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, shall be mounted in a position so as 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(.)

This would leave me to believe that the front plate DOES NOT need to be attached to the front bumper. Only clearly visable and kept in good shape and no more then 5 ft from the ground. Nowhere does it say "on the front bumper." So a cop has no right to pull you over due top this... am I right?

 

It should be on your front bumper, where do you have it?

 

I dont mean to be a jerk man but if he wanted it on the front bumper he wouldnt have quoted that or made this thread.I also wondered the same thing here on the east coast that would mean that you could put it in the front window but then they say the glare from the glass causes them not to see it clearly?

 

I put mine BACK on my front bumper like a month ago. But I looked up that article, that's whats on the C4 DMC California website so if its not stated to be illegal there then it cant be. My point is, if I get pulled over cause I want to put my license back in my window or on my visor, I can tell a cop to take a hike if he rolls up to my window. I dont have a problem with my front plate as it is on my 94 ls bumper. But I plan on getting a 98 ls bumper and those look PLENTY more stylish without a front bumper or mount, then I want to put it back on my passanger visor thats locked sticking STRAIGHT down. Not slanted up, not slanted back or pushed back by my passanger. it's locked straight down. And frankly, the first thing a cop would do is look through the front shield, where he will see my face AND my plate, Im making the [freak]s job a lot easier in that case.

Im asking, am I right in saying that article proves the front mount doesnt have to be on your bumper, just on the front and short then 5 feet.

 

Thats dumb, Im gonna mount it on my passanger windshield wiper. WHAT NOW PIGS!

 

Ok give this a try, have your friend drive your car behind u with the plate in the windsheild, u drive a car infront of him, able to see the plate? i think not

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EpicKills &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">And frankly, the first thing a cop would do is look through the front shield, where he will see my face AND my plate, Im making the [freak]s job a lot easier in that case.
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If I were a cop and I wanted to see a license plate, I would look at the bumper, just sayin.

 

Oh yeah I know. But my point was before looking at the plate he might wanna check out whos driving, age, sex, haha race.

And yeah, a cop cants see it in that situation. But that situation isnt noted by the DMV.

My point is the DMV NEVER says it has to be on the BUMPER, therefor you cant get a fix it for it. It's NOT A LAW. And many states have even taken away the front plate law. So its not a matter of where it is anymore but actually having it or not. Thats why I would be annoyed if i got pulled over when its there and visible, but not on the bumper.

 

Ok, next time you get a ticket for it, take it to court, make sure you keep us updated

 

Ef that. Im point wasnt that I can fight the law, but that the laws not just.

 

they want it to be visible so the pigs can scan you for your speed, thats why they will pull you over if you have a tinted screen on your plate..because they cant scan through it..at least from my experience..

 

So put it in your window. Hopefully you dont get into an accident and it slices you in halves.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Markland Photo &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">So put it in your window. Hopefully you dont get into an accident and it slices you in halves.</TD></TR></TABLE>

That was one of the responses that a cop told me when I brought up the same argument as the OP. IMO, cops just want to bust you cause you have a "hooked up" car. This is just the ice breaker for them to come over and talk to you.

 

Again, the fact is ITS NOT THE LAW, therefor no matter what reason a cop wants your plate on the front, thats her personal preference. And his personal preference doesnt mean **** in America. If the DMV doesnt enforce it a cop cant.
I know I can get out of a ticket with that NOT being the law and all, but does anyone think a harrasment suit is possible?

Case being you were harrased and unlawfully sited for something thats blatantly NOT against the law.

 

I think the reason why the law does not state that the license plate does not have to be on the bumper is because certain vehicles do not have the front plates mounted there. I'm guessing like RV's or semi truck trailers where they're mounted a little higher (like on the grill or the front body of the vehicle) where it's easily seen and is clear view from the opposite direction.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by My_EFsedan &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">they want it to be visible so the pigs can scan you for your speed, thats why they will pull you over if you have a tinted screen on your plate..because they cant scan through it..at least from my experience..</TD></TR></TABLE>

thats ..lol i watched an episode of mythbusters and they proved that those damn tined screens on the plate doesnt effect the visibility of the plate..

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EpicKills &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I know I can get out of a ticket with that NOT being the law and all, but does anyone think a harrasment suit is possible? </TD></TR></TABLE>

Absolutely no way. Cops harass the **** out of people every day and there's nothing you can do about it.

Keep that little paragraph written down with you in the car, and if you get pulled over, don't be a dick about it, just explain that's your interpretation of the law.

 

But the point I was asking is, it's not my interp of the law. That IS the law as the Department of Motor Vehicles explains it. So THATS the law.

And no the law goes on with sub paragraphs about specific vehicles but never again mentions a passenger vehicle sept for a bus. Trailers and she have specific heights and locations for their front and rear plates. You are right with many carsn coming factory without plate mounts, not even trucks and RVs but newer luxuary cars and sport cars. But if you look back, the Camaro didnt even have front mounts for a few years in the 90s. My friend got pulled over for it in his Camaro z28, he said there ARE NO mounts for a front plate, what do you want me to do drill holes in my bumper, the cop told him and he says, "no, your supposed to get this ticket." haha, dick cop.

But see, his older car didnt even have mounts and he was sited for not having a plate. Waste of his time, harrasment, a cop can get in trouble for all of that, you just need a real case. In this day and age you can finally get a cop in trouble for taking away pot if you have a card, and the charge your giving him is a harrasment charge. He's abiding by the federal government, but the state can hurt him cause thats a california law. Well the California DMV also NEVER states the plate is to be on the bumper, so why do la county sheriffs enforce it? Because citizens arent educated on the law is my guess.

Im looking to see if anybody has tried fighting that before or has talked to a law enforcement about it, its getting closer and closer to me wanted that 98 front end and when I do I really dont want my front plate mounts on the bumper.

 

Ok, I have been checking in on this thread just to see how it went and I now here are my .02... Check it out...

You cannot have ANYTHING in your windows obstructing your view through it. This means you are unable to put your license plate in the window of your car since doing so would "block your vision through the windshield." You may not have stickers nor can you have any dangling objects from your rearview mirror which block or impede vision.

Furthermore, your license plate MUST be visible from the front of your car AND securely fastened. This means if its in the windshield that it is not clearly visible since reflections from light on the windshield can render it unreadable. Also, just shoving it into the corner of your windshield does not render it securely fastened. Oh, and it would be in violation of the above posted section.

You can argue all you like with the Officer that is citing you, but all it will do is make him mad and maybe get you a cool vehicle inspection and a number of other tickets. In addition the Officer may choose to check the "no" box on the citation, which means the infraction is not eligible for correction so you will be fined per violation. Plus, when you go to court to fight the citation, the Officer will have notes of his encounter with you. He will share with the Judge that you were argumentative in nature and tried to tell him how to do his job.

FYI, I know what I am talking about I have front plates on all of my cars, 2 with brackets not using or requiring holes on the painted portion of the bumpers and the other 2 where the factory required...

Also, I almost forgot... Your friend had a Camaro that "had no place to install a plate" is a misstatement and an invalid argument. The dealer had plastic license plate kits that were supplied with the purchase of new vehicles (Cali state law) and also available through dealers for purchase. I know that because I worked in dealer parts departments for over a decade. Some required holes in the front bumpers and others (like Corvettes) have an area on the bumper that can be removed in order to affix a front plate. If you are going to ask me for pics I am sure I can dig some up, BUT you can do it yourself by hitting up google images and looking at front bumpers on older Camaros...


I have no idea what experience you have, but the law is there so the plate can be seen either by an Officer or cameras. Tinted plate covers are illegal since they may obstruct their view. The radar or laser can work regardless of there being a front plate on the bumper.

Happy Motoring!

 

I had mine on the pass. side windsheild. When I was bending over to put my ecu back in, there was a cop that passed by. When I pulled out, he followed me and pulled me over. His probable cause was my plate being on my windshield, but he never saw the front of my car...he was using it an excuse to see if I stole the car.

Lucky I had papers from the DMV from the previous day saying I just got new plates...so my reason was I didn't have the time yet to put the plates on the bumper. He let me go with a warning...but looking dumb at the same time.

 

I HAD my plate on the passanger visor. That plate is no bigger then the visor and from my view i cant even see my plate. Im not argueing with you, I know your not an officer you couldnt answer random questions like that, but mine wasnt kept in the front, it was also, in the area that your can have tinting on the front, I dont know if that matters either but you are allowed tint on that spot of the front and that spot only.

 

Well, you can try asking me random questions and see what I can come up with...

The problem with it being on your visor is that its not fixed it is movable since your visor is movable. Plus, the view of the plate is still subject to being obscured by the reflections on the windshield from lights or the sun. The only place on the front of your vehicle which would not cause its viewing to be obscured is the front bumper.

 

stop crying over something so small.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Reza^ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">stop crying over something so small.

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Thats what Im talking about...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JRSC EM1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Well, you can try asking me random questions and see what I can come up with...

The problem with it being on your visor is that its not fixed it is movable since your visor is movable. Plus, the view of the plate is still subject to being obscured by the reflections on the windshield from lights or the sun. The only place on the front of your vehicle which would not cause its viewing to be obscured is the front bumper.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, its not fixed, but the glare issue isnt a just reason.

And whoever said I was crying, Im asking a question I had, all the points people brought up I had already thought up and replied with the answer I had thought of. But next time, when I care to know what you think REZA, Ill ask you personaly, K?