bassik277

I, along with many, feel that putting the front plate holder on the front of the car, clashes with the lines of the car. So right now, im just placing my plate on the inside of my windsheild toward the passenger side to avoid getting ticketed. It actually fits pretty nicely there also, and it stays in place. Im just wondering if its legal to place it there in California? Or does it need to be on the front of the car itself?

jdl

Well, if you can find wiggle room here and make it work, great!

California vehicle code section 5201, Positioning of Plates says, in part,
5201. License plates shall at all times be securely fastened to the vehicle for which they are issued so as to prevent the plates from swinging and shall be mounted in a position to be clearly visible, and shall be maintained in a condition so as to be clearly legible. The rear license plate shall be mounted not less than 12 inches nor more than 60 inches from the ground, and the front license plate shall be mounted not more than 60 inches from the ground[...]

mikeb

which means unfortunely its illegal

my plate is staying off its only a ten dollar ticket

tribal azn2

just take it off altogether. its only like a 10 dollar fix it ticket if u get caught. u gotta pay to play

Aratinga

For what it's worth, I've never kept a front plate on either of my Miatas, and there's no way I'm putting one on the 8, either. UGLY! I've gone plateless up front since '91 and have never gotten a ticket.

Of course, in this age of red-light-runner cameras becoming more and more popular as revenue-generating devices, some cities might step up enforcement of the front-plate requirement. But I'll be a scofflaw until I get caught (no, I don't run red lights!).

norcalrx8

Same here. I removed it and it will remain that way until i get caught. I drove my integra for 8 years, and my vw before that for 7 more without any issue. Of course, now that I have posted this, i will undoubtably get nabbed.

mazdaexe

I heard from my friend's friend (which is a cop), that it is no longer a fix up ticket, and u will be fined ~$70.00 for not having front license plate

Voodookhan

Sorry, it ain't legal. I did the same thing with my car, and a cop pulled me over and gave me a "fix-it" ticket for it. I had to put the plate in front and pay off the ticket. Sux.

- VoodooKhan

mikeb

bong,
can you clarify
when did it go from fix it ticket to 70 bucks

mazdaexe

I heard from a friends friend who is a cop @ el monte area. He just joined the force for about two months now. Since hes still considered new, he needs to patrol with a partner and they are giving all kinds of tickets so that he can learn from the process. And I was told he gives out no front license plate tickets and they are about $70.

Watch out El Monte 8s, they are ACTIVELY looking for cars to give tickets to.

mikeb

wow
thats news to me
I guess I'll be paying 70 bucks then

gusmahler

As I posted in another thread, I didn't have ANY license plates on my car for 9 months. I didn't get pulled over until the 9th month. Even then, I only got a warning.

I finally got the plates a couple of weeks ago. I only installed the back plate. For some reason, I only got one screw for the front plate holder, so I can't install it yet.

Mikelikes2drive

I just got pulled over for having no front license plates about a month or two ago in irvine and it was a fix-it-ticket. paid only 15 dollars inspection cuz i was too lazy to go to the CHP for the free inspection

robertdot

I got a warning at LAX. The guy was pretty nice about it. If you plan on going to LAX for any reason, you might want to invest in some nuts / bolts to hold it on temporarily until you leave...

Grabitquick

I would expect something like that at LAX because of security concerns. I just got my 8 back from the body shop with a new front bumper, and the shop had mounted the front plate, probably thinking that's what I wanted. I thought about leaving it on, but then couldn't stand looking at it, and also realized that the shop had mounted it incorrectly, and . . . . . well, you can guess the rest. It's in the trunk, though, in case I need to do put it on for LAX, parking in Beverly Hills or somewhere else where they have a reputation for tagging you.

Zoomy

I'd be very careful about posting friend's of a friend's friend stories. If you want to look up California Motor Vehicle law, you can do it on your own. The following is a great site for searching California laws, all laws.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/calaw.html

RockyMtnHi

I've been doing a few internet searches regarding this issue. I found this link http://www.window.state.tx.us/tpr/btm/btmtr/tr14.html that states that Texas, the bordering states of Texas, Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Pennsylvania only require a rear license plate. This document appears to be about ten years old so many things could have changed. I also found references to several states having introduced House Bills to remove the requirement for front plates in order to save money. That doesn't mean that the House Bill was passed, just that the state was considering it. I also read an article that speculated states that only require a rear license plate may review that policy and require plates both front and back as they start to use cameras to record and mail moving violation tickets. Check with your local DMV to be certain. I prefer the front plate off, but my state (CO) requires it. I'll ask the Magic 8 Ball if I should put it on.