MEASURED IN METAL: Stewart Kay’s Life Of Plates And Porsches

If you were asked to imagine life as a 15-year-old boy in 1985, you would think riding your BMX bike down to the local corner deli, hanging out with mates in the town’s latest and greatest shopping mall, or renting a VHS movie from the video rental store for Friday night viewing, purely because it had a hot girl on the front cover. Simple times.

What you wouldn’t naturally expect a 15-year-old boy of the time doing is donning a suit and tie, slicking back his hair and accompanying his father to an auction for thin, black pieces of tin imprinted with simplistic numerals. However, that’s exactly what a 15-year-old Stewart Kay did.

The Great Plate Auction of 1985 served as the initiation point for Stewart’s lifelong obsession and career with historic number plates. With a non-alcoholic cocktail of excitement and nerves, the bright-eyed teen attended the prominent gala event hosted at the Hilton International in Adelaide, alongside his dad, who was the local Mercedes-Benz Dealer at the time.

“Off I went with dad and we watched the auction and he put his hand up and bought a couple of plates, one of which I’ve got on a car today which is quite special to me,” Stewart remembered.

While Stewart almost certainly participated in the mainstream teenage activities of the 80’s like his peers, his unique upbringing exposed him to an unconventional new world that blended fine automobiles with local historical significance.

For the vast majority of people, both today and 40 years ago when they began to gain interest, number plates are considered largely unimportant, insignificant pieces of metal that exist solely for the purpose of compulsory regulation and administration. At most, they are a tool used to personalise and label vehicles to the driver’s liking, whether for business or humour. However, there is a minute subculture who find passion, curiosity, desirability and status in owning the rights to a rare numeric number plate.

The 80’s saw a boom in the luxury and exotic car market, with countless manufacturers producing sought-after models that rapidly found their way to South Australian shores. With the introduction of the Australian Formula One Grand Prix in Adelaide in 1985, the state was paradise for the car-nut, with local motoring enthusiasts and luxury car owners coveting the finishing touch that a historic number plate gave them.

After attending the Great Plate Auction, young Stewart noticed this prominent gap in the market and was sure to fill it in no time at all.

“The [Great Plate] Auction was the start for me, and off I went,” Stewart said with a slight grin on his face as he reminisced the occasion that would set the course of his life’s work.

In the years following, Stewart’s passion for the industry grew, leading to him being a pioneer and developing an overlooked niche. With a list of new Mercedes’ owners and quick-dialing fingers, Stewart rehearsed his pitch and would consistently attempt to sell number plates to anyone and everyone who drove a vehicle of note in South Australia.

“As a 16, 17, 18-year-old I used to call doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs and businesspeople and say ‘G’day, would you like to buy a number plate?’” Stewart explained, mimicking the squeaky voice of an ambitious late-teenage version of himself.

The aspirational, hard yards that Stewart achieved throughout this time forged the foundation of his reputation as Australia’s only specialist heritage number plate broker and auctioneer, and his work ethic has seen he and his clients reap the rewards.

“I had a client ring me the other day and say, ‘I can take my wife to Tuscany and we can have a holiday, so thanks for annoying me all those years ago, now you’re going to sell that plate for me thank you,’” Stewart recalled.

His esteemed work has directly influenced the desirability of plates in South Australia, with seemingly mundane assets becoming high-growth investments.

“[Historic number plates] are valuable assets now and people cherish them,”

“Over the years, the value has increased as interest has generated and they’ve become good things to own, a status symbol if you will.”

Stewart’s life-long dedication to number plates underlines their significance as personal assets, and he argues they outshine investments of similar nature.

“They’re a fine investment, you know, it’s just a little bit of tin, unlike a house it doesn’t need new gutters, unlike a car it doesn’t need a service, so they’re great to own.”

As time passed, Stewart’s renowned venture in historic plates developed and kept pace with modern-day advancements and trends that shaped the brokering industry worldwide.

“As values have risen, I’ve introduced new initiatives: we’ve done auctions now for nearly 16 years and were the first to do a number of plates only auction.”

The first auctions Stewart hosted were held in the very place that his passion and profession begun: his late father’s Mercedes dealership.

“We were auctioning simulcast, with the live auction and taking bids off the computer, which is standard stuff today, but 16 years ago, no one was doing anything like that,” Stewart explained.

“Something that I was interested in and passionate about, that I toiled through and laboured over, has become an interesting part of what I do in my world.”

Stewart’s involvement with historic number plates has strongly involved a fascination with collecting other historically significant pieces, whether that be cars or watches. At 21, while working at a frozen chicken factory, as a bartender, as a broker and while studying at university, Stewart purchased his first Porsche: a completely original 1965 911.

“The first car that meant something to me, and it has a plate on it as well, was my old vintage Porsche that I’ve had for 35 years,”

“I used to see it walking the dog past the old bloke’s house who owned it, Mr Wilson,”

“It had the number plate ‘119’ which it still has on it today. I offered to wash it for him and one day he rung me and said, “come around and give me this much money for it”.”

At the time, young Stewart was largely unaware of this particular 911’s significance, however after some thorough research and a fax sent directly to Porsche in Germany, he came to understand the Stone Grey 911’s monumental weight that was placed on its shoulders, that being the first 911 ever delivered in Australia.

As Stewart wandered through his cluttered, rustic shed, the autumnal sunlight sneaked through the dusty windows, illuminating his small-but-noteworthy collection. He spent a moment admiring each subject, reflecting on the decades of brokering that allowed him to purchase interesting automobiles: each had a numeric plate latched onto the frame. It was obvious though, that the little old 911 carried a special place in his heart.

“If I bought that car today, I’d feel elated and fortunate to be the custodian,”

“But it’s been with me for almost as long as I’ve been an adult, and it’s always been accommodated and included and involved – I don’t think I’ll ever end up selling it.”

Like his garage, the 911 had indescribable charm and character. It sat there, tucked away in the corner, used properly without any restoration or molestation throughout its 60-plus years of life.

“For me, painting it or restoring it might remove some of that life-worn journey that it’s had,”

“It’s become a fixture and in a poignant kind of way I hope it stays in the family – one day hopefully it becomes my son’s problem.”

When the 911 emerges from its home and takes to the streets, the teens of today admire it, their ears pricking up at the sound of an air-cooled motor reverberating through the streets and their eyes glistening as it flashes past. They’re focused on the car. But Stewart? His gaze remains on the plate.