Jane McDaid <Murphys@ziplink.net> writes
Snip
>
>Seriously, though, I wonder if there are any Morgans which have been cloned
>into more than one complete car, each with some legitimate claim to an
>original serial number.
Snip
>Jerry Murphy
>'67+4 6676
This is a worrying point and in the UK can represent a serious problem.
Recently in my area there has been some talk of someone "cloning" a car
from a V5, (Vehicle Registration Document from the DVLA in Swansea), of
a car sold to the continent.
If in the UK you sell your car to someone in France say, there is a fair
chance they will not want the V5, so you are left with no car but a V5.
Using the chassis number on the V5, the dishonest will then build a
clone, using a mixture of used and new bits, not too many from the
factory or they get curious, getting around the need for a Q
registration plate, inspection from the DVLA or the need to use a proper
VIN. This car is then sold as the original morgan again.
So far as I am concerned, this is fraud and needs to be prevented by the
new owner filling in the V5 on the back and declaring the vehicle as
exported. If you are the new owner, I don't care if you want the V5 or
not, complete it, so no unsuspecting poor soul gets lumbered with a car
with no provenance and a highly dubious history.
The three wheeler world regularly warns people about buying a "bitsa", a
car cobbled together from the importent parts of several vehicles, a lot
of family models have been reincarnated as Aeros and the like, (Ken Hill
give a firm warning in his book, "Illustrated Morgan buyers guide", ISBN
0-87938-214-7).
As the value of morgans is still sensible, clones are not too much of a
problem- the provenance of a number of Ferraris and the more exotic
sports/racing cars can end up in the courts.
--
Jeremy Edwards
1972 Morgan 4/4
1970 Opel GT
Melton Mowbray England
|