[sabinesnubbing]

Karl, Sunil.
Excellent. I have photos of A and W on commercial vehicles.
I will rewrite the list to show no distinction between 2 and 4 wheel private.

Do you think 1979 is correct?
And what about CBA, B, etc. CB is supposed to have existed in the very last few months before the new 1989 system started. Were any ever seen?
Cheers
Cedric

[karlosdeville]

Originally Posted by sabinesnubbing

Karl, Sunil.
Excellent. I have photos of A and W on commercial vehicles.
I will rewrite the list to show no distinction between 2 and 4 wheel private.

Do you think 1979 is correct?
And what about CBA, B, etc. CB is supposed to have existed in the very last few months before the new 1989 system started. Were any ever seen?
Cheers
Cedric

I have CK, CM, CN, CR and CT, but no CB.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by karlosdeville

Cedric I have the following records - not to say that there are no other possibilities.

CAA - no record so far
CAB - car and bike
CAC - car and bike
CAD - bike
CAE - car and bike
CAF - state RTC
CAG - government
CAH - car (1 bike too, but no confirmed)
CAI - bike
CAJ - car and bike
CAK - no record so far
CAL - no record so far
CAM - no record so far
CAN - car and bike
CAO - car and bike
CAP - car and bike
CAQ - bike
CAR - car and bike
CAS - no record so far
CAT - car and bike
CAU - car and bike
CAV - car and bike
CAW - no record so far
CAX - car
CAY - car and bike
CAZ - car and bike

My father's bajaj chetak had this registration no. CAQ 6509. I have seen scooters with CAH registration. As regards CAA registration, i vaguely remenber seeing some commercial vans with this no. plate.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by sabinesnubbing

Karl, Sunil.
Excellent. I have photos of A and W on commercial vehicles.
I will rewrite the list to show no distinction between 2 and 4 wheel private.

Do you think 1979 is correct?
And what about CBA, B, etc. CB is supposed to have existed in the very last few months before the new 1989 system started. Were any ever seen?
Cheers
Cedric

In KA i think we had some registration numbers starting with CBK, CNN.. etc.

[sunilnp]

CBK existed for some time in Q1 1990 in Bangalore South (Jayanagar ) RTO, do not recall other CB series being used. Post April 1990 moved to new KA XX XX XXXX series.

Sunil

[sabinesnubbing]

Gents,
Many thanks for the help.
Strange that they only issued CBK. Mind you many of the decisions and choices of letter combinations made by the powers that were in the licensing world in the 80s especially look very strange in hindsight .

It is not helped by the fact that sometime around 1979 or 1980 a now long lost list was published that allocated a whole load of new letters for when the various states ran out of existing combinations in the (then) future.
Sadly the list has been lost as far as plate collector societies in the UK and US know but for Karnataka, CK, CL, CM, CN, CR, CS, CT were all allocated.
CL and CS were never actually used as far as I can see and CM was very rare I believe (a bit like CB I think) with no photos that I have seen but a reference on here to CMM being Mysore exists.

I have little information on CK, CM, CN, CR, CT and do not even know which came first (CT maybe??) and which last (CM as a guess??).
All I have is
Mangalore CTA then CRX, CNO
Belgaum CRL, CTL, CND, CNL
Mysore CMM
It seems they may have used an allocation of letters basically similar to the old MY and ME list but with Bangalore letters being realocated after Bangalore got CA all to itself.
Ah the joys of trying to work out the pre89 registration series!
Cheers
Cedric

[ajitkommini]

My uncle had a Premier in the early 1990s with registration starting CNO nnnn. He bought it second hand at the time, and the previous owner said it had been registered in Raichur, North Karnataka.

[karlosdeville]

Here is another fantastic period publicity shot courtesy Centro Storico's vast archives



It shows what must be a Fiat executive riding in a 1954/55 Millecento in Madurai, bearing a dealer plate MDU 21 D. Note the plate is similar in design to the one in Bombay seen earlier.

[travancore]

Originally Posted by karlosdeville

Here is another fantastic period publicity shot courtesy Centro Storico's vast archives

Attachment 1256188

It shows what must be a Fiat executive riding in a 1954/55 Millecento in Madurai, bearing a dealer plate MDU 21 D. Note the plate is similar in design to the one in Bombay seen earlier.

Thanks Karl! The paint seems to have a "metallic" sheen. Wonder if it indeed was.

[karlosdeville]

Originally Posted by travancore

Thanks Karl! The paint seems to have a "metallic" sheen. Wonder if it indeed was.

Possible - the 56/57 Elegants were offered in a metallic Peacock Blue shade.

This similar looking picture also seems to show it



BYB would be an erstwhile Gujarat regn, probably Baroda?

[sabinesnubbing]

gents,
A snippet of information that I thought was interesting. I hope you do also.
My friend was in the British Library recently and found this in a newspaper called the Lichfield Mercury dated 9 May 1924.

"Cyclists in Simla, India, are liable to a tax equalling 13s. 4d. per annum, and there is a speed limit of 8 m.p.h. A number plate is carried above the rear mudguard, and a rear lamp is compulsory. Until recently cycling was confirmed to certain roads, between the hours of 3 and 5p.m. only, but these regulations have been slightly modified."

So gentlemen....Your task is to find one of these bicycle plates or a photo of a bicycle with one on. LOL
Cheers
Cedric

[karlosdeville]

A recent image here shows the earliest autorickshaws

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/vinta...ml#post3474028 (The Classic Commercial Vehicles (Bus, Trucks etc) Thread)

If we look closely, it again seems to sport dealer plates like we saw in the 2 Fiat images earlier







Cedric, do you have clear pictures of details of these plates? What is in the circle on the top? Were they made of metal or leather (as I've heard from some people)

[sabinesnubbing]

Karl,
You have better eyes than me! LOL.
However if you say it's a dealer plate, I am more than happy to agree.
I have no direct knowledge of British India dealer plates but would have to presume that they were of similar design to British dealer (trade) plates or to give them the official name, "General Indentification Marks".
The earliest (1904 onwards) ones were various designs but by the 1920s, holders made of leather were known with a place for a short metal plate and a place for the tax disc at the top. By the 1930s I think they had become a metal plate with a protrusion at the top for the front of the vehicle and a plain plate for the rear. The British ones had a triangular holder for the annual license rather than this circular one.
Cheers
Cedric

[travancore]

The Aga Khan's Packard Eight.

courtesy: Detroit Historical Society

Nice car and interesting plate. Assuming this is a Bombay registration from the late 1920's ?

[sabinesnubbing]

Travancore,
Indeed, starting in about 1902 Bombay used all numerals, then BOM, Z, Y, X, W, T, N, K.
Y is known to have started in about 1920 or 1921.
Cheers
Cedric