1 / 3, 1 / 3 and another 1 / 3. That is 1 together. The '1' is a complete car. The third parties are chassis, engine and body. That is a sump that is important for self-builders, kitcar makers and other playful minds. Because it's about license plates.
License plates are difficult
That it is no longer possible to make a VW Buggy on a shortened chassis is because according to the RDW only 1 / 3 may be changed from the original. The buggy bathtub is a part that was not provided in Wolfsburg. That is a change. A shortened platform is also not what they had come up with at VW. So never buy buggies with a shortened frame but without papers. After purchase, they can only be used as a planter because they are no longer marked with marks.
A problem with a Burton
With Burtons and that kind of 2CV-based oddities, things sometimes go wrong on purely bureaucratic grounds. Mount of an Ugly Duck? Check! Bodywork neatly assembled? Check! Exchange / or revision engine mounted? Aiiii. During the revision of 2CV blocks there were / were a few highly serious craftsmen who sounded 'the other way around' on the block after revision with type plate. The original nameplate. Just as optical proof of their work. And then an industrious RDW employee thought that this was not officially done at Citroën. That the engine was therefore not original. So: Bodywork not original. Engine not original. Another 'so': So no license plate.
The fitting of just another engine block is usually not a problem if done properly. The guideline is that the block may not have more than 40% more power than the original. But a Chevy small block in a Jaguar XJ6? That is at most a problem for purists.
And in the past you would just go to another RDW station in the hope that there would be someone with a wider frame of mind. But nowadays the files are linked.
The Vitara was a trendsetter
And just when you would start to think that nothing at all is possible, you will come across a very strange trade-in at motor scrapping / trade Joost Woesthoff in Brummen: A Suzuki Samurai. Tiny Suzuki 4Wd's have been around since 1986. And they are particularly appreciated in off-road circles where there is no money for fat Land Rovers. Developments 'up' go fast with the introduction of the first Suzuki Samurai, a three-door model that quickly attracts a large following.
Everyone's friend
The Samurai sees customers as the ideal all-rounder for work, hobby and leisure and it is the start of a new, affordable trend in the 4 × 4 segment. It has coil springs all around, power steering and a new, functional interior that makes for a serious upgrade in terms of comfort. It remains a very real 4 × 4 with a five-speed gearbox, switchable four-wheel drive and a transfer box with high and low gearing.
A Vitara on license plate
The car at Joost Woesthoff is a Samurai according to the license plate. He can also be officially APKaat. And that is because the 1 / 3 scheme is totally important here: Everything is original Suzuki. Except the bodywork. That bulletproof bodywork was made and welded by an enthusiastic sheet metal worker - we emphatically do not say 'bodyworkers'. It has given the Samurai a kind of 'Mad Max Light' appearance. Endearing or terrible? You can say it.
In short: more is possible in the Netherlands than in neighboring countries. But studied before a dream project will be set up, just what can and may be done.
Countries differ and laws change. And whether we will all become Real Europeans? Didn't think so 🙂
In 1983 I had a Bonito beetle kit, then lived in Belgium, someone wanted to buy it, and went to the technical inspection just like MOT here, and was then informed that only a shortened VW was approved.