Quote Originally Posted by Setanta View Post
Did the SA inspectors forget that the VIN is also stamped on the firewall? Pretty sure this is how vehicles get rebirthed. It certainly was in Victoria and Qld. There's a lot of Federal Govt info her on ID/compliance/import plates here: http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/C2012C00175 but nothing on the legalities of a government official removing the compliance plate. Compliance plates are only used when the car is first registered and only link ADRs to the VIN. They do not identify the car itself (2 rivets - seriously?), but merely state that it meets ADRs (and reminds you that you must comply to those ADRs). There's a whole university submission to the govt outlining the uselessness of compliance and build plates on the net.

There is something fishy about this whole situation. Either something dodgy is being done or there is information missing. Why exactly did the SA authorities remove the plate. They would have told the new owners the exact reason and the VIN as an excuse doesn't wash as it's stamped to the chassis.

A word of warning, don't refund and take the car back without the VIN plate (if you were contemplating such) because my far too suspicious mind would work along the lines of: car is purchased, car returned sans plate, car gets new compliance plate in NSW yet strangely enough a second EM1 in SA ends up with the "same" VIN stamped on a chassis ($120 die set and hammer can do this) and an original compliance plate. Not saying the buyers might do that, but who knows who has that plate now.
If my memory serves me correctly, I believe the buyer said something along the lines of - the inspector took out the compliance plate because the numbers were rubbed out. They refused to return the plates to the owner of the vehicle.

I am not entirely sure what you are you trying to say in your last paragraph ? The buyer bought the car and is just wanting to transfer the vehicle to his name. Are you saying that the inspectors are possibly trying to take the plates out and re-distribute it so another vehicle somewhere can be re-birthed ?