A rare three-digit UK registration plate has changed hands for £128,800 at a Silverstone Auctions sale. And if that doesn’t sound crazy enough, it appears to have spent the last few years affixed to an old Jaguar X-type that can’t be worth more than £5k.
The plate, O10, which had been in the same family for an incredible 118 years, was issued in Birmingham in 1902 to the seller’s grandfather – he was tenth in the queue and so was issued with the tenth number.
O was the regional identifier for Birmingham following until 1913 when the area switched to plates with a two-letter prefix to accommodate the huge increase in cars being registered for the road.
Besides spending time on the bumper of Jag’s forgotten 3-series rival, this fairly special plate has adorned various other not-very-special cars over the years, including several Austin A35s and Minis, a Vauxhall Cavalier, its Ford Cortina nemesis, and the odd Peugeot. But you’d presume whoever shelled out 911 Turbo money for it last week is going to give it a 911 Turbo-grade home.
While most people would consider £128k a huge amount of money to spend on a car, let alone a number plate, it’s small change compared to the prices some plates attract.
The current record holder, 25 O, was sold to classic Ferrari John Collins of Talacrest to use on his 250 Berlinetta SWB. Collins paid £518,480 in 2014, but it’s estimated to be worth half as much again today.
And while F1 changed hands for a paltry £440,625 in 2008, its current owner, Yorkshire car modifying tycoon, Afzal Kahn, is apparently open to offers around the £10m mark. As you would be.
Keyword: Rare number plate 'O10' sells for £128k