Front License Plate????

ok i got a grill insert for my car about 1 month ago for my 95 lt1 and so i had to take off the front plate...well cops in my city are FAGS!! i live in missouri city and all they do is harrass kids..well n e ways..i drove around for about 2-3 weeks with out the front plate..passed several cops, stop in fron tof them looking straight at them on a red light! then on one sunday..3-5 cops are patrolling this neighborhood..and im driving through it from picking up my girl!! i drive past one cop!! he then turns around then i turn and he keeps going straight, then i pass this other cop car he turns around and follows me...pls i made about 3-4 turns b4 he pulled me over (i heard if you make 5 turns while a cop is following you, he cant pull you over) yet he pulls me over like 2 houses down from my house!!! and says you have no front plate and i was like i know i cant put one on...then he was like ok well you better put one on b/c next time i dont see you with one ill write you a ticket!! but the main thing he was worried about was my license, it wasnt reinstated yet, but i got lucky there!! n e ways..so now i have my front plate inside my car on my dashboard in the very middle!!! and havent been pulled over yet!!! CAN THEY ISSUE A TICKET FOR THIS?

Sorry, but your whole post had be laughing out loud. Your post comes off like something a 16 year old would write.

Originally posted by crAzy95z28
CAN THEY ISSUE A TICKET FOR THIS?

Yes.

(i heard if you make 5 turns while a cop is following you, he cant pull you over)

dont count on it. they can pull you over for any B.S. excuse they wanna make up. I was once pulled over because "your car is similar to one involved in getting gas and not paying for it". :rolleyes:

Cops are almost all a-holes...but acting retarded and driving on a revoked license isn't very smart either.


Oh, and welcome to the board. :)

A license plate in the windshield can be defined as a deadly weapon. I wouldn't put it there. But I only have one plate. So I don't worry about it anyway.

Plate has to be on the front of the car. If you have it on the dashboard, it just looks like you know you are supposed to have one, but are trying to be smart ... just about everything you mentioned is Urban Legend. The fine for the no front plate offense is "up to $200."

More significant is that the no front plate offense provides adequate probable cause to check for other things. There are court cases speaking directly to the issue of having the plate on the dash, and that isn't good enough. The cases usually focus on drug/alcohol violations where the no front plate was used as the probable cause to pull the defendant over. In one case in particular, the court said probable cause was not extinguished merely because the officer saw a plate in the dash upon approaching the car.

Put it on the bottom air piece.

"Put it on the bottom air piece."

:D

Probably not going to help either ... still obstructed from clear view. I don't have a front plate either at the moment, my car came from out of state. But, I will be putting one on as soon as I can find the correct fasteners. I've got lots of other things I'd rather spend $200 on. ;)

Originally posted by whitehooptie
Put it on the bottom air piece.

As far as looks go, if you are going to put the plate on at all, below the front air dam looks the best. I have seen at least one person that mounted it there (probably made a bracket themselves but not sure) and it actually looked pretty good. As for me, they can pull me over if they want, they can harras me, but I am not putting one on the front UNLESS I actually get a ticket. I think its a crock of sh!t. I have been pulled over a few times, in other cars I have owned, for no front plate and never recieved a ticket. One time I got pulled over in my Talon and I blamed it on a deer I hit and that the plate and bracket was destroyed and I hadn't recieved a new one yet. Back in high school I got pulled over for no front plate in my mothers Grand Cherokee and acted surprised/stupid/ignorant (no plate? what do you mean? Its my moms car, I didn't know it wasn't there). Every time I have gotten off with no ticket.
Now if I do get a ticket and it becomes a problem, then I'll mount one below the front air dam. The one I saw looked like it was supposed to be there. I can't see a NORMAL cop giving you crap about it. BUT remember, as long as it isn't there or questionable at all, they have a reason to pull you over. Point being, you better not be doing anything else wrong when you do get pulled over.

EDIT: Don't forget the excuse I will use if I ever get pulled over in the SS for this - "i got it brand new from the dealer with no bracket. I thought I didn't need it cause there is no way to mount it. I'll take car of that as soon as possible officer." I have been stopped twice in the SS (once for speeding and once for making a right on red without a complete stop) and neither time did I get even a word about the plate missing. Depends on the cop.

i just spent a night in jail cause i didnt have a front liscense plate. well, the jail time was cause of a warrant, but the reason they caught me was cause i got pulled over for no front liscence plate. but i did have it on my passanger sun visor and it was not obstructed from view. when i told the cop i had it he said it was improperly mounted. fock head!!!! so i got a ticket and then he arrested me for my outstanding warrant!!!!! i go to court friday about the liscense plate. i will let you know how it goes.

The Texas Law states that a front and rear LP plate will be displayed. The front one will be at the forward most location.

So what if its a panzy law. Everyone needs to remember its a privillege to drive. Not a right. It can be taken away.

Originally posted by Mitch'SS
The Texas Law states that a front and rear LP plate will be displayed. The front one will be at the forward most location.

So what if its a panzy law. Everyone needs to remember its a privillege to drive. Not a right. It can be taken away.

Saying that it's a privilege is irrelevant. People like you accept dumb laws which cost all of us $$. People need to start standing up for themselves and fighting big government. Some of us are getting very angry at the way things are done.

The bottom line is that it's a stupid law that is only in place because of lobbying by law enforcement (revenue from tickets) and 3M (makes the coating for the license plates). It has nothing to do with driver safety or making the roads better/safer.

Drive through just about any other state along I10 from LA to FL...none of them require the front plate. Why are Texans different?

Yes, it's the law. I will refuse to obey it until the day I get a ticket. Then I will try everything to get out of the ticket, so I can carry on my LAWBREAKER ways. Ooh, I'm SUCH a rebel. :rolleyes:

Lol, you sound like a member of the Republic of Texas. They do not belive in Texas laws. How about dont get your car inspected? Or register it? All laws are put in place for a reason. If you dont like the way Texas handles things, sounds like you need a new home.

Originally posted by Mitch'SS
Lol, you sound like a member of the Republic of Texas. They do not belive in Texas laws. How about dont get your car inspected? Or register it? All laws are put in place for a reason. If you dont like the way Texas handles things, sounds like you need a new home.

Laws that are put in place to protect people and basically make Texas a better place are fine. It's the retarded laws that are in place simply to make people money which are the problem.

Guess I am stupid for following the laws and not getting pulled over. :rolleyes:

So an identifier on the front of a vehicle would not come in handy if the car was running from someone? Or a crime just took place and the violater got in the car and all the bystanders could see would be the front?


BTW. Only 20 States dont have front plate law.


Sec. 502.404. Operation of Vehicle Without License Plate or

Registration Insignia.



(a) A person commits an offense if the person operates on a

public highway during a registration period a passenger car or

commercial motor vehicle that does not display two license plates, at

the front and rear of the vehicle, that have been:



(1) assigned by the department for the period; or



(2) validated by a registration insignia issued by the

department that establishes that the vehicle is registered for the

period.

Originally posted by Mitch'SS
Guess I am stupid for following the laws and not getting pulled over. :rolleyes:

No, just for not demanding a change from your government. I am no saint...just think that it's time for a change.

So an identifier on the front of a vehicle would not come in handy if the car was running from someone?

So I'm supposed to make it easier for the cops to catch me if I'm breaking the law? :think:

Or a crime just took place and the violater got in the car and all the bystanders could see would be the front?

I'm getting the impression that my role in life is to make the jobs of law enforcement officers easier. Oh and just how often do these things happen vs a cop using radar bounced off the front plate to issue a speeding ticket?


BTW. Only 20 States dont have front plate law. Thats 40% !! So you agree that 30 states are doing it wrong.


**senseless legal babbling omited** ;)

Originally posted by gun4hire
So I'm supposed to make it easier for the cops to catch me if I'm breaking the law? :think:


:bow: Owned yourself there. Breaking the law? Yes you need to be caught.

The nonsense about radar bouncing off the front plate. :rolleyes: If you new anything about Speed enforcement for police you might have a point. Radar is just a tool to verify what the cop sees.

30 states doing it wrong? omg, its hopeless with you. No sense in arguing with you anymore.


Edit: So the police have such an easy job we need to make it easier? :think:

well, i put my front plate on the air dam befor the new law. when i did it the plate needed to be visible, and you can see it comming down the road.

it is a stupid law. and from what i understand the laser they use has to hit a flat surface to get a fix on your speed.

plus i replased my nose peice and their isnt any spot to put a plate no bolt holes to mount the bracket. i aint ginna drill on my car!

Originally posted by viperkiller
it is a stupid law. and from what i understand the laser they use has to hit a flat surface to get a fix on your speed.


i aim at the hood when using laser. the license plate takes too long to aim at so that's a moot argument.

i've been corrected.

if i come to your hood dont give me a ticket.:D

ticket dissmissed, but i had to promise i would put the plate on the front of the car. i am going to have to now cause i drive thru that shlt town every day to go to work.:( :mad: :( :mad:

still, having the plate off cost me a night in jail:mad:

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
i aim at the hood when using laser. the license plate takes too long to aim at so that's a moot argument.

Do you do the same using a radar gun? I think that was the purpose of the front plate - bouncing radar off the plate/headlights/horizontal surfaces.

Originally posted by gun4hire
Do you do the same using a radar gun? I think that was the purpose of the front plate - bouncing radar off the plate/headlights/horizontal surfaces.

radar will bounce off of a motorcycle so a front plate is again irrelevant. a laser has a 3ft. beam at 1000 feet and a radar has a substantially larger beam. there are plenty of flat surfaces on your car to bounce off of. i lasered a guy walking down the road.

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
radar will bounce off of a motorcycle so a front plate is again irrelevant. a laser has a 3ft. beam at 1000 feet and a radar has a substantially larger beam. there are plenty of flat surfaces on your car to bounce off of. i lasered a guy walking down the road. so have you given tickets for no front LP is the question, whats the best way out of it?

Originally posted by Morgan SS
so have you given tickets for no front LP is the question,

whats the best way out of it?

no.

i don't know. mine's on the airdam.

the guy walking down the road was going 3 mph.

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
no.

i don't know. mine's on the airdam.

the guy walking down the road was going 3 mph.
I tend to walk at around 4mph, I leave people in the dust

For you guys that don't want to drill on your car, don't do it! I have a Wings West grille and I didn't want to drill holes in it either. What I did was take some 3M two-sided emblem tape and taped my plate on. Just be sure you clean the area good with alcohol first and dry it off really well. You will probably have to bend your plate to fit the contour of the car, just make sure you have contact in the places you put the tape. I have had my on for over a year with no problems.:cool:

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
no.

i don't know. mine's on the airdam.

the guy walking down the road was going 3 mph.

You're a cop, and not even YOU have your plate properly displayed??? Tisk tisk!

I would think it would be easier to tag a person walking upright than a car with a sloping windshield. Radar needs something horizontal to bounce off of. A human standing upright is horizontal, vs a car there may be a few edges here and there...but not nearly as much. Plus hitting an object moving at 3 mph should be easier than hitting one doing 100 mph. Unless of course you are on school-zone duty.

Originally posted by gun4hire
You're a cop, and not even YOU have your plate properly displayed??? Tisk tisk!

I would think it would be easier to tag a person walking upright than a car with a sloping windshield. Radar needs something horizontal to bounce off of. A human standing upright is horizontal, vs a car there may be a few edges here and there...but not nearly as much. Plus hitting an object moving at 3 mph should be easier than hitting one doing 100 mph. Unless of course you are on school-zone duty.

where does it say that's mounted improperly? it's displayed on the front bumper and the air dam is part of that. if you can prove me wrong, i challenge you to try.

radar will bounce off of anything. the one i use has a fastest targeting and it will pick out a motorcycle riding along side a truck-tractor. the laser is just aimed at the car. i usually aim at the hood or front bumper.

you can see how big the laser dot is.
http://www.mustangmods.com/data/434/000_0604.jpg

and i know this picture isn't very good, but here is the radar that i use.
http://community.webshots.com/photo/52970454/52971024ivrlbl

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
where does it say that's mounted improperly? it's displayed on the front bumper and the air dam is part of that. if you can prove me wrong, i challenge you to try.



thats where mine is going on from today on out. i will let you know if those podunk punks give me any more chit about it. can i give them your name if they pull me over again?

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
where does it say that's mounted improperly? it's displayed on the front bumper and the air dam is part of that. if you can prove me wrong, i challenge you to try.

It will undoubtedly depend on the cop and whether he has had his morning coffee and donut yet. If it's "under" the car (where the airdam tends to reside on our F-cars), then it's not really the "front" now is it? Of course, you can always get away with flashing him your boy-scout merit badge now can't ya? ;)

Originally posted by gun4hire
It will undoubtedly depend on the cop and whether he has had his morning coffee and donut yet. If it's "under" the car (where the airdam tends to reside on our F-cars), then it's not really the "front" now is it? Of course, you can always get away with flashing him your boy-scout merit badge now can't ya? ;)

if i got a ticket for it, i would bring a picture of it to court with me. then i would ask them what the picture is of; the front of my car or underneath it. they don't have a case. there isn't a citation for improperly mounted plate. you might get stopped for it because it is kind of underneath, but they won't write you for it because it's not an offense; it's too questionable. i haven't been stopped for it and i frequently pass troopers who are notorious for it.

What makes it right for the plate to be mounted under the vehicle where it is not clearly viewable and a frame the makes to hard to read the state. When I mounted a plate on the airdam, underr the car, you couldn't see the top of the plate. Unless I am thinking of the wrong place. If that is the place, then what makes this more legal than the dash or visor?

And on the radar beam. The beam width is going to be larger than that little dot. Se even if you are aiming at the hood, you are probably gettting a reflection from the front of the car or the cowl and wipers. Basically any edge the has a surface to bounce straight back, not the hood or windshield. It doesn't have to be shiney and reflective. The Radar cross section of a car is actually very large, so a front plate isn't actually needed for a radar gun or laser gun to work.

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
where does it say that's mounted improperly? it's displayed on the front bumper and the air dam is part of that. if you can prove me wrong, i challenge you to try.

ROFL. Your patrol car has the plate mounted in the provided space by the manufacture. But yet you mount it in the wrong place in ur personal car? :rolleyes@suposedrollmodel:

And besides. They can/will still stop for the air dam location. They will say they cant see it and its not mounted on the forward most location of the car.

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
if i got a ticket for it, i would bring a picture of it to court with me. then i would ask them what the picture is of; the front of my car or underneath it. they don't have a case.

The pic may be taken from the front...but the airdam is physically located underneath the car.

My other point is that not everyone wants to go waste a day at the courthouse to get in front of the judge and learn about the 'good 'ole boy' network the hard way. Depending on what part of the state you happen to be in, whether or not they have a case might not matter. The only thing that does matter is what mood the judge is in, and how the defendant presents himself and his case.

Looks like we will all just have to agree to disagree here...(how typical of my dealings with law enforcement)

jeeez...woulndt have thought that this topic would carry on for almost a month......well ive taken the plate off and i havent been pulled over yet...:) knock on da wood!!! well n e waysz...thanks for all the input and if i do get puled over ill put the plate on the air dam which will prob scrap a lot..but o well!! il see sparks!! hehe.....take it easy guys! specially the POPO on this site!!!
randy

Originally posted by Mitch'SS
ROFL. Your patrol car has the plate mounted in the provided space by the manufacture. But yet you mount it in the wrong place in ur personal car? :rolleyes@suposedrollmodel:

And besides. They can/will still stop for the air dam location. They will say they cant see it and its not mounted on the forward most location of the car.

please tell me where it says this? i'd really like to know where the defense for your argument comes from. i also expect to see the words "forward most" as quoted in texas law. :rolleyes@pooruninformedmotoristwhohasnoargumentan dsoundsreallystupid:

here, i'll save you the trouble of making yourself look like an idiot.

§ 502.404. Operation of Vehicle Without License Plate or Registration Insignia

(a) A person commits an offense if the person operates on a public highway during a registration period a passenger car or commercial motor vehicle that does not display two license plates, at the front and rear of the vehicle,


i guess the legislators forgot your "forward most" comment. maybe you should let them know.

Originally posted by Dark Angel
What makes it right for the plate to be mounted under the vehicle where it is not clearly viewable and a frame the makes to hard to read the state. When I mounted a plate on the airdam, underr the car, you couldn't see the top of the plate. Unless I am thinking of the wrong place. If that is the place, then what makes this more legal than the dash or visor?

another goofy quirk in the law. i can put a license plate on a recessed area of a rear bumper, completely cover it with trailer hitches, but i can't have a frame on it that covers the lettering. go figure. the law doesn't say it has to be "clearly viewable" from any location. it just says you must have two, one displayed at the front and one at the rear. inside the car is illegal because now you have a covering over it that distorts angular visibility. the law only covers attachments or covers over the plate. it doesn't cover stuff in front of it. this has been upheld in appellate courts. the "new law" regarding license plate frames was actually intended in the old law. it said you couldn't have an insignia on the plate that covered the letters. a trooper stopped a van because the license plate frame covered the state. a subsequent drug violation led to the texas court of criminal appeals where they ruled that the license plate frame could not be defined as insignia so the case was thrown out. the law's intent did not change, but the wording was changed to better address what was originally meant to be covered.

it's legal to drive around with a broken tail light, but if you put brake light tape over the broken portion, you make it illegal. on the other hand, you won't pass inspection with a broken tail light. if you can make sense of any of that, you need to run for congress. it's kind of like the new racing law. in an attempt to make one law better, they eliminated exhibition of acceleration as a state offense.

there are a huge number of things that are unclear in texas law. it doesn't mean they aren't enforceable, it just means there isn't a clear interpretation on the law. until it's challenged, there won't be.

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
inside the car is illegal because now you have a covering over it that distorts angular visibility. the law only covers attachments or covers over the plate.

Doesn't the bumper distort angular visibility if the plate is under the vehicle? What is defined as a cover?

You thought the new law about covers was a good idea and agreed with it, and the the plate shouldn't be obscured, but now you are sayong that it doesn't really matter since you can cover it up with something else and that it's perfectly fine to, basically, hide the front one since it doesn't matter? So does that mean that if I wanted to, I could mount the rear plate on my diff cover? It's a recessed location?

Originally posted by Dark Angel
Doesn't the bumper distort angular visibility if the plate is under the vehicle? What is defined as a cover?

You thought the new law about covers was a good idea and agreed with it, and the the plate shouldn't be obscured, but now you are sayong that it doesn't really matter since you can cover it up with something else and that it's perfectly fine to, basically, hide the front one since it doesn't matter? So does that mean that if I wanted to, I could mount the rear plate on my diff cover? It's a recessed location?

technically, you could put it on the diff cover as long as you have a white license plate light that shines on it at night and doesn't emit a glare. motorcycles put it in the fenderwell, and even though it's obscured by the back tire, it is legal as long as it's lit up at night; most of them don't though.

legislators usually take a few years before they actually get a law right, but they have to juggle it around a few sessions. there have been plenty of laws where they try and make them better, but they just don't work. it is a step in the right direction. even though i can tuck my LP on my air dam, it's the front license plate; a law that i don't particularly care for in the first place and apparently neither do the legislators because you don't have to have that one lit up at night. as far as rear license plates go, yes, i think those should be clear and free from all obstructions, including trailer hitches.

the bumper wouldn't be a coating, covering, or protective material would it? as far as the definition of "cover," the courts may end up with that one one day. i don't see how the bumper, not being attached to the plate, could be considered a covering.

(5) has letters, numbers, or other identification
marks that because of blurring or reflective matter are not plainly
visible at all times during daylight;


if they just left out that part in bold, then you could never tuck it under anything. since they added that, then it has to be the blurring or reflective matter that doesn't make it plainly visible. nothing else applies. they could also eliminate the whole part about adding a frame to it. blurring matter is commonly referred to as dirt. i don't know if many of our legislators can read.

Originally posted by DomesticViolence
the bumper wouldn't be a coating, covering, or protective material would it? as far as the definition of "cover," the courts may end up with that one one day. i don't see how the bumper, not being attached to the plate, could be considered a covering.


The Windshield is no more a coating, covering or protective material for a plate than the bumper then. You also didn't cover how a windshield create angular distortion and the bumper doesn't?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought the front plate had to be placed in the stock location?

:p

Originally posted by 81z28kid
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought the front plate had to be placed in the stock location?

:p

you are just wrong, but i dont know how to prove it.

Originally posted by 1fastV6
you are just wrong, but i dont know how to prove it.

you don't have to, the state does and they can't prove that.

Well I got a stupid speeding ticket today, first in over 15 yrs, I thought the limit on this rural rd in Ft Worth was 40, it was 30, I was going 43, anyway he walks up front to see my plate, it's on the air dam, I start thinking, crap he's going for the gusto on me, then he got the plate number from the back and said NOTHING
about the front plate.

Now what to do? Is deffered disposition the way to go or driving school? They told me on phone school would be $85 court cost plus $40 for school, OUCH , MAN, OUCH? What does deffered usually run?

ADam

aight someone may have said this already but yeah..........i just took the plate and put it underneith the the front end if the car in the front air dam...........it looks tough......i've had mine like this for the past 3 years and no crap from the cops

Half the blue letters on my LP aren't even there for some reason,
just the imprint. :D