Front License Plate in CA

[EV-lutioin]

Ok, here's the deal.... the MX does not come with an installed front license plate mounting bracket. It does come with a bracket, but you have to install it yourself or have the service center install it for you (recommended) because it requires drilling into the front of your new car. When I was at the Tesla service center in San Rafael I counted 30 MS and 4 MX with no front plate and 2 with a front plate. Given that the MX looks much better (all cars actually) without a front plate, is there much of a penalty for not installing it? Will I get a ticket?

 

[grommet]

It's a fix-it ticket... enforcement will vary; just be aware it's illegal to not have a front plate in CA.

 

[Colby Boles]

We live in San Francisco and I went without a front plate on our Nissan Leaf for about a year. A meter maid ticketed it solely for not having the front plate, which was a fix-it ticket where I needed a police / CHP officer to sign off on it after fixing it and paying and admin fee. If you don't park anywhere that is patrolled by meter maids and don't get pulled over for other reasons, I think you may have pretty good luck.

Ok, here's the deal.... the MX does not come with an installed front license plate mounting bracket. It does come with a bracket, but you have to install it yourself or have the service center install it for you (recommended) because it requires drilling into the front of your new car. When I was at the Tesla service center in San Rafael I counted 30 MS and 4 MX with no front plate and 2 with a front plate. Given that the MX looks much better (all cars actually) without a front plate, is there much of a penalty for not installing it? Will I get a ticket?

 

[CaliX]

Ok, here's the deal.... the MX does not come with an installed front license plate mounting bracket. It does come with a bracket, but you have to install it yourself or have the service center install it for you (recommended) because it requires drilling into the front of your new car. When I was at the Tesla service center in San Rafael I counted 30 MS and 4 MX with no front plate and 2 with a front plate. Given that the MX looks much better (all cars actually) without a front plate, is there much of a penalty for not installing it? Will I get a ticket?

I had the Service Center install my bracket and put my plates on it took about 5 minutes.

 

[chillaban]

We live in San Francisco and I went without a front plate on our Nissan Leaf for about a year. A meter maid ticketed it solely for not having the front plate, which was a fix-it ticket where I needed a police / CHP officer to sign off on it after fixing it and paying and admin fee. If you don't park anywhere that is patrolled by meter maids and don't get pulled over for other reasons, I think you may have pretty good luck.

I was just going to warn about this specific scenario: If you street park in a city, it won't be unusual to get a ticket. The same thing happened on my BMW that didn't come with front plates.... Got a $110 ticket in SF. Can be done as a fix-it ticket but I ended up not having time to visit a police station so I begrudgingly paid the actual ticket online. That was once after around 2 years of not having front plates.

So if you really hate front plates and can afford a Tesla, you can certainly afford the occasional ticket. It's a non-moving violation so it doesn't carry any points or insurance penalties, but be aware that cops *are* allowed to enforce the California Vehicle Code on private property so don't think you're safe just by parking in a non-publicly-owned garage.

 

[Uncle Paul]

Most police in Ca do not care about front license plates, however if you are in an area with toll roads, or carpool lanes they will be on you like flies. They need to be able to read a front plate to generate the fees in some cases.

Model X does not look as bad with a plate as the S. It kind of breaks up the large front beak.

 

[aesculus]

Hoping we see a redesigned front plate holder for the MX soon that works like the MS one does. Screws from underneath but nothing through the front. If not perhaps I can create some sort of bracket that does the same. Don't mind drilling up underneath too much.

 

[cpa]

This is rumor, not fact. Take it with the appropriate amount of sodium chloride.

Most city cops will not cite a driver for no front plate as a "primary" stop. CHP generally follows suit, but they do have "targeted" violations like no front plate, expired tags, etc. that they focus on a few days per year. About eight years ago, I was driving my sister-in-law's SUV at the Central Coast. CHP pulled me over as I entered US101 for expired registration--nothing else. I showed the officer the current registration with the sticker still stapled to it. He smiled and told me to affix it ASAP. I then shared with the officer, "Yesterday my sister-in-law received a speeding ticket from another officer. He never once mentioned or advised her to attach the sticker." My officer just smiled and said something like some days we focus on this; some days we don't.

However, I think this is true: If you are suspected of DUI but otherwise driving lawfully, this gives the police a bona fide reason to pull you over.

PS I have not mounted my front plate either on my Model S.

 

[ecarfan]

This has been discussed in several previous threads, including this one After 25 years, I got stopped for no front plate