diff --git a/spec/cordova/util.spec.js b/spec/cordova/util.spec.js
index f95a8d4..09a2a3a 100644
--- a/spec/cordova/util.spec.js
+++ b/spec/cordova/util.spec.js
@@ -107,6 +107,19 @@
                 .then(versions => expect(versions[PLATFORM]).toBe('9.0.0'));
         });
     });
+    describe('getPlatformVersion method', () => {
+        it('should get the version from a legacy platform', () => {
+            const PLATFORM_VERSION = '1.2.3-dev';
+
+            fs.outputFileSync(path.join(temp, 'cordova/version'), `
+                #!/usr/bin/env node
+                console.log('${PLATFORM_VERSION}');
+            `.trim());
+
+            const version = util.getPlatformVersion(temp);
+            expect(version).toBe(PLATFORM_VERSION);
+        });
+    });
     describe('findPlugins method', function () {
         let pluginsDir, plugins;
 
diff --git a/src/cordova/util.js b/src/cordova/util.js
index 3fb5f0f..dab307a 100644
--- a/src/cordova/util.js
+++ b/src/cordova/util.js
@@ -207,9 +207,10 @@
         ).version();
     } catch (e) {
         // Platforms pre-Cordova 10
-        return requireNoCache(
-            path.join(platformPath, 'cordova/version')
-        ).version;
+        return require('execa').sync(
+            process.argv0, // node
+            [path.join(platformPath, 'cordova/version')]
+        ).stdout;
     }
 }