I Got Caught Without a License Plate (56k Beware)

  • Thread starter Thread starter Keef
  • 84 comments
  • 3,961 views
Keef
MyPlate1.jpg
Click to expand...

It looks dopey to have 4 holes in your bumper like that. Just put the plate there and you won't have cops hassling you. Its where its "supposed" to be, and its nice and unobstructed, unlike glass on a sunny day which can hide a plate with glare.

On a related note, I got my first speeding ticket yesterday. $230 just for going 86 on the highway on a nice sunny day with minor traffic :grumpy:.
 
xXSilencerXx
Same deal up in Northern Virginia.

My buddy has been pulled over three times for it. No tickets tho. He always says he was doin body work on the nose, which he was....like 6 months ago, anyway they let him go.

I've always wanted to get rid of my front plate, being the my car look 100x better without the plate.
Click to expand...
My cousin had a fist sized hole where his license plate went after someone backed into him with a trailer hitch. After getting pulled over for not having a plate on the front, the cop told him "if you can't mount a plate on the front, don't drive the car."

All it took to get rid of it was just a picture of the repaired bumper with the plate on it, but the "bodywork" excuse doesn't work over here.

3-Wheel Drive
It looks dopey to have 4 holes in your bumper like that. Just put the plate there and you won't have cops hassling you. Its where its "supposed" to be, and its nice and unobstructed, unlike glass on a sunny day which can hide a plate with glare.

On a related note, I got my first speeding ticket yesterday. $230 just for going 86 on the highway on a nice sunny day with minor traffic :grumpy:.
Click to expand...
The 4 little holes looks a lot cleaner than a plate on the front, especially on a Civic. After a while, having some mangled up piece of tin on the front of the car looks bad, you have no idea how badly I want to remove mine. It doesn't look as "weird" as some cars that actually have a flat spot for it.

EDIT: Example:
dscf0001us1.jpg
 
Sniffs
to the guy from NZ: you pay for your plates every year, and they're assigned to the licence holder, not the car. that's why they're called licence plates, here. we run out of numbers very fast because sometimes, a plate will only be on a vehicle for a MONTH before the car is destroyed, repoed, etc.
Click to expand...

Huh? How does that work? If it was assigned to the licence holder, why would you need to change plates if the car got repoed/written off etc? Wouldn't you just put them on the next car you owned? What you're describing seems to show that they are indeed assigned to the car itself...Or am I reading this wrong?
 
slidesquad#1
Huh? How does that work? If it was assigned to the licence holder, why would you need to change plates if the car got repoed/written off etc? Wouldn't you just put them on the next car you owned? What you're describing seems to show that they are indeed assigned to the car itself...Or am I reading this wrong?
Click to expand...


1. american plates are 150 x 300 mill aluminum sheets, most with raised lettering (virginia is an exception, for example)
2. designs are changed a lot, they're not fixed
3. plates often get destroyed, or, after 20 years, so faded they are illegible
4. for most, if not all states, there is a sticker marked with the month and year the plate's registry expires (the plate gets one sticker, the vehicle itself another). if the car is on the road for twenty years, your talking about a pretty thick pile. removing the old stickers is hard, and I believe will take the finish off the plate
5. formerly, US licence plates were changed EVERY YEAR or SIX MONTHS
6. americans are still in the habit of replacing something when it breaks, rather than trying to fix it
7. an example of an american style registry plate is California's "black plates"

basically, it's part of america's ingrained "throw-away" attitude, being cheaper here to simply replace something outright rather than trying to fix it.

this does not speak for Canada or anywhere else in the Americas.
 
What funny is Michigan had the same blue and white plates for years (as long as I can remember) and people were pissed when they had to give them up last year. I miss my XAZ 474 plate that I had (which is proudly displayed in my bedroom), my new seven letter/number plate just looks odd.
 
Perfect Balance
you have no idea how badly I want to remove mine. It doesn't look as "weird" as some cars that actually have a flat spot for it.
Click to expand...

You think you have it bad, I had to reposition my front plate a couple years ago because my large Intercooler upgrade. It was hard because then it blocked my brake ducts and CAI duct, not to mention Australian plates are just has tall but wider than American plates. Now I have the plate off-setted blocking half of a brake duct, oh well still has enough airflow. :indiff:
 
Sniffs
1. american plates are 150 x 300 mill aluminum sheets, most with raised lettering (virginia is an exception, for example)
2. designs are changed a lot, they're not fixed
3. plates often get destroyed, or, after 20 years, so faded they are illegible
4. for most, if not all states, there is a sticker marked with the month and year the plate's registry expires (the plate gets one sticker, the vehicle itself another). if the car is on the road for twenty years, your talking about a pretty thick pile. removing the old stickers is hard, and I believe will take the finish off the plate
5. formerly, US licence plates were changed EVERY YEAR or SIX MONTHS
6. americans are still in the habit of replacing something when it breaks, rather than trying to fix it
7. an example of an american style registry plate is California's "black plates"

basically, it's part of america's ingrained "throw-away" attitude, being cheaper here to simply replace something outright rather than trying to fix it.

this does not speak for Canada or anywhere else in the Americas.
Click to expand...


That makes sense, but there has to be something tying the plates to the car doesn't there? If it's not assigned to a car in some way, what's stopping Joe Gangsta from stealing a Ferrari and chucking his plates on it?

Unless you're talking about the actualy physical plates itself, whereas I meant what the plate "says". I can obviously understand needing to change the physical plates if they become illegible etc., but they are assigned to a particular car, are they not?
 
ROAD_DOGG33J
Aren't the plates assigned to the car and owner?
Click to expand...

Ugh. The misinformation in this thread being spewed by people who have no clue is absolutely PHENOMENAL.

To simply answer this question, no -- they're assigned to one or the other. My license plates are registered to ME. I can put them on whatever car I want provided I notify the DMV (because even though they are assigned to me, they are REGISTERED to my car), but they're MINE!!! And when I'm done with them, I can keep them as a souvenir. In fact I have five previous sets on my wall.

However this is not the case in some -- BUT VERY FEW -- states, where plates are assigned to the vehicle. California is an example of this. A car can switch owner ten times and still keep the same plates. However there are exceptions, even in CA -- for instance a personalized plate stays with an owner.
 
M5Power
Ugh. The misinformation in this thread being spewed by people who have no clue is absolutely PHENOMENAL.

To simply answer this question, no -- they're assigned to one or the other. My license plates are registered to ME. I can put them on whatever car I want provided I notify the DMV (because even though they are assigned to me, they are REGISTERED to my car), but they're MINE!!! And when I'm done with them, I can keep them as a souvenir. In fact I have five previous sets on my wall.

However this is not the case in some -- BUT VERY FEW -- states, where plates are assigned to the vehicle. California is an example of this. A car can switch owner ten times and still keep the same plates. However there are exceptions, even in CA -- for instance a personalized plate stays with an owner.
Click to expand...

How is that one or the other? They're registered primarily to the owner (license holder) and then secondarily to the car.
 
No, they're registered to the car, via VIN numbers and whatnot, but are bought and owned by the driver.
 
Perfect Balance
My cousin had a fist sized hole where his license plate went after someone backed into him with a trailer hitch. After getting pulled over for not having a plate on the front, the cop told him "if you can't mount a plate on the front, don't drive the car."

All it took to get rid of it was just a picture of the repaired bumper with the plate on it, but the "bodywork" excuse doesn't work over here.

The 4 little holes looks a lot cleaner than a plate on the front, especially on a Civic. After a while, having some mangled up piece of tin on the front of the car looks bad, you have no idea how badly I want to remove mine. It doesn't look as "weird" as some cars that actually have a flat spot for it.

EDIT: Example:
pic
Click to expand...



Hmm he must've gotten lucky then.

My car is similar.

Instead of this

2rng8aw.jpg


I could have the filler panel

2hhhq29.jpg



Sniffs
1. american plates are 150 x 300 mill aluminum sheets, most with raised lettering (virginia is an exception, for example)
2. designs are changed a lot, they're not fixed
3. plates often get destroyed, or, after 20 years, so faded they are illegible
4. for most, if not all states, there is a sticker marked with the month and year the plate's registry expires (the plate gets one sticker, the vehicle itself another). if the car is on the road for twenty years, your talking about a pretty thick pile. removing the old stickers is hard, and I believe will take the finish off the plate
5. formerly, US licence plates were changed EVERY YEAR or SIX MONTHS
6. americans are still in the habit of replacing something when it breaks, rather than trying to fix it
7. an example of an american style registry plate is California's "black plates"

basically, it's part of america's ingrained "throw-away" attitude, being cheaper here to simply replace something outright rather than trying to fix it.

this does not speak for Canada or anywhere else in the Americas.
Click to expand...


Nope they are raised letters here.
 
Vonie
NY has flat plates.
Click to expand...

Only specialty and personalized plates are flat.

Flat plates by state:
- Alabama: ALL are flat as of a few months ago
- Alaska: only a few of the specialty/military plates are flat; general issue still embossed
- Arizona: ALL are now flat
- Arkansas: NONE are flat
- California: NONE are flat
- Colorado: only specialty/military/vanity/handicapped are flat; general issue still embossed
- Connecticut: NONE are flat
- Delaware: ALL are flat (never have been raised!) (except replacement plates which are riveted)
- Florida: NONE are flat
- Georgia: NONE are flat
- Hawaii: NONE are flat
- Idaho: supposedly, all are now flat.... I'm yet to see one
- Illinois: NONE are flat
- Iowa: ALL are flat (have been for a long time -- Iowa may have been the first state after DE to do so)
- Kansas: NONE are flat
- Kentucky: NONE are flat
- Louisiana: NONE are flat
- Maine: NONE are flat
- Maryland: NONE are flat
- Massachusetts: NONE are flat
- Michigan: NONE are flat
- Minnesota: NONE are flat
- Mississippi: all specialty/military plates are flat but general issue is still embossed (and GORGEOUS!!!)
- Missouri: specialty/military/vanity plates are flat but general issue still embossed... new general issue will debut soon so this may change
- Montana: ALL are flat (have been for like six years)
- Nebraska: ALL are flat
- Nevada: ALL are flat
- New Hampshire: NONE are flat
- New Jersey: NONE are flat
- New Mexico: NONE are flat
- New York: regular issue is still embossed as are truck, etc types, but specialty/military/vanity plates are flat and have been since the blue plates came out
- North Carolina: not flat... but red.
- North Dakota: NONE are flat
- Ohio: only the regular issue and truck etc plates are embossed... vanity and specialty plates are flat
- Oklahoma: NONE are flat
- Oregon: NONE are flat
- Pennsylvania: NONE are flat
- Rhode Island: NONE are flat
- South Carolina: ALL are flat
- South Dakota: ALL are flat
- Tennessee: ALL are flat
- Texas: regular issue is embossed, but every single other type is flat with maybe one or two expections.... and texas has a LOT of types ("Disaster Truck" for example)
- Utah: NONE are flat
- Vermont: they're DEBOSSED!!!!
- Virginia: NONE are flat
- Washington: for now, only specialty plates are flat... the rest are embossed
- West Virginia: NONE are flat
- Wisconsin: NONE are flat
- Wyoming: ALL are flat

Correct me if I'm wrong... I don't think I am.
 
Doug, I know you’re a psychotic lunatic, but please don’t tell me you recited all of that from memory. :lol:
 
Sage
Doug, I know you’re a psychotic lunatic, but please don’t tell me you recited all of that from memory. :lol:
Click to expand...
Yes, from memory -- what do you think, some list of flat plates exists on the Internet?? The WWW is specialized but not THAT specialized! Anyway it's not that hard -- just careful observation!
 
Slidesquad: in THIS state, the numbers on the plate are not permanent. We have seperate combinations for specific vehicles. I've had 5 licence plates.

we're technically supposed to return discontinued-use plates to the state capitol. I'm keeping my first licence plate. I hade one of the "A" started 7 character plates
when our plates reached cZZ-9999, i believe we switched designs again.
 
Sniffs
we're technically supposed to return discontinued-use plates to the state capitol. I'm keeping my first licence plate. I hade one of the "A" started 7 character plates
when our plates reached cZZ-9999, i believe we switched designs again.
Click to expand...

The yellow over blue Keystone State plates ran AAA-0000 through CZZ-9999. The "STATE.PA.US" ones went DAA-0000 through FZZ-9999. The new plates began at GBA-0000, because Pennsylvania no longer uses "A" as the second letter (WTF, PA?).
 
M5Power
The yellow over blue Keystone State plates ran AAA-0000 through CZZ-9999. The "STATE.PA.US" ones went DAA-0000 through FZZ-9999. The new plates began at GBA-0000, because Pennsylvania no longer uses "A" as the second letter (WTF, PA?).
Click to expand...

they probably changed the specs around in the laws again because of something minor.

and, yes, I finally saw a current Virginia plate with raised lettering. my apologoes to any Virginians.
 
Sniffs
they probably changed the specs around in the laws again because of something minor.

and, yes, I finally saw a current Virginia plate with raised lettering. my apologoes to any Virginians.
Click to expand...


:lol: It's cool, just found it funny cuz mine are definately raised. The antique black and white ones aren't raised tho.
 

Latest Posts

Back