A friend is looking to replace his BMW 750 V12 with a later 760. He's come across a car that the dealer says is '06, but my friend knows was built in late '03 and supplied to Jordan in '04. The private plate has been retained and the dealer doesn't know what registration the DVLA will allocate, but clearly thinks it'll be an '06 from when the car first came to the UK.

My friend has negotiated the asking price down from £30,000 to £15,000, which to my mind is still too much for a car with a dodgy background. I'm also very suspicious that such a car has only covered 14,000 miles.

What are the DVLA rules about allocating a registration number to such a vehicle - would it be given '03 or '06 and would you walk away whatever the situation?