Big thunderstorm here, so I’m inside with time for this post. On our trip in Nay, I learned that Irish license plates start with the year to manufacture if that car. A plate that begins a with “17” lets you know that it’s a 2017 model.
You’ll know how new your rental car is, or the Audi that just passed you at 30 KPH over the speed limit. Stay left!!!
or the Audi that just passed you at 30 KPH over the speed limit.
Only 30kph over?
In Italy, when I got to my destination one day, I had to check to make sure all the Audi's and Benzs that had blown past me hadn't sucked the paint off my rental car. Turns out Volvo paint sticks well.
These were on 50KPH roads!
Lots of BMW’s and Mercedes-Benzes around in southern Ireland, but they weren’t in as much of a hurry as the Audi’s. The old Jag XKE driver one day, with top down, was just enjoying the views and the drive on the narrow, twisty roads. Our Seat rental economy car (stick shift, natch) kept up really well ‘til it turned off, but no need to be going 80KPH (50MPH) on a country road with blind corners and a huge farm tractor probably around the next bend.
Yea for Swedish (and Spanish) automotive paint!
Then again, in a construction zone in the vicinity of Cork, it was an Audi that whizzed past everybody else. Maybe the driver was doing 130KPH … with traffic and construction slow-downs for every other car, and the posted speed limit (plus sensible rate, based on the situation) was far lower.
Trying to read the year or County indications on the license plates would’ve been tough; they were just a blur.
Just spitballing here but “ learned that Irish license plates start with the year to manufacture if that car. A plate that begins a with “17” lets you know that it’s a 2017 model.” would mean the licensing place would have to look at the year of each car, then find the appropriate year.
My guess is it is the year the plate was issued. Since most cars are initially sold new, the year of the car and year the plate was first issued are usually the same. You therefore usually get symmetry. Since plates stay with a car, the old plate helps ID when the car was made and sold, and the plates made and first issued.
Just a guess. No actual facts.
Except in Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom) number plates are dateless three letters and four numbers the last two letters denote the county the car is registered in the first letter is the serial letter
UK plates are black on yellow on the back and black on white on the front
The prefixes are as follows
UI -Derry/Londonderry city currently YUI
YZ County Derry/Londonderry currently CYZ
RZ Co Antrim currently URZ
MZ -Belfast currently BMZ
SZ co down currently HSZ
XZ Co Armagh currently SXZ
VZ co Tyrone AVZ currently
IG County Fermanagh currently XIG
Northern Ireland like the rest of the UK drives in miles per hour not kilometres as Ireland does
