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tesla lease in CA - does the car come with permanent license plates?

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astrorob

stealth performance M3
Aug 27, 2014
635
170
oakland, ca
i'm trying to finesse order timing so that i'm not paying two leases for too much time. bolt going bye-bye and our next car will be an M3.

in the past, in order to apply for CA HOV stickers, i've needed to have the license plate # in order to make the application. for anyone that leased an M3 in california, did the car come with permanent plates or the temporary paper plates?

if i have to wait for plates and then wait for the sticker, then i'd better order today... old car goes back mid-march. and we need the stickers for the bay bridge.

thanks - rob
 
somehow (and this is before the temp plates became mandatory) the bolt we leased already had license plates, so i wondered if that was a thing. but this was a big chevy dealer and it's clear they had a DMV computer in their office as they were able to generate the registration card (which looks different than the square ones you get from the DMV) as well as the registration stickers.

i can believe that tesla does not have those privileges but i thought i'd ask what peoples' experiences were.

rob
 
somehow (and this is before the temp plates became mandatory) the bolt we leased already had license plates, so i wondered if that was a thing. but this was a big chevy dealer and it's clear they had a DMV computer in their office as they were able to generate the registration card (which looks different than the square ones you get from the DMV) as well as the registration stickers.

i can believe that tesla does not have those privileges but i thought i'd ask what peoples' experiences were.

rob

Yeah, have seen that happen with GM cars. As soon as the dealership gets the VIN, they apply for the plates AND HOV sticker. It's a great (and pleasant) surprise for new car owners. Our own dealership in Novato did all that, but it was too soon for the plates. They mailed them to me about a week later.
 
you know, now that you say that, i think it was another bolt in the lot i saw that already had plates (and stickers)... but our plates did come very shortly after we brought the car home and the envelope came from the dealer, not the state. so it must have been the same deal as you. maybe the car we happened to lease just wasn't sitting on their lot long enough for the plates to arrive before we took it.

anyway i think i better place this M3 order this week or we'll be stickerless for a while.
 
you know, now that you say that, i think it was another bolt in the lot i saw that already had plates (and stickers)... but our plates did come very shortly after we brought the car home and the envelope came from the dealer, not the state. so it must have been the same deal as you. maybe the car we happened to lease just wasn't sitting on their lot long enough for the plates to arrive before we took it.

anyway i think i better place this M3 order this week or we'll be stickerless for a while.

Nooo, wait! There are new color HOV stickers issued every calendar year, and they have set expiration dates. If you order now, you may lose nearly a year's HOV eligibility. I know it's agonizing not having stickers (the wait for -replacement- stickers was TWO months!), but you're better off waiting until the new year.
 
shoot, really? i haven't kept up - when we got the bolt the white stickers were still around and they allowed us to apply for red stickers, but i guess those are transitional.

well, i'll have to research the rules - there's nothing stopping me from applying for the stickers on jan 1, 2020, right? or is it tied to the time when you purchased the car?

edit - i think i'm OK?? the purple stickers are the latest on the DMV website and they say they will be good until jan 1 2023. this lease would end late 2022 so it should be fine?
 
Since the
shoot, really? i haven't kept up - when we got the bolt the white stickers were still around and they allowed us to apply for red stickers, but i guess those are transitional.

well, i'll have to research the rules - there's nothing stopping me from applying for the stickers on jan 1, 2020, right? or is it tied to the time when you purchased the car?

edit - i think i'm OK?? the purple stickers are the latest on the DMV website and they say they will be good until jan 1 2023. this lease would end late 2022 so it should be fine?

There will likely be another new color next year, at least that was the DMVs plan. They invalidated all stickers other than red or purple. Last year, if people applied too early and got red ones, they lost a year. You wont be able to apply for the sticker until you get registration I think anyway. Car comes with temp plates now that that is a thing here in california. They used to come with just the windshield registration.

Anyway, check dmv website to see what you need to apply. I think you need the permanent plates.
 
Since the


There will likely be another new color next year, at least that was the DMVs plan. They invalidated all stickers other than red or purple. Last year, if people applied too early and got red ones, they lost a year. You wont be able to apply for the sticker until you get registration I think anyway. Car comes with temp plates now that that is a thing here in california. They used to come with just the windshield registration.

Anyway, check dmv website to see what you need to apply. I think you need the permanent plates.

My understanding is you can apply using the temp plates number. The DMV will update their records with the permanent plates and send a new HOV registration.

@astrorob In your situation with a lease expiring, probably no difference. It's only about a month sooner, but it's your choice.