EVer Hopeful
Active Member
Maybe ... and how long is something glued to your car going to actualy stay on?
If it was a good idea then many other things on the vehicle would be attached with adhesive tape
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Front license plate holder
- Thread starter tradosaurus
- Start date
Maybe ... and how long is something glued to your car going to actualy stay on?
If it was a good idea then many other things on the vehicle would be attached with adhesive tape
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
If there is no direct sunlight on the adhesive (which there isn't in this case), they can last essentially forever, especially if enough tolerance have been designed into it (which there is, Tesla uses three large strips to hold something that weighs a couple ounces).
3M VHB tape if applied properly is designed to have 100% hold strength after 5 years in the weather (even with extreme temperature swings). It should last a lot longer than that (decades) at reduced strength (there are examples still holding from the 80s).
https://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/98989O/3m-vhb-tape-durability-technical-bulletin.pdf
The people that had it fail had it immediately fail shortly after application. That suggests improper application, not the bonds failing with age. Proper application is very important, but a lot of people don't, especially observing the temperature required and the surface being clean enough (so it ends up the adhesive isn't sticking on the surface, but rather on the contaminants, so it falls off, given the contaminants have weak adherence to the surface).
FYI, emblems on cars are all attached by adhesive tape (much weaker and smaller strips), so it's not a new application of it.
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Tried that and the holder fell off overnight (fortunately) in my driveway. And yes my car was clean.
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
That's clearly improper application. As I said in post above, if it falls off shortly after application, the tape was applied improperly. Did you use rubbing alcohol to displace any possible residual oils or moisture from the surface (and give it enough time for the alcohol to evaporate)?
Did you leave the plate off and apply enough and constant pressure on the plate holder where the tape contacts the car (making sure it is properly lined up so that all three strips fully contact the surface; lining it up first before removing the backing is helpful)? The plate holder has recessed areas where the tape is that makes it possible to do if you leave the plate off. Basically you roll the pressure from bottom to top (or vise versa) for the two vertical strips, and across for the horizontal strips.
VHB tape requires at least 15 psi of pressure to be applied and given each strip is around an inch wide, at least 15 lbs of pressure needs to be applied to it.
Temperature also matters a lot. Did you at least warm up the surface and tape before application?
You can look at the bond strength over time vs temperature. The tape was really designed to be cured in room temperature or above. It achieves 50% bond strength in 20 minutes if applied and cured at room temperature, and 90% in 24 hours. If applied and cured at 50F, it doesn't even reach 50% until 24 hours later, and only reaches about 75% even after 72 hours. It's obviously going to be even worse at colder temps (in cold enough temps it probably doesn't cure properly at all). I imagine temperature is probably the most common cause for initial failure.
https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/bonding-and-assembly-us/resources/full-story/?storyid=b3996cbd-9954-455f-8e72-88e452ca38c0#:~:text=At room temperature%2C approximately 50,and 100%25 after 72 hours.
There's literally hundreds of thousands of Teslas that use this plate holder, so obviously it works when applied properly.
Sorry fella. Didn't work for me.
What DID work for me was the TesFram Front License plate holder mount
Glad I went this way. MUCH better and easier and secure application.
I bought one of these but according to SnapPlate, if someone backs into the TesFram holder the force from the strike to the license plate will be transmitted to the grill to which TesFram is attached and damage the grill (which is pretty expensive to replace)…I’m not sure what to do; I street park every day and the chances of having the front plate are pretty high over the life span of my car.
Bikeman
Member
These damage pro-con arguments of one frame vs. another frame are absolutely insane. If a multi-thousand pound vehicle backs into the front of your Tesla, or if the front of your Tesla bumps into another vehicle, no license plate frame of any design is going to influence the expensive outcome. I have a Quick Bandit. They claim the same thing that the plate portion will snap off first. Yup. Then the bumper will cave in, or worse.Curious: why’d you choose Quick Bandit? It does look nice (but it’s really expensive)
Have you considered the license plate wrap? I've seen those specifically for CA cars. License Plate Wrap
EVer Hopeful
Active Member
well the bloke driving it maybe. Looks like he rolled out of bed just in time for the photoshoot 
well the bloke driving it maybe. Looks like he rolled out of bed just in time for the photoshoot
looks like an older beat up benny hill after an all nighter
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
I think people are asking about parking taps (as happens a lot in city parallel parking with unmarked spaces), not about actually smashing into a car at speed.
For the OEM plate holder, the license plate has 3 strips that spreads the force onto the bumper, with zero force being applied to the grille on the bottom.
The SnapPlate has flex, so in a parking tap, the force is applied partly on the grille, but it also flexes to contact the bumper.
If the holder was completely rigid, it would put all the force on the grille.
Exactly. I had a car back into mine (I have the SnapPlate) and the upper part holding the plate flexed (and eventually broke) with no damage to the grill and only a small mark on the bumper that I was able to buff out. I gladly ordered another.
Bummer about the accident but glad to hear the SnapPlate did it's job.
Replacement parts are available on our website and in most cases the repair is only $2-$15 + shipping. Parts Catalog
Bikeman
Member
For an accessory on a Tesla, it isn't all that expensive. I chose it because at the time it had a good reputation, was easy on and easy off. For washing bugs and cleaning the front of the car, the cleaning aspect was the main consideration. Tesla's own glue-on solution was a bad idea, IMO. The options presented themselves, and I just went with that one. I knew there were others that were also a decent solution. Bumper safety wasn't even a consideration.
timberlights
Member
I have a SnapPLate on my 2022 X, and I can't get it off. don't want to force it--any advice? I will try again this weekend to really work on it, but just thought someone might have a trick.
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