The sun has come to Lavausseau

 

At last we have a touch of Spring already. The greenness is beginning to show, and will be in full growth within weeks.

The French number plate

 One other thing worth mentioning about the system of French number plates. The Departement number was incorporated in the registration number itself. So my number used to have the 86 within it. Now it is excluded. But it is still there, as the number plate manufacturers in each Departement display it on the far right of the plate, together with a Map! Previously, people had a new number plate if they moved to another Departement. I needed a new plate as the car was registered previously in the UK.

New car registration

It took a few weeks, and a lot of money, but I finally managed to register my car in France. It required a number of documents:

1. A Certificate of Conformity. This is produced by the car manufacturer to vouch that the car was made in accordance with European standards. As MG Rover is now defunct, I bought it through a Company based in Slovakia. The operation seems to be perfectly legal, but it cost 262.80 Euros - a not totally dissimilar amount that I paid to MG Rover itself for my previous car. Why it is necessary, when a blanket assurance that all its cars meet the EU requirements, thereby making individual certificates unnecessary, I do not know.
2. A Controle Technique. This is similar to the UK's MOT certificate, and a thoroughly good thing. It cost me 60 Euros.
3. A VAT approval. This is given by the French Tax Authorities, after examining the VAT invoice from the Vendor. This costs nothing!

After approving these documents at the Prefecture, I paid 262.50 Euros for the Carte Grise. This is the Vehicle Document, and certifies me as the owner.

I then bought the Number Plates at a Shoe Repair shop for 25 Euros, plus a riveting kit for 2.40 Euros. And I was ready for the installation, which was kindly done by my friend Robin.



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Location:Lavausseau