The wreckage marked a milestone in the drive to rid Manchester's streets of untaxed, unclaimed vehicles.
Manchester City Council has been working with the DVLA since 2004 to seize thousands of untaxed cars which potentially have no insurance or MOT and are often used by criminals.
Coun Neil Swannick, executive member for the environment, said: "The owners of cars which have been removed and crushed aren't people whose tax is just a few days overdue, but people who apparently have no intention of taxing their vehicles at all.
Dangerous
"Not only are they an eyesore but they're often badly maintained and dangerous and getting rid of them benefits everyone.
"The DVLA can claim back the revenue they're owed and the police can move them off the streets, cleaning-up the environment for residents who want to be able to take pride in their neighbourhood."
The 10,000th vehicle, a silver K-reg Renault Espace with 182,000 miles on the clock was seized from Faraday Street in Manchester, and destroyed at Metro Salvage, in Bolton, yesterday .
The crackdown sees parking attendants work as the `eyes and ears' of the council, identifying untaxed vehicles and calling in removal trucks which are on-hand 24-hours-a-day, 365-days-year, and can remove vehicles within two-and-a-half hours of a request.
More than 70 per cent of untaxed vehicles are owned by drivers with other criminal records, according to the DVLA.
Tim Cowen, of NCP Services which operated the service on behalf of the council, said: "Since so many of the vehicles we remove are found to be uninsured and without MOT, we routinely find cars that are little more than death traps which every sensible, law abiding driver will be relieved to see removed from the streets."
Earlier this year the council worked alongside Greater Manchester Police, during Respect Action Weeks, to identify vehicles entering the city without valid tax using automatic number plate recognition.
Motorists whose vehicles are wheel-clamped for not having a valid tax disc can pay a £200 release fee for it to be unclamped at the roadside. They are given 14 days to produce a valid tax disc and receive a £120 surety payment. If a vehicle is not claimed within 24 hours, it is removed to a pound and the release rises to £280 plus £15 per day storage. If a vehicle remains unclaimed or fees are not paid it is sent to be crushed.
* The M.E.N reported in September how a separate initiative targeting uninsured drivers had seen police seize more than 25,000 cars in Greater Manchester after the introduction of new powers last year. More than 10,000 of those cars have been crushed since the law came into force giving police greater powers to seize vehicles from drivers suspected of not being insured.
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Roam the streets and check all the cars .Its time that everybody should pay their way.Its a joke when the people who struggle to pay their way have to pay for the people who try and get away without paying.
Insterad of crushign them that costs money, why not sell on the ones worth selling on (Auction?) and raise money?
I think they are doing a great job for all motorists who stick to the rules. A car with 182000 on the clock good advert for Renault.
Now how about giving the tax/insurance evaders a work course where they have to do community work as well as having a large fine and their car crushed to send the message out that people who drive without the full legal requirement will pay back everything back to the community.The same community they put at risk everytime they drive cars without the legal documents Etc.
Quote: More than 70 per cent of untaxed vehicles are owned by drivers with other criminal records, according to the DVLA.
Does the DVLA have access to a persons criminal record?
can anyone spot the solicitor's cars in there?
nope, thought not
Today I saw a 40 tonne lorry take to the pavement to park up. His damaged to to the recently laid flags will be about a grand - or 9 years road tax for a 1400cc car.
Now how mant lorries on pavements have the plod pulled?
If a decent vehicle don't crush, why not sell/pass on to a worth while community cause/charity?
It's pretty wasteful, really. Can't they sell the cars on? Even if they get peanuts, it's still better than us paying the cost of the crusher.
For the cost of tax, MOT and insurance it is cheaper for these cheap scate dodgers to buy a car for a few hundred pounds and if it gets crushed it gets crushed !! They just buy another one and see how it goes. Even if they lost 3 cars at £400 each they would still probably be quids in
Their are too many who don't pay their way..I'm a nurse,I pay and benefit from taxes,as do the paitients.Too many well off tax dodgers in this country..whose "inability"to pay taxes results in the man or woman in the street (working and middle class),paying more tax..it's a swindle.
Some great responses with some good ideas here. There are too many people doing what they want at the expense of the honest people who pay their way to drive. At least that's 10,000 vehicles off the streets that shouldn't be there in the first place. I think selling them to raise revenue is a great idea, as long as they are roadworthy.
With metal prices so high - reflected in recent thefts - it's probably better that these high-pollution scrappers are consigned to the crusher.
I'd like to see some of the money raised go to provide the authorities with more Automated(?) Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) equipment, (extra personnel to operate them would be good too) which would help get the licence/tax /insurance dogers off our roads.
Give the police the tools to do the job and keep our streets safer.
I feel so much safer now... why can't they catch real criminals instead, no that's too difficult is'nt it? I know, let's meet the target by doing this instead, plus we get our grinning pictures in the MEN
Dont care about people who dont pay road tax in the slightest bit
Why not crush the cars with the drivers in them. They wont do it again. This is my tip of the day.
"I feel so much safer now... why can't they catch real criminals instead" - Mr Angry, Bury.
So, people that drive with no documents - licence, insurance tax and often no MOT - aren't 'criminals'? Give your head a shake, man!
Try telling that to a family that has lost a loved one to the callous creatures that cause accidents - often due to their inability to drive - then flee the scene.
Law-abiding motorists pay higher insurance premiums, and related expenses, because the law-breakers have decided to 'opt-out' of their social reponsibilities.
They are despicable rogues, cheats and low-life individuals, and 'criminals' is the most appropriate word to describe them.
All the vehicles wiht a registration plate that is not registered with the DVLA should also be stopped as they are not always Taxed Mot'd or Insured. This has been proven time and time again. We have several of these vehicles on our street and they have been there for four years and are being used but never get stopped!!!!
They should also have 1 years driving bans if you are caught with no tax on more than one occasion. That way they might think the risk is not worth it?