Reminder for all UK members

peanut

XS650 enthusiast & inveterate tinkerer
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I just had some really good news today .;)

I thought that I ought to share it with other UK historic vehicle owners who, like me, may have been unaware that their bike is now exempt from both the annual UK MOT test and Vehicle Excise License .

If your bike was built (constructed not registered) in 1978 or before it is now exempt from both MOT and Tax from 1st April 2018 yippeee !:bike:

As I also have a 1964 Lambretta Scooter thats a double saving for me :)
 
Are you sure it' not just tax exempt, thought it was only pre 1960 that were mot exempt,
 
Yep you are dead right, good news eh?

Ant
too right buddy .....I think we should have some sticky labels made up specially so we can wind up all the other motorists lol;):)

hey Ant ..........are you the ' Ant 'of UK Yamaha XS650 forum fame ? ;)
 
Damn it Peanut, mine's a 1980 manufacture. Guess I will have to wait a few more years! Pleased for you though, just a bit jealous.
 
Damn it Peanut, mine's a 1980 manufacture. Guess I will have to wait a few more years! Pleased for you though, just a bit jealous.

Sorry to hear that Paul. :(
I thought that I might have to wait another year myself as my bike is supposedly a '79 Special ll' but I've always maintained that it is a 1978 model... as that is the manufacture date stamped into the headstock of the frame.
Fortunately the legislation is quite clear it is the 'built date'

Now I regret selling my 1979 Porsche 928 years ago. I loved the sound of that V8 rumble but any trip over 100 miles had me checking my Bank balance lol
928 April 2006.JPG
 
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My XS is the 1981 SH model and the manufacture date is June 1980. Inside the side cover, which I showed in another thread a couple of days ago, there is some data and it states "This Vehicle Conforms to U.S. EPA Regulation Applicable to 1981 Model Year New Motorcycles".

105908-7b68f766b0754bb736848c9c430f6b2c.jpg


If you can scrape a bit more paint off your label you may find a similar statement which will help confirm which model your bike is.

Spend your new found savings wisely.
 
105908-7b68f766b0754bb736848c9c430f6b2c.jpg


If you can scrape a bit more paint off your label you may find a similar statement which will help confirm which model your bike is.

well I had a little scrape and I've probably woken the neighbours (11.45pm) but what the hell eh ?

I'm pretty sure it says 1978 but I'll try a bit of thinners in the morning rather than risk scratching it off the label.
My label is quite different to yours in the way the specs are set out. I'll post it in the morning

The most important thing though is that the bike definitely has a 1978 built date and a 1978 registration plate from DVLA so it will be exempt this year
 
I just had some really good news today .;)

I thought that I ought to share it with other UK historic vehicle owners who, like me, may have been unaware that their bike is now exempt from both the annual UK MOT test and Vehicle Excise License .

If your bike was built (constructed not registered) in 1978 or before it is now exempt from both MOT and Tax from 1st April 2018 yippeee !:bike:

As I also have a 1964 Lambretta Scooter thats a double saving for me :)

Wow - that’s great news Peanut - and all UKers!

Just another reason why folks in Aus, NZ and Canada should campaign for the Mother Country to take us back!

Dammit, I’m comin’ over - and I’m bringin’ Lucille!

Pete
 
Good to see they have a system to cater for older vehicles Peanut.

In Victoria where I live they have what is called the Club Plate Scheme, this allows owners of vehicles that are 25 years old or older and are members of approved clubs to register them at a reduced cost. You choose either 45 or 90 days a year and have to fill out a log book when riding/driving. Cost for 45 days a year is $76.00 for my XS compared to full registration which is $535.00.
 
Ouch Meddy - $535/year - does that include insurance?

Our annual plate fee for a bike is $48 - but insurance is separate. For that amount you ride whenever you like and the weather permits. My two modern bikes cost about $1550/year for both to insure (including collision and everything else) and the XS650 oldies are about $300 together but the mileage is restricted to to 3000 km each and I can’t ride them to work.

I know that some of the US folks pay a fraction of that for comparable bikes and riders younger than me pay MUCH more.
 
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Don't know how you guys do it...
Here; any bike 30 years or older; title, $68 plus 5% sales tax, license plate, good til I die, one time fee $56! (can't ride em in January, LOL) you must have another registered vehicle to buy this plate. No inspections, ever.
My insurance; about $50 a year each for the XS's and I still complain about the costs.
 
Good to see they have a system to cater for older vehicles Peanut.

In Victoria where I live they have what is called the Club Plate Scheme, this allows owners of vehicles that are 25 years old or older and are members of approved clubs to register them at a reduced cost. You choose either 45 or 90 days a year and have to fill out a log book when riding/driving. Cost for 45 days a year is $76.00 for my XS compared to full registration which is $535.00.

Ouch !....thats expensive . In fact that costs more to register your bike than it costs me to insure , tax and MOT test my classic bike, scooter and car combined ...
 
Basically a race engined xs on the road, 750 je pistons, megacycle 250-40 cam, large bore exhaust, with very little else

interesting project Jay. Are you doing a build thread or vlog anywhere ?
I'd love to see how a Bosch fuel injection and ignition would work on an XS....someone built a turbo charged XS650 a couple of years back
 
thanks to Pauls suggestion I scraped off some of the paint from the label inside my covers and lo and behold it says 1978 . Its difficult to see on the image but it is clear enough under good light and a magnifying glass.
I have always assumed that these are the original covers for the bike . Can anyone confirm that the red colour is correct for a US spec 1978 Special
xs650 label.jpg
xs650 cover colour.jpg
 
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