Thanks to everyone who submitted photos of heritage plates to our Facebook page in 2017.
I’ve put together a list of the top 10 spots from across the year based on the number of likes.
Sit back and enjoy some of the best heritage number plate sightings from the year…
10.
Kicking off the list is this wild Corvette wearing the 2-digit Victorian plate 57.
2-digit plates always attract plenty of love on the page, and combined with a car like this it gained plenty of attention.
Vic ’57’ on a Chevrolet Corvette. Thanks to Lou for this brilliant plate and car. The plate had previously been spotted on an Aston Martin DB9.
9.
Very rarely do we get motorcycle heritage plates sent in, but this one did well for obvious reasons, being the number 1 plate.
Someone may be able to correct me, but I believe motorcycle heritage plates only exist in NSW. I know we certainly don’t have them in Qld or Vic.
Edit: I’ve been informed Victoria does have motorcycle heritage plates. I’ve never had one sent into the page up to this point. The ACT are also issuing numeric plates for motorcycles.
NSW ‘1’ on an MV Augusta. Huge thanks to Ardi for our first genuine sighting of NSW 1! But before you get too excited, there is a car version and a bike version of ‘1’ in NSW… The car version has been in the same family for around 80 years and hasn’t been on a car for around 20 years. One day I hope we get to see it back in use. 
In the meantime, this spotting of the bike version is still pretty epic!
8.
Another Victorian 2-digit combined with a very cool car. I was quite pleased when I saw this one come in for the first time.
Vic ’27’ on a McLaren 675LT Spider. Big thanks to Harrison for this super impressive plate and car. The plate had previously been on a lovely 993 Turbo, but it’s now with a new owner and of course a new car.
7.
This would have to be one of the least valuable cars I’ve posted on the page, but it only added to the appeal of this spot.
A plate worth comfortably over half-a-million dollars on a car worth a couple of grand was always going to get some love.
NSW ’46’ on a Toyota Yaris. Thanks to Gary for this $600k+ plate on a somewhat less valuable vehicle. It is an upgrade from the 1990s Corolla that the plate had previously been spotted on… There is certainly something satisfying about seeing very valuable plates on rather ordinary cars. 
6.
Tasmania’s number 1 plate sold in 2017 for over $300k, and it didn’t take too long for it appear on a vehicle, and subsequently on our page.
Tas ‘1’ on a Ferrari 458 Italia. Big thanks to Philip K for this brilliant spot. The plate sold earlier this year for $310,000 at auction, and it’s no surprise to see it now remade in the Victorian enamel style. Thanks also to the other few people who also sent photos of this car over the weekend.
5.
This was the only 3-digit plate to make the top 10 list this year, and I suspect that had a lot to do with the car.
It also coincided with the sudden increase in prices for 3-digit plates in Victoria, with the plate having sold for over $100k at auction just one week prior to being spotted on the road.
Vic ‘447’ on a Mercedes AMG C63 S Estate. Thanks to anonymous for this plate, which sold for $112,000 at auction just last week. Nice to see it on the road so soon, and on a very worthy vehicle.
4.
There was plenty of love for this one. A low 2-digit NSW plate worth in the region of $700k, slapped on the back of a rusty old Land Cruiser.
Shortly before this was spotted, NSW 29 sold at auction for $745,000 and NSW 36 for $744,000 including buyers premium.
NSW ’39’ on a Toyota Land Cruiser. Thanks to Mark for this brilliant 2-digit. A $700k+ number plate on a rusty old ‘Cruiser.
Original post
3.
The combination of a low single-digit plate and a Ferrari is pretty hard to beat!
I took this photo myself whilst attending the Shannons auction of NSW 4. That plate sold for a record $2.45 million, coincidentally to the owner of this car and plate.
NSW ‘2’ on a Ferrari 458, parked at the Shannon’s auction on Monday night as the owner waited to bid successfully for NSW ‘4’. A nice addition to the collection indeed. Photo by me.
2.
Our second most loved photo for the year may not technically be a ‘spotting’, certainly not out in the wild, but it was still very well received by fans.
Three 2-digit South Australian plates on a trio of special Porches, book-ended by a Ferrari and a Lamborghini that both wear single digit plates. Wow…
SA ’18’, ’17’ & ’44’ on a Porsche 911R, 911 GT3 RS & Cayman GT4. The 458 Special and Aventador SV on either side wear single digits. Thanks to the owner for allowing me to use this sensational photo.
1.
And that brings us to the most liked photo for the year, with 277 likes.
Last year it was the mighty Vic 1 plate, and this year it is… The same again!
I get dozens of photos of Vic 1 sent in every year, but as with all numbers I try not to post them more than once a year or so. That’s probably why it is so special (and loved) when I do post a shot of it.
Vic ‘1’ on a Mercedes AMG E63. Thanks to John for this very special plate, which has been attached to this car for many years now. I’ve posted it plenty of times over the years, and it gets sent in an awful lot. It’s been almost 12 months since it was last posted though, so here she is again… I’ve put together some great history on Vic 1 which can be found here.
Thanks so much to everyone who submitted photos during 2017. I don’t get a change to reply to every message, particularly when it’s of a plate that’s been posted before.
I do appreciate all of them though, and when you do send me one that hasn’t been on the page before, rest assured I will reply and I will post it on the page!
Bonus photo…
I was a little disappointed that no Queensland plates made the list this year, so I’ll sign off by sharing a photo of my own Qld heritage plate that I was very pleased to acquire towards the end of 2017.
Cheers and have a great 2018!
