Registering and changing tax class of an EV conversion in the UK

[eUKenGB]

I guess it's too hard for DVLA to issue specific guidelines available for prospective converters to read so they know what is required beforehand. Seems DVLA prefer to NOT let anyone know their requirements and at the end be able to say "NO!"

[Alibro]

I guess it's too hard for DVLA to issue specific guidelines available for prospective converters to read so they know what is required beforehand. Seems DVLA prefer to NOT let anyone know their requirements and at the end be able to say "NO!"

It would be better if they inspected as we go along like the Irish do.

[rstevens81]

Well this is the rsponse i got from chris on what the issues are but no new information really

[snelly]

You are write it's about the point system, as all the questions, asked was about modifying chassis and what was left of the original vehicle

[Alibro]

So today I had my 2nd inspection by the DVLA MOT inspectors so now I have to wait for the decision coming from Swansea.
It seemed like half the MOT inspectors in Belfast were looking at the car as it attracted a lot of attention and the senior inspector came over to me and complimented me on the job which was really nice to hear but sadly doesn't mean much as he is not making the decision.
I think the first inspection they only took photo's and passed them on to Swansea but this time they took more photos and will write a report. They told me they were content that the chassis had not been cut, drilled or welded so hopefully this will mean something when Swansea get it but I just have to wait and see.

I am very grateful to those of you who advised to avoid cutting, drilling or welding as I at least have some chance of it being approved. I'm pretty certain had I done any of the above I would be going through an IVA test so maybe that is a lesson for us all.

In order to help them see more I removed a large plastic panel under the motor/gearbox so maybe this time they will have got clearer photos but it does seem bizarre that some of the finest car safety inspectors in the country were standing looking at the car yet the decision will be made by someone in Swansea looking at photo's.

[ianlighting]

So today I had my 2nd inspection by the DVLA MOT inspectors so now I have to wait for the decision coming from Swansea.
It seemed like half the MOT inspectors in Belfast were looking at the car as it attracted a lot of attention and the senior inspector came over to me and complimented me on the job which was really nice to hear but sadly doesn't mean much as he is not making the decision.
I think the first inspection they only took photo's and passed them on to Swansea but this time they took more photos and will write a report. They told me they were content that the chassis had not been cut, drilled or welded so hopefully this will mean something when Swansea get it but I just have to wait and see.

I am very grateful to those of you who advised to avoid cutting, drilling or welding as I at least have some chance of it being approved. I'm pretty certain had I done any of the above I would be going through an IVA test so maybe that is a lesson for us all.

In order to help them see more I removed a large plastic panel under the motor/gearbox so maybe this time they will have got clearer photos but it does seem bizarre that some of the finest car safety inspectors in the country were standing looking at the car yet the decision will be made by someone in Swansea looking at photo's.

Just wondering if you passed the DVLA assessment?

I’m just starting to nose around at people’s posts about DVLA inspections to see what I need to consider. I get the whole, no drilling, cutting thing. Be good to see a positive result.

[Alibro]

Just wondering if you passed the DVLA assessment?

I’m just starting to nose around at people’s posts about DVLA inspections to see what I need to consider. I get the whole, no drilling, cutting thing. Be good to see a positive result.

Apologies, my bad, I should have reported back.
Yes it passed and I've driven almost 2000 miles since.

The MOT testing in Northern Ireland is different to the rest of the UK as we have council owned and run testing centres but I don't think it makes much difference since the decision was made in Swansea. They seem to be more interested in whether we cut or drill holes in the body than if it is electrically safe which seems absurd.

[rstevens81]

Apologies, my bad, I should have reported back.
Yes it passed and I've driven almost 2000 miles since.

The MOT testing in Northern Ireland is different to the rest of the UK as we have council owned and run testing centres but I don't think it makes much difference since the decision was made in Swansea. They seem to be more interested in whether we cut or drill holes in the body than if it is electrically safe which seems absurd.

I am assuming that you mean yes DVLA said you could keep your reg, and didnt have to do an IVA however as its a post 2001 car it still says diesel or petrol on v5

[Alibro]

I am assuming that you mean yes DVLA said you could keep your reg, and didnt have to do an IVA however as its a post 2001 car it still says diesel or petrol on v5

Correct, no need for IVA thankfully, and if you check the MOT status for the car it still shows diesel until you go into the MOT history where the fuel type is Electricity.

[ianlighting]

Just done the DVLA process, so thought I’d write it up and share. TL;DR - passed, no hassles (well a few, but no actual objection to the conversion itself).

Detail:
Build page viewtopic.php?p=82607#p82607

Vehicle 1974 VW T2

End of May took the plunge and filled out my V627/1 form.

In my case the only change I needed to register in the DVLA’s points system was the engine change to motor. Everything else is stock. That’s deliberate, who knows what the future holds…. but once it’s an EV on the paperwork I can be a bit more relaxed about other changes.

I also included a separate intro letter showing the vehicle and highlighting how I definitely had not touched the chassis.

A few days later I had an email back with a pdf letter attached. It seemed to have been written by several different people, but it told me I needed to be inspected and the work would be done by a visiting engineer, from an engineering company, on behalf of another company, who had the business from the dvla.

In capital letters it told me to phone to make an appointment with the outsourced company. The letter said the dvla would NOT make the appointment for me. But when no one answered on the 2 occasions I tried, I emailed back to the dvla who then phoned the company, and then the dvla emailed me to say they had phoned the company and someone would phone me back! Efficient system!

So then I got called by someone who did the bookings and initially she was going to book for the following day. In the end, with holidays, it took a couple more weeks for the visit to happen.

The thing that had me a little concerned was a phrase that was repeated about the vehicle needing to be ‘complete’. This wasnt defined, but my passenger area was a little basic as I’d planned to refit this at a later date. So although my ‘EV’ bit was done, I didn’t really know whether a half empty passenger section could count against me, so got the saw and soft furnishings out to make it look a bit more presentable over the next couple of weeks.

On the day…

Chap turns up on time. Was ok to talk to. Said he’d seen a couple of Land Rover conversions. He was a qualified motor engineer, but I started to have my doubts about his understanding of EVs when he looked at the Nissan Leaf PDM charging / junction box and said ‘ and there’s your battery’.

I was going into this with the attitude of being open and helpful when asked, but otherwise saying as little as possible for fear of saying the wrong thing.

I’m not sure whether he would have specifically asked to see the battery box if he hadn’t mis identified it, but once he said that, I decided I had no option but to introduce him to it. Which was fine, but I don’t think he really looked at where the HV went through the bodywork to reach the battery. That had been a slight concern for me. I didn’t make the hole, and I was prepared to argue that it was vw made and I doubt anyone could say otherwise. But I have seen other T2s without this convenient access, so it was a slight grey area.

He seemed to appreciate the build, but was very clear that ‘ the dvla are a law unto themselves’, and ‘they don’t pay for my personal opinions, just the photos and report’. So whatever he may have personally thought was not going to help me. Any attempts at sweet talking or discussing anything would therefore be fruitless.

He had an app in which to enter lots of answers, and he took lots of photos. Aswell as the relevant conversion bits, he also did the exterior (which in my case is a bit ropey in places), plus the 2 locations with the VIN stamp.

And off he went…

About 2 weeks later I get a dvla posted letter asking for a ‘current mot due to the changes’. This letter said nothing about whether I had passed or not. Or whether the existing valid mot I already have was relevant. So I phoned to clarify.

Seems I had passed and the dvla are happy, but they just want the vehicle to undergo a fresh mot. So in a slightly underwhelming way, this was cause for celebration!

Next step, the MOT…

Went to visit a local garage. Explain the situation, end up with the front desk guy and 3 mot mechanics all discussing it, but they said no problem, come back tomorrow for the test.

So I did, and met the manager this time who then disappeared for 20 minutes. Came back, apologised for messing me around but said they didn’t know how to do it and didn’t want to risk getting it wrong and lose their licence.

That’s despite me having a direct phone line to the dvla man who had passed it. And me explaining that I’d phoned the dvla up that morning to clarify and they said just get the garage to do it ‘as normal’, for me to phone them back when it’s done, and they would update systems on their end so it all ties up.

Which gets me to now. I have another garage appointment next week who were not at all concerned. I’ve also got another garage on backup just incase.

Hopefully I have not jumped the gun with this post before seeing a valid V5 sent through. I guess there’s still scope for some kerfuffle. But all things being equal I should be completely official in a week or so.

[Jacobsmess]

Great news and good update on their... "process".

[ianlighting]

To conclude my DVLA post from 4 weeks ago…

Second MOT garage was completely fine with doing the inspection, but they did unfortunately find something I knew would be a failure. I had planned to get it all sorted with other bodywork in September, but the DVLA inspection process threw my plans out of sync.

Got the problem sorted, passed MOT. I phoned DVLA conversions phone number as requested and my message was taken. 2 weeks later I have my new V5 doc…

So I’m still Historic - presumably still no cost for taxing it annually, although wouldn’t be too upset if I did have to.
Plus I am officially Electric!

Only wrinkle in the system is if I use the .gov site to check MOT status, that still says Petrol. So I’ll email them to see if they have an opinion on that, but otherwise I think the admin side is all done now.

Edit - email response next day (sent at 06:17 on a Saturday morning!?), said he can’t update the MOT petrol status but it doesn’t affect validity. So I’m going to leave it at that.

And just to add a note on insurance since I did that a few days ago aswell - £217 which I’m v happy with. A few notes on that on my build page.



Chassis build and bolt holes - I know the horror stories, usually about minis and being failed due to being ‘monocoque bodyshell’ and with a new screw hole for something minor. I’m not making any public statement about potential new screw holes in mine, but if there were any, hopefully they were irrelevant because mine is ‘chassis built’ rather than because no one noticed. I’m not about to poke that hornets nest to find out more detail.

[ianlighting]

Cross linking to a new dvla thread in case you miss it. I suspect this new one is going to be the one to watch for the future. Might make all the angst just float away…

viewtopic.php?p=85355#p85355


Edit - can someone comment on that new thread above. Just realised my helpful link now means this thread is at the top of the pile and that other one deserves the attention.

[eUKenGB]

To conclude my DVLA post from 4 weeks ago…

Got the problem sorted, passed MOT. I phoned DVLA conversions phone number as requested and my message was taken. 2 weeks later I have my new V5 doc…
…
So I’m still Historic - presumably still no cost for taxing it annually, although wouldn’t be too upset if I did have to.
Plus I am officially Electric!
…

Well done getting it through. Outstanding question in my mind is whether it is still MOT exempt?