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Historic/Vintage Plates in Ontario

7K views 13 replies 4 participants last post by  smurfy71 
#1 ·
Hi folks,

I've got an '83 Shadow 750 and I'd like to learn more about the possibility of getting historic plates and insurance for it in Ontario.

Has anyone here registered and insured their bike with historic plates? If so, can you shed some light for me about your registration experience and which insurer you're with?

What I learned so far from scouring the web and other forums:

- Bikes over the age of 30 years qualify for vintage plates
- Most Service Ontario reps don't know about the vintage plates, the registration process, or requirements, so I should expect some friction here.
- Insurance is typically hard to find but there are insurers who deal with this kind of specialized policy.
- Insurance typically has some limits on the bike's use: There is a limit of 1500km/year, as well as restrictions on the bike's use for bike shows, testing after tuning, etc. It's not meant to be a vehicle for transportation.

Is there something else I should be aware of?

Cheers,

Vlado
 
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#2 ·
Sorry I am not up there but I have the same bike and have a collector plate here in Washington state. They have restrictions here too on the usage for the collector plate such as For Parades, For riding to Display at a show, and for Testing. I am not a long distance rider but run around here within a 30 mile area, and don't think there will ever be a problem unless I am pulled over for speeding,etc.
"But I was just giving my carbs a long run to get the crap out of the jets," right? Tuning and testing ! LOL
But there is no insurance requirement on bikes in this state, however I did get some basic insurance from Allstate with no problem, all they want to know is year and usage. I am a customer of Allstate already with home and auto.
I went on the website of the my state and the DMV explains all the requirements for licensing and restrictions you need to know. Maybe that can be the best help.
 
#3 ·
Sounds like we have pretty similar rules as you do in Washington state. That same argument came up some posts I read, in case of getting pulled over :D I wonder how that is affected if I have a passenger on board, such as if my wife and I go out for a ride and coffee?
 
#4 ·
Are your police very suspicious and ticket hungry up there? If you live in a small town the police may be more critical. I think a guy riding safe and sane would not cause the police to examine your plate.
You might even ask a local officer if they are critical about that type of plate. I had second thoughts after I got mine but it is a one time fee, without yearly tab renewal, and I don't ride long distances. So I spent extra to get the collector plate.
 
#5 · (Edited)
The law in Virginia is very vague mainly not to drive to work or commercial use. I am retired so I don't drive anything to work and have a 1980 truck, a 1940 Willys MB Jeep, a 1982 28F camper and a 1982 Honda GL500i all w/antique tags you need one vehicle w/regular tags too. One time $50 fee no inspection required , insurance is though but that's it. here is the law for Va.
.http://www.dmv.state.va.us/vehicles/antique.html. This part pretty much covers everything. "Testing its operation, obtaining repairs or maintenance, selling the vehicle or trailer, transportation to and from events as described in number 1 above and for the occasional pleasure driving not to exceed 250 miles from your residence". Where I live in central Virginia 250 miles will get me anywhere I want to go. I have been pulled over because there is no expiration date on the tag so I carry a copy of the law and have never got a ticket. Do this on line if you can.
 
#6 ·
Thanks for the feedback guys, this is good to know :)

I'm in a mid-size town of about 500k people (and growing). I'll mostly be riding through the countryside as I'm a new rider and traffic makes me nervous still. Hopefully the smaller town cops won't be to vigilant.

I'm curious about your insurance. Do you have a different insurance class for vintage bikes? Is it less expensive than the normal coverage, and if so, what is covered and what is not?
 
#7 ·
I use State Farm for all my vehicles, an antique policy for cars and trucks regular policy for antique motorcycles with similar restrictions on use as antique tags. There are antique policy companies only you can look into but I like all in one place. Like any motor vehicle its mostly how you drive.
 
#8 ·
Best to contact your insurance agent there. With mine I believe it is rated on age of bike and miles driven, my age, my citation record, and that I took MSF class and have the endorsement. Also discounts with other policies with them, home and auto.
But as I said this state does not require bike insurance, but Oregon and Idaho do, so you have to be insured if you travel to the next state.
Here helmets are required so maybe they think a helmet is just as good as insurance? :roll:
 
#9 ·
Ontario's a little bit more draconian, so we require proof of insurance prior to being able to get your plates and get your car/bike on the road. Same goes with home insurance, where banks need proof before they can activate a mortgage or approve a sale/buy.
 
#10 ·
I was looking at the Service Ontario page, and it really isn't clear, but it seems like they don't offer "Vintage" plates anymore. It looks like, if you can find a plate stamped with the year of your vehicle, you can use it. They haven't stamped motorcycle plates since 1975.

Here is what the site says:

Vehicle requirements
You can attach year of manufacture plates to a vehicle if it:

-weighs under 3,000 kg
-is a passenger and light commercial vehicle from 1973 and earlier
-is a motorcycle from 1975 and earlier
-is a historic vehicle
-is at least 30 years old
-is not substantially changed or modified from its original manufactured condition
 
#12 ·
I learned something new while speaking to Hilda at the J.D. Smith insurance company. It is very unlikely to get insured for a vintage bike unless you have the following qualifications:

M licensed more than 3 years and continuous motorcycle insurance for 3 years

...

and the bike used for parades, charity rides and motorcycle shows with limited pleasure rides and appraised for at least $3,000.
The appraisal value is a new bit of info, which I had not come across before. I imagine they'd like to keep people from abusing the vintage bike program for old beaters and instead have real vintage bikes. The full M license requirement makes sense for the same reasons.

I don't yet have confirmation on the "older than 30 years" and "motorcycles from before 1975" rule.
 
#14 ·
And put some gold parts on to keep the value up.

Hmmm, I have an 83 Yamaha, I've had my M for 25 years, held insurance on a bike for 3 years, only problem is the bike is worth about $3........ Okay, maybe $5.
 
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