woodranch

Living in California ,the law is you need a front license plate. I hate the look ,but worried about being pulled over for just that reason. Especially, if you had 2 glasses of wine with your wife, then you are toast. Is it worth the gamble or just put the license plate on and deal with how ugly your front looks. Nobody needs a reason for law enforcement to pull you over. Thoughts and a advice appreciated and to those of you that put the front license plate on , do you regret the look or just drive the car and deal with it. Thanks in advance!

arlan in arizona

I lived in California for a number of years. I always used to run front plates but from 1995 to 2005 I stopped running them. I never got pulled over for it. But then again I wasn't pulled over for any other infractions either. Perhaps it was just luck. I'm sure others will comment.

I say 2005 because at that point I escaped from California.

Larry Cable

the factory insisted on installing one on the GTS when I did ED in Stuttgart,
but my GT3 does not have one.

The only time I have been ticketed for this, is by SF MTA traffic/parking ***** looking to make the city an extra $ ... ok not entirely true I once got pulled
by a car full of SFPD on Sloat ... I think they were training or bored or both
and I got a fixit ticket ...

I really doubt that you will get pulled over for this very often if ever ... and honestly if you are wasted and driving well you are already playing russian
roulette ... so not sure that the absence of a plate will tip the probabilities
too much one way or the other...

I'd say skip it, unless you park a lot in SF... if you get a fixit stick in on with
2-sided 3M tape ... pop down to your local LEO office, get it signed off and
pull it back off again until the next time.

Archimedes

I've been running without a front plate for 20 years in California. A cop is not going to pull you over just for the plate. Parking is your biggest risk, but I've yet to get that either. I'd just pay the fine and keep running without it anyway.

BingoWest

One of my doctors owns a Porsche. The first time I saw him for an appointment, I noticed his car in the parking garage and it had the dealer marketing plate on it. I assumed it was brand new. Two years later, I saw him again and I noticed the car still had the same dealer marketing plate on it...no California license plate.

I asked him why his two year old Porsche still didn't have a California license plate.

He proceeded to explain that in the well heeled town in which his office is located the cops routinely hand out tickets for missing front plates. As he didn't like the look of a front plate on his Porsche and chose to leave it off, he left the dealer plate and the temporary registration taped in his windshield. Therefore, the cops didn't give him a ticket for his missing front plate.

I found it hilarious that this well paid surgeon actively avoided "fix-it-tickets" for the missing front plate on his 911 Turbo 4.

FWIW, I don't have a front plate on my Cayman 981, and was pulled over last year. by the CHP. The cop didn't mention, nor did he issue a citation for my missing front plate.

mgflyfish

very nifty solution posted by jk automotive designs under a thread about a radar detector form bel-stir--

DerekS

I have this dilemma myself. The previous owner drilled the holes and mounted a plate.

I've had a clearbra applied since then, and I need to widen the holes if I want to use bumper plugs.

So far I've just been rocking with the holes.

BTW in Texas I have never been asked about the plate despite numerous friendly visits with law enforcement across multiple Porsches. My wife, however, was pinged about it 2x in the same day in her Lexus.

12v Nick

We do a lot of magnetic systems using the original plate mount. Essentially where the hardware normally pierce trough, we install a rare-earth magnet on each side. Works great without any permanent holes.

It's not something you really want to drive with, but's it's perfect for keeping in the boot for when you park. The police here really don't care, 99% of the tickets come from the meter maids downtown.

LexVan

When I retire, I'm highly prioritizing my location by States without the front plate requirement.

Slantnose!

...and without state inspection stickers!

DaveGee

I live in SoCal and drive without a front plate. Two moving violations in the past three years and in both cases the law paid no attention to the front of my car.

The local C&C on Saturday mornings has about 400 cars, and 85% do not have front plates. It's a low, low probability that we would get cited in Orange County. Parking in LA county is a different story.

If I'm planning to go out and have a drink with dinner, I drive a less conspicuous car.

DaveGee

Tcc1999

There are a couple of things going against you in CA when your car doesn't have a front plate. The first is parking enforcement. It is a non-moving violation so parking enforcement officers can (and do) ticket fir this. It is a munipal code violation and fines go into coffers of the local government. Typically, it is about a $30 ticket and is a fix-it if you care to drill holes or buy a tow hook mount - but they only knock off about half the fine so is your time worth $15? I got a ticket for this in Berkeley and since then I just use a piece of duct tape looped back on itself to hold the front plate to my bumper (not legal as DMV code requires the plate to be firmly affixed). The tape is scuffed so there is just enough gumminess to hold the plate on. It is not very elegant, and there are probably better solutions but it is cheap and it must work as I have never gotten another ticket.

The second thing going against you is that no front plate is a violation of state DMV codes (Section 5200, I think). This is also a non-moving fine and may typically be $70 or so dollars (although it may be up to $200+, I have never been able to find a schedule of fines). This would be the fine a CHP or local policeman or sherriff would write you up for. But unless they are specifically looking for this violation, it is 10 minutes out of their day to make a stop and write you up. It just depends on what kind of mood they are in I guess.

At the end of the day you consider the cost, make your decision and live with the risk (or lack of risk) - there's really not much more to it than that. (Unless you want to fabricate an elaborate James Bond-like system that will drop a front plate from a slot under and behind the bumper that you can deploy and retract with the flip of a switch.)

Alan Smithee

I do not recommend this approach. I got pulled over by BHPD last year for not displaying plates on a no-longer-new car, and while the cop indicated it as a fix-it ticket, the court seems to see it differently. It is still not resolved, and I do not see that it will be without hiring a lawyer and/or making a court appearance.

I only have rear plates on our other cars, and have for decades. While it has rarely been an issue for me, my wife can't seem to avoid being pulled over or ticketed while parking. I expect one of these days she is going to drill the front bumpers herself.

mgflyfish

I can vouch for Nick's work at MusicarNW-- They are superb craftsmen--Top Notch!

onedae

The OP is focused on the right issue - probable cause for a traffic stop. No front plate WILL (not may) get you pulled over - especially in the LA area. And if you have anything else going on (like maybe a couple of drinks), you are toast. Despite how unattractive it looks, I have always mounted my front plate just for this reason.