I have a Y reg BMW 325 with 2495cc (2.5 litre) and pay £215 road tax per year. My friend has a W reg Mercedes 320 (3.2 litre) jeep with 3199cc and a CLK 320 (3.2 litre) and pays £185 road tax per year. Why is this?

They changed how road tax is calculated in 2001. I'm unsure of the month but at some point in 2001 the tax you pay is based on the CO2 emissions of your veichle, previously it was based on engine size.

Basically, your car will be based on emissions while your friends will be based on engine size (pre 2001 only has 2 groups... believe it's under 1.6 and over 1.6)

So if you wanted, you could buy a 2000 plate 6 litre V12 and pay less than you do now...

Thanks GR44,

So, what you're saying it that if i buy a private plate, pre year 2000, i would pay less than i do? Thanks, i will check that out!!!

Apologies, I wasn't quite clear....

Buying a plate for your cat won't make any odds, it's based on the day/month and year the car was registerred. You can buy a 2000 car and pay less tax on a larger engine - but buying a private plate will make no differance... the DVLA aren't that slow! :)

Here is the full break down:

Any car registerred BEFORE 01/03/01 pays £125 if the engine is under 1549cc or £190 if it's over.

Anything ON or AFTER 01/03/01 pays based on the amount of CO2 they emit. (See table below)

Band

CO2 emission (g/km)

12 months rate

6 months rate

A

Up to 100

Not applicable

Not applicable

B

101-110

£35.00

Not applicable

C

111-120

£35.00

Not applicable

D

121-130

£120.00

£66.00

E

131-140

£120.00

£66.00

F

141-150

£125.00

£68.75

G

151-165

£150.00

£82.50

H

166-175

£175.00

£96.25

I

176-185

£175.00

£96.25

J

186-200

£215.00

£118.25

K*

201-225

£215.00

£118.25

L

226-255

£405.00

£222.75

M

Over 255

£405.00

£222.75

Another interesting loop hole is the old RX-7's - they're 2.6litre dual turbos but many of them when they were imported were registerred as 1.3 (as they technically have 2x 1.3 engines) so they only pay £125 a year!