ilovecarbs

NDGal

Oh, that's good to know because I just asked for these:

ilovecarbs

ilovecarbs

Porsche911GTS'16

I spoke with my SA today. It is correct that as of 1/1/19 in California, the car must leave the dealership with both a front and back license plate with paper tags. The days of having a piece of paper taped to the front windshield will be over. As for how stringent the law is with a screwed in mount versus using a tow hook mount, he was not certain. I told him under no circumstances to drill a plastic plate holder on my front bumper. It could be a deal breaker because I do not want the plates mounted on my front bumper and I do not want to have to buy a new bumper, get it painted PTS and then have a new bumper applied. I am hoping that I can use my tow hook mount to drive it off the lot. The problem will be if I get pulled over and get a fix it ticket for not having a front plate, it sounds like based on the new law, the dealership will be fined. Seems ludicrous to me. How can the dealership control what a customer does with the mounted front plate after he/she drives it off the lot? Even if they do drill holes and mount a bracket, I will remove it. Will keep you posted on what happens upon the arrival of my GT3T in March.

Porsche911GTS'16

Some follow-up to my prior post. Here is the actual law: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/f...201520160AB516 - section 16 is where the money is for our purposes:

"(a) License plates, including temporary 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, shall be mounted in a position so as to be clearly visible, and so that the characters are upright and display from left to right, 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, except as follows:"

So...by the letter of the law, a tow hook should be acceptable. Fortunately, the legislature did not mandate a front and center, screw-mounted license plate bracket. They just mandated that the front plate is "securely fastened."

For those of you in the Socialist Republic of California who are buying a luxury car that arrives after 12/31/18, and you do not want holes in your front bumper, I would suggest that you get a tow hook plate holder ASAP. They work great!

Here is an article discussing the law in the LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/l...nap-story.html

Hope this helps!

silvertige

Yeah, I think its going to be mostly about having a readable temp license, somewhere, i.e. the back. CA wants their revenues above all else. I doubt the front plate is going to be a big issue? But I guess we'll find out soon enough.

Fyi, you won't have to buy a new bumper if they drill holes. It should be an easy patch and, honestly, probably a better paint job on the bumper vs. what the factory churns out; PTS or not. But it will be a few bucks.

Desert turbo

Hothonda

FWIW - In Seattle meter maids ticket parked cars w/no front plate.

The Pope

I've gotten 3 of those in Beverly Hills since the late 90's. I also know people who have been pulled over for no front plate.

donutcritic

The new law is a bummer, but has some reasonable justification. In addition to the tow hook idea, you could print a vinyl plate decal. Some folks also put the plate on their dashboard in a clear case.

hushypushy

Unfortunately, the vinyl sticker and dashboard placement are both illegal. CA VC Section 5200 states "(a) When two license plates are issued by the department for use upon a vehicle, they shall be attached to the vehicle for which they were issued, one in the front and the other in the rear." Unless you're driving a VW Bus/Vanagon, your dashboard is not "in the front" of the vehicle, so you can't display your plate there.

Also, you must run your actual state-issued license plate--not a copy or facsimile. 5202 states, in part, "(a) A license plate issued by this state or any other jurisdiction within or without the United States shall be attached upon receipt..." Not only that, but according to 4463, it's a felony (!) to intentionally run a "false, altered, forged, or counterfeited" license plate.

However, the only people who should be worried about the new law are the people who don't run plates at all. If you want to run just a rear plate, everything will be the same. The way I look at it is the occasional fix-it ticket (I get one every few years) is my "No Front Plate Fee"

C.J. Ichiban

I'd much rather get a fix it ticket and come up with a magnetized/ double sided tape / tow hook mount solution vs drill my bumper.

doc993

Any updates? Has anyone taken delivery after the new law? I'm picking my 911T up in April and under no circumstances will I be allowing and drilling of a front license plate on the car. Are they letting people leave with tow hooked plate in the front?

donutcritic