Has anyone come up with a way to attach without tapping into the front rubber? I thought of brackets from underneath. I saw the auto-hide but did not like it.

Thanks,

 

Yes I came up with a nice solution as I didn't want to drill any holes or completely block the center grill. (Drilling holes would be sacrilege) And for about $15 in parts.

Things needed:

A universal mounting plate adapter, about $5 at Auto Zone, MalWart etc, it seems they all carry the same one.

From bLowes or Homer Despot:

(2) 3" "L" brackets

(2) 3" X 1/4" X 20 threaded rods with open hooks on one end.

(2) 1/4 X 20 threaded standoffs

1 package of 1/2" X 1/4" X 20 screws

1 package of 1/4" washers

1 heat-shrink assortment from Hazard Freight.

Some scrap 3/8 tubing or gas line.

Pretty self explanatory -
Mount the "L" brackets to line up with over-riders and cover with heat-shrink.
Cover threaded hooks with heat-shrink or gas-line. Thread standoffs part way on to their ends.
Sllt a 2" long piece of gas-line lengthwise and slip over inside lower lip of grill close to Outside of each over-rider.
Put hook over the slit gas line (so it doesn't wear through lip)
Wedge "L" brackets under over-riders.
Slit 2 more 2" pieces of fuel line and put on back edge of backing plate where they will sit on over-riders (prevents them being scratched.
Screw other end of standoffs into backing plate. and tighten as needed.
Install plate to backing plate,
This is solid as a rock. No drilling, cutting or excessive cussing required. Totally reversible.
Oh, and don't try and put the threaded hooks on the insides of the over-riders to hide them. It doesn't work because it collapses the backing plate and you cant tighten it so it just flops around.


Some pics....

The last pic shows a detail of how the hook goes. (before I put shrink on it to prevent scratching)


I'll try and do some better ones later.


Dave

 

Nice job, Dave. I was lazy and just used two zip ties and a black license plate frame to attach mine. I used a piece of black plastic door edge guard along the edges of the license plate frame so it won't cut the black bumper guard/over-rider.
To remove it, the zip ties have to be cut off.

 

Great solutions. Thanks for the pictures. I am going to get on this ASAP. I appreciate the feedback.

 

I've been driving mine without the required NYS front plate. I've taken a few 500 mile trips and gone through 4 Police Road checks this summer. No one ever mentioned the lack of the front plate. They must be enamored by the car.

I asked the local chief of police and he said that they never bother writing tickets for a missing front plate as the Judges throw the cases out of court and have more important things to handle.

 

Here in VA it just gives the cops an excuse to pull you over so they can try and find something more serious to stick you with. So I figure why attract more attention than necessary.


Dave

 

I think it is a crime to force a plate on the front of these cars. In view of constitutional rights, it impedes the pursuit of my happiness. Fortunately for me, it is one thing that NC has done correctly.

 

Like jimmiejag, I used zip ties and a generic chrome plate surround. Cost about $0.10 for the zip ties and $6 for the plate frame.

Been on nearly a year without problems and totally reversible.

 

Honestly I tried a few different ways to mount mine and I just liked the way it looked in the center of the grill attached to teh plastic bumpers. I used the same universal mounting setup shown. Anywhere else it just didnt look good (to me) Ive also driven teh car in traffic and on the highway on a hot and humid day and the max temp reading i got was 201. Unsure how that relates to others but I was using a wifi scanner on my iphone to check

 

I agree. I live in a tourist community and the local police and state troopers are very busy in the Summer. Once September/October rolls around, the nitpicking will begin so I need to figure this out. All of the solutions posted here are appreciated.

 

What do you think about "german engineering"?

 

Actually the way that front "bumper" styling has gone, it is a shame to have to install a front plate on virtually every current car. I think the main benefit is for the sake of giving more tickets at intersections with red light cameras and such. I am in the Los Angeles area and up until a few years ago, a front plate omission was ignored unless you were being pulled over for some other infraction. But what with the revenue shortage many cities are looking for any way to gather up a few extra bucks. So now you can get ticketed solely for things like no front plate and window tinting. I know a guy who recently got a no front plate ticket while his car was parked in front of his house.

Doug

 

Nailed it. Same here. I've never put the required front plates on any of my vehicles here in Texas. They typically don't pull you over for that alone, though they will walk up and check if they nab you for speeding well over the limit or something else more violating first. The missing front plates are typically dismissed by showing up within 60-90 days at city hall with the front plate on- they come out and check, and then dismiss your citation. Then you go home and take it back off again. I do this every couple years.

 

Reason #4536 to leave California!

 

In North Dallas you almost have to have a toll tag to function. But if you refuse to get one, they now take pictures as you pass toll readers and send you the bill. Costs you more that way. I fly thru the toll stands (no booth or person anymore) with this automated tag.

Why couldn't states issue something similar to replace the license plate? Then police could check cars easily and the tag could be scanned 24/7 by roadside monitors for the scofflaw revenue.

You would renew just like you do today except it would be electronic. The state would simply reset the device's expiration date. It would save the state money in the long run, be less hassle for car owners and keep the prison-issue plates off my car. I would have one less sticker on my windshield as well.

 

In Carrollton, it's less time than that now (must be before the court date on ticket) and you have to pay a $10 dismissal fee. Guess that pays for the marshall to walk out to your car and check the plates are on. The current fine if you just pay the ticket is $157.

 

Basically the only thing here is the relatively decent weather and that's about it. I am surprised the politicians haven't figured out a way yet to tax that, but just give them time.

Doug

 

Nah, the plate readers are pointed at the back, the TollTag scanners are aimed at the front, both overhead. I've never had an issue and have TollTags on 3 of my 4 rear-plate-only vehicles.

Not a bad idea, but at a higher cost to we taxpayers (if it's basically RFID technology like a TollTag is). It's cheaper for them to keep the inmates busy printing cheap pieces of aluminum, unfortunately. But it would be pretty slick to have another TollTag-like device that took the place of the registration sticker and front plate. Heads up- there are changes starting next year to combine the registration and inspection stickers here. At least there's that! Stay tuned.

Yep, it's actually Carrollton where my experience is based. There is the dismissal fee, but that's it. The marshall and I actually had a nice chat about my Audi S8 last time, was almost worth the fee to talk to somebody who knew appreciated the thing around here.

 

Yeah, it is supposed to change in March 2015. Why March? Because both my inspection and registration expire the month before in February.

 

What material/object did you use for the black piece?