There was an important and
significant announcement for vintage and classic car enthusiasts and collectors
in the UAE by – the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has teamed up
with the Automobile & Touring Club of the UAE (ATCUAE) to offer unique
classic car registration and plates from this month.
From now on, if you own a classic
car that is older than 30 years – so up to 1981 at present – you can get it
uniquely registered as a classic car in Dubai.The cars will only be registered
after an initial inspection of the car and documentation to confirm its
eligibility and then a more detailed hour-long inspection to check the status
and condition of the car. All testing is done at a new facility run by the
ATCUAE, staffed by technicians trained in Germany.
The ATCUAE is affiliated with the
International Federation of Classic Vehicles (FIVA) – which provides global
classification of vintage and classic cars. As part of the registration process
owners will get certification from FIVA which in itself is likely to enhance
the value of the vehicle.Categories
If the car is accepted into
registration it will be classified into one of six categories:
Category A – cars built between
1950-1981 will be registered to travel anywhere, but annual mileage will be
limited to 10,000km. This is in order to limit emissions and pollution, as most
older cars will not be as clean as modern automobiles, as well as encouraging
safe driving. If an owner expects to exceed that mileage, they can register it
through the normal process at RTA – although it will then be subject to the
normal inspection and registration process for modern cars.
Category B – cars built before
1950 will be limited to 5000km.
Category C – cars in this
category will not be allowed to travel on high-speed motorways or highways as
they may be unable to attain or maintain higher speeds, or lack sufficient
safety to do so.
Category D – cars can only be
driven during daylight hours – primarily because they may not have sufficient
lighting.
Category E – only to be driven on
internal or service roads.
Category F – only for display and
not allowed to be driven.
Ahmed Bahrozyan, CEO of the RTA
Licensing Agency, explained: ‘Classifying vehicles into categories is based on
global standards and assessment mechanism that comprises different aspects
namely – safety belts, type of fuel, and type of brakes.
Fees
The registration fee is the same
as it is for modern cars – AED430 but the inspection fee is higher due to more
detailed nature of the test at AED420. That’s a total of AED850 to get your
classic registered.
The plates themselves will come
in two shapes to fit in with the style and design of the classic car, and could
also done as a sticker to go on the nose of the car as you might want to with
cars such as the Jaguar E-Type or AC Cobra.The inspections and registration
will be carried out at a new dedicated facility run by ATCUAE in Al Qusais
Industrial Area 3. Owners will be required to transport the cars to the
inspection centre, although for an additional fee a collection service will
also be offered through the Arabian Automobile Association (AAA). There’s also
a mobile inspection unit which can go and carry out inspections for classic car
collectors wishing to register five or more cars. Book your appointment by
contacting Classic@ATCUAE.ae.
Don’t all come at once though –
the RTA estimates that there are around 3000 cars of 30 years or older in the
UAE, and possibly many more that sit unregistered and undriven in owner’s
private collections.Safety is the most important element to be assessed in
these vehicles before allowing them to hit the road, and this is what will be
guaranteed by the Technical Testing Centre.’
There will also be an opportunity
to choose your plate number with an inaugural auction for classic car plates to
be held on 7th June by the RTA. Over 60 plates will be offered, with the
potential for more depending on demand – so if you really want to have 1959,
you’d better get down there. Check their website for details.Additional
categories
This new registration process is
available for original specification vintage or classic cars and motorbikes.
However plans are already in place to initiate custom registration for other
categories of cars including Competition cars, Modified cars, what they’ve
termed ‘Kit Cars’ which would included vehicles such as resto-mods (older cars
fitted with updated mechanicals or bodywork) including Hot Rods. These could be
started within this year Bin Sulayem told us.This of course could be a huge
development for the car customisation and modification scene which is currently
in a state of uncertainty and being pushed underground with crackdowns on
modified cars having recently taken place in Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.
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