But whatever the age of your dream car, it will always be better to get informed before considering buying a copy without a registration certificate.
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