Front license plate options?

[efusco]

Doug_G, one other "con", at least a potential one, is that if anything catches on that plate frame it's going to rip those grill parts right off leading to an expensive repair.

 

[mknox]

I will probably make some changes to refine the mounting, but I think I'll leave that for the spring. It's good enough for now!

Looks good, Doug. I've been thinking about this and will probably just let them drill and mount mine to the front. I figure if/when I ever do sell the car, it'll likely be to someone in Ontario who's going to need the front plate anyway. I could probably just order a new nose cap if a buyer was ever that fussy about it.

 

[walla2]

Cons - Might slightly obstruct radiator air flow (I doubt this will be a major issue - air can easily flow around it).

FYI, the official TESLA mount that I have covers almost as much of the air flow intake as your design.

 

[v12 to 12v]

I made a separate topic for what I did for my vehicle.
BrianMan's cheap and quick, no-drill front license plate

We used your technique and it works great.

 

[brianman]

We used your technique and it works great.

Good to hear.

 

[dsm363]

I was thinking about doing something very similar. Since there is no cable tie at the bottom, does the plate holder flop around vertically, or is something keeping it in check?

Also, do the cable ties sticking through the front of the plate holder prevent the plate from sitting flush against the plate holder?

After I got my car, I used zip ties as well. To keep that from happening, I used double-sided velcro on the bottom of the bracket and on the part of the front bumper the plate rests on to help keep it from sliding around.
Front License Plate Prep - Page 10

 

[Doug_G]

Doug_G, one other "con", at least a potential one, is that if anything catches on that plate frame it's going to rip those grill parts right off leading to an expensive repair.

I considered that, but I don't think there would be any way of damaging it short of a front-end collision, which would probably damage it anyway. It doesn't stick out much, and it's well above the bottom of the car.

 

[dsmith2189]

Posted in another thread. copied here...
I took what brainman did with teh Zip-ties and what Tommy did
with the Toilet flange bolts

Experimenting with mounting ideas, I took the common toilet to flange bolt and filed it down to just fit between the honeycomb openings. I used the larger diameter 5/16" bolt as I found the bolt itself just cleared the opening and made for a nice snug fit with no up/down slop.

I secured the bolt to the honeycomb structure by rotating the bolt 90 degrees which allowed the "ears" on the bolt to overlap the plastic; it seems very secure just finger tight, though I would use a locking nut to keep the bolt from rotating. Believe it or not, the bolts hit the lower corners of the mounting frame nearly perfect. The honeycomb openings are staggered so with a bit of trial and error (2 attempts) I found the right slot openings to mount the bolts to the plate holder.

The length of the bolt is 2 1/4" which is about a 1/4" short of meeting up with the bottom portion of the plastic license plate holder. A longer bolt would permit a sleeve to be placed over the bolt that would backstop the license place holder and allow for a threaded flat nut to secure the front. Lots of different ways to capture and secure the frame to this setup. Leaving it to the group's collective ideas to come up with a "best".

This is on the GP nose cone and probably would work best for those wanting a "permanent" mount that doesn't drill into the nose cone.

Bolts mounted on the honeycomb; bottom of plate holder would attach to these bolts.

Purcase parts from Home Depot
View attachment 15781
Parts actually used, use file or Dremel tool to narrow the "wings" on the bolt to fit through honeycomb grill openings.
View attachment 15782
As assembled on Tesla supplied plate bracket
View attachment 15783
Side View mounted on car
View attachment 15784
Front View mounted on Car
View attachment 15785

- - - Updated - - -

Here is another option that I came up with using a Blind Fastener Well nut.

Parts:
Blind Fastener Well nut 1/4"-20 X 1 (From West Marine)
Pan head Mach Screw 1/4"-20 X 3 1/2"
Nylock Nut 1/4"-20
Nut 1/4"-20
Flat Washer 1/4"

Press the Well nut into the Grille
mount the bolt and nuts to the license plate frame.
use the nylock nut behind the license plate frame. Tighten enough that you can still turn the bolt.
use the regular nut as a jam nut againtst the well nut. start all three bolts before tightening down all the way.
View attachment 15795
View attachment 15796
View attachment 15797
View attachment 15798

 

[jvonbokel]

I've never seen an S with the nose cone removed, but hopefully somebody else who has can comment on the viability of this idea:

Could you put the plate *inside* the nose cone? I've seen people with tinted plate covers, so I'm guessing this wouldn't be a problem. Ideally, I'm picturing something where there's a light that illuminates the plate only while the car is on.

 

[scriptacus]

(b) Every registration plate shall at all times be securely fastened in a horizontal position to the vehicle for which it is issued so as to prevent the plate from swinging and at a height of not less than 5 inches from the ground, measuring from the bottom of such plate, in a place and position to be clearly visible and shall be maintained in a condition to be clearly legible, free from any materials that would obstruct the visibility of the plate.

The legality is debatable, especially if its not visible when the car is not running. In CA I once got a ticket for not having a front plate while my car was in an airport parking lot for a few days. With no front plate visible when parked you could end up in a similar situation. The above law is IL. It's very similar to CA, and I suspect most states that require front plates are the same.

 

[jvonbokel]

The legality is debatable, especially if its not visible when the car is not running. In CA I once got a ticket for not having a front plate while my car was in an airport parking lot for a few days.

Fair enough, I've heard of people getting tickets while parked as well. Perhaps along the same lines, a nosecone with a transparent rectangle in the middle, for the plate to show through.

One way or another, the Model S seems to have a unique advantage vs other cars, in that the nose cone is separate from the body, so multiple design possibilities arise for mounting a plate without disrupting aesthetics and/or drag. I'd be curious to see what Tesla engineers (or any other SME on plastics) would have to say about that.

 

[GasDoc]

I mounted my plate using a Skene mount. It's "hanging" from the lower portion of the nosecone.

Had to remove it to have my paint armor applied and realized that a good feature of this mounting arrangement is that if you decide to remove the plate, the two holes drilled into the lower edge of the nosecone are not visible unless you get on the ground and look up.

 

[brianman]

Could you put the plate *inside* the nose cone? I've seen people with tinted plate covers, so I'm guessing this wouldn't be a problem. Ideally, I'm picturing something where there's a light that illuminates the plate only while the car is on.

Hey, ArtSci. Can you fabricate a transparent nose cone?

 

[ChadS]

Didn't TEG make a clear plastic charge port door for a Leaf? TEG, how did that work out?

Looking around...here it is:

From the Nissan Leaf forum thread (HERE) it sounds like TEG changed the part of the smoked plastic to clear, but other than that has been using it for a couple of years and is happy with it. I'm not sure how he got it shaped right though; in fact in the thread he says it's not exactly right, so it may be hard to make a Model S nose cone shape like that.

 

[Electric1]

I mounted my plate using a Skene mount. It's "hanging" from the lower portion of the nosecone.

Had to remove it to have my paint armor applied and realized that a good feature of this mounting arrangement is that if you decide to remove the plate, the two holes drilled into the lower edge of the nosecone are not visible unless you get on the ground and look up.

Would you mid postig a picture. FYI i checked today on pricing for a "spare" nosecone - with the badging over $500.

 

[Darren]

Aw man, I got a ticket for no front plates last weekend in San Francisco

Do you think I can use double-sided tape just to get the fix-it signed off?

 

[GasDoc]

Would you mid postig a picture. FYI i checked today on pricing for a "spare" nosecone - with the badging over $500.

Here are some pics I took as I was putting my Skene mount back on after getting paint armor.

This was taken from the ground, looking up at the nose cone.

Now the brackets are attached with one screw each and double sided foam. During initial install, they are held on by foam first and then the holes are drilled with the bit included with the Skene mount.

The license holder is now attached to the bracket. Both the height and angle are adjustable via hex screws.

Here is the final result.

When removed, nothing is visible to the casual inspector unless a person lays on the ground and looks up at the.nose cone to view the holes made by the screws.

 

[gmontem]

Has anyone from California gotten in trouble by mounting a custom license plate on the front? I am tempted to mount a custom plate like this after I get my first Fix It ticket (I hope I will never get one).

 

[ohmslaw]

Has anyone from California gotten in trouble by mounting a custom license plate on the front? I am tempted to mount a custom plate like this after I get my first Fix It ticket (I hope I will never get one).

Seems that would just draw unwanted police attention to the front end. I've been driving without a front plate in northern California for 11 years and never gotten a ticket. I would be afraid to put that fake plate on.

 

[B-Chicago]

Here are some pics I took as I was putting my Skene mount back on after getting paint armor.

View attachment 19248
This was taken from the ground, looking up at the nose cone.

View attachment 19249
Now the brackets are attached with one screw each and double sided foam. During initial install, they are held on by foam first and then the holes are drilled with the bit included with the Skene mount.

View attachment 19250
The license holder is now attached to the bracket. Both the height and angle are adjustable via hex screws.

View attachment 19251
Here is the final result.

When removed, nothing is visible to the casual inspector unless a person lays on the ground and looks up at the.nose cone to view the holes made by the screws.

I like this option GasDoc. I just spoke to the Chicago SC and they said the factory preferred method in Illinois is to mount middle of the nose cone and to drill holes. Has anyone asked or heard if this kind of work would affect the Tesla repurchase agreement? I assume not if they are the ones recommending/performing the service. However, it seems that a car with a front nose holder from Illinois might be less desirable to a buyer from a state without the requirement.