901 meets 997; 1965 meets 2005; SA"119" meets SA"911"

[1st]

Old white on black numeral only vintage style "historic" or "heritage" numberplates are a collectable & valuable thing here in some states in Australia; I've been the No1 dealer in them in my state of South Australia for over 20 years. It's a passion of mine.

These plates are actually how I came to track down & acquire my 901, but that's another story.

A long term client recently asked me to sell his plate SA"911", originally issued in 1906 (to, well, the nine-hundred and eleventh car registered here in SA), and a plate he'd owned since 1985 when it was first re-issued and made available by our government for purchase instead of the old random number registration method of acquisition.

It was auctioned by us for a record price & secured by a client who could have bought a very nice, fully restored early 911 RHD Australian delivery car for the same money. Yup. True.

I met my client today and took my early 901, a local SA car from new and the first RHD customer car delivered in Australia. In 1965 when first put on the road this car was registered to R.F. Angas in the numberplate SA "119". That vinyl plate you can see was stuck on the front of my car in '65 and has been there ever since.

This is a number plate his family was first issued in 1906, and which he subsequently had on all his personal cars, including the first ever RHD Porsche made, a 1951 356 Cab which he owned soon after it was imported into Australia. That 356 is today alive and very well in Melbourne.

My 901 was the last car to wear SA "119" as in 1966 the rules changed and owners could no longer transfer their numbers from car to car- the numbers stayed with the last cars they were on as at 1966.

Funny enough our client bought the SA "911" plate at auction without a 911 in the garage, so he has just taken delivery of this low mileage black/black 997.

So, today SA "119" met the 2005 997 Coupe that plate SA "911" has just been registered to.

Unremarkable; but

1965 meets 2005
901 meets 997
SA "119" meets SA "911"

Thanks for hanging with me this far; there's some nice symmetry there, so I thought I'd share the quick picture I took. Pity the Porsche dealers didn't screw the SA "911" plate on straight...I'm fixing this for our client next week.

Cheers

Stew.

[LongRanger]

Hey, Stew . . .

License plates have always been an interest of mine. (Couldn't tell from the avatar, huh?) I still remember the plate numbers from my first car . . . always keep a plate from every car I've owned, since --- sometimes several. My cars all had names . . . and the names were their tags: 'SURF 66,' '73 LS2,' 'JETSTER,' two dozen more. Corvairs and Landies, Chevys and Ponchos and Mopars, all kinds of German . . . most loooong gone. Forgotten never. All the places they took me. Garage wall's covered.

When I got a 356, I began a separate small collection. Like the car, all 1960 . . . started with New Mexico (where the car was reportedly first sold), then Wyoming (with the bucking bronco), Alaska, etc --- was on my way to all 50 states, even some Canada (Northwest Territories, Newfoundland, Quebec, and Yukon Territory) --- always pairs, many NOS/never-issued. Even located a pair of un-restored/year-correct California 'gold' plates, cleared by CA DMV, that I registered on the car, under the then-new 'Year-of-Manufacture' procedure. Common now.

But my favorites? A matching pair of 'US Forces in Germany' occupation plates. US still had troops in what was called 'West' Germany, back then --- and not by invitation. Scored mine on eBay, maybe $50?.

That 356 was always kind of a rat, but when I put those occupation plates on, like, for a show? . . . the looks, comments . . .

'Are those real?'

About the only personalization I allow myself, any more . . . . are tags.

Very cool, Stew.

Rick Kreiskott

[1st]

Thanks Rick,

I find with plates, folks are either really into them or couldn't give a shag. I love our old, vintage cars that feature their original black plates, kinda like the black CA plates that get coveted over there.

Here are some period pics of a few other notable SA plates that we have; but the car's are more interesting. Two of these car's are unaccounted for today and one is an ex factory Safari car that is now in the UK having been returned to it's African rally livery.

REF-622 was one of the nine 2.4S Coupes delivered locally in RHD, that a family friend of ours with an earthmoving business bought new, but was insurance co written off after a high speed outback highway off after 49000 miles and 15 months of ownership. The car was then turned into the rally car. Current fate unknown.

SRD-911 was a 2.7 or a 3.0 Carrera rally car that featured on our Weet-bix (breakfast cereal) in-pack card that as kids we all collected here. It contested the local rally series c. 1976-1979. The cereal cards date to 1979 when a series of them was put in the packets. Current fate unknown.

SMV-787 was the ex-East African Safari 911 that was Car No 1 in the 1979 Repco Round Australia Rally driven by Edgar Hermann. Now in the UK having been restored to Safari spec I believe.


Anyone in Aus have any more info on these cars??



Enjoy,

Cheers

Stew.