10%? No freakin way.
Ticketing for no front plate in Santa Monica and stick-on front plate option
- Thread starter caltechkid
- Start date
10%? No freakin way.
ecarfan
Well-Known Member
You need to justify that assertion with data, because your claim is implausible.
MelaniainLA
Member
Sorry - not “my” claim. Don’t believe it myself - seems way too much. Someone on another thread on Facebook said it... meant to say it was “claimed” benefit.
ecarfan
Well-Known Member
Thank you for clarifying
“Someone...on Facebook said it” means essentially nothing.
T34ME
Active Member
Yeah, it is probably that same 400 pound guy sitting in bed who hacked Hillary's email.Thank you for clarifying
“Someone...on Facebook said it” means essentially nothing.
willow_hiller
Active Member
I was curious about this aerodynamics claim, and found this thread on the Tesla forum about a Model S front plate Does front license plate affect range and drag coefficient? Yes, 11% | Tesla
Evidently it represents an 11% increase in the drag coefficient, but nobody could agree on if that would affect the range noticably.
Edit: And I'm not even sure that thread's author is correctly interpreting those numbers. The front plate caused 11% of the drag, but does that mean that removing it would reduce drag by 11%? Or would the percent of drag on the bumper increase by roughly 11%?
Evidently it represents an 11% increase in the drag coefficient, but nobody could agree on if that would affect the range noticably.
Edit: And I'm not even sure that thread's author is correctly interpreting those numbers. The front plate caused 11% of the drag, but does that mean that removing it would reduce drag by 11%? Or would the percent of drag on the bumper increase by roughly 11%?
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abasile
Conscientious investor
We put on our “plate” from licenseplatewrap.com last week, and Autopilot quit working on our Model 3, with “front radar limited visibility” errors. I’m not sure how this would be caused by the plate decal, but the timing doesn’t look good. To muddy the waters, a new software update had just been installed on the car. I’ve been waiting for Tesla to get back to us with a Mobile Service appointment (for another issue as well).
In the meantime, I’ve been tempted to pull off the plate decal, as Autopilot is a lot more important to us than having an optimal front “plate”. But if a decal interferes with the radar, then how would an actual plate in the same location not be even worse?
In the meantime, I’ve been tempted to pull off the plate decal, as Autopilot is a lot more important to us than having an optimal front “plate”. But if a decal interferes with the radar, then how would an actual plate in the same location not be even worse?
willow_hiller
Active Member
The real plate is mounted pretty low (it's got a lip that goes underneath the main rim). You can see the official bracket in my profile picture. Absolutely 0 problems with front radar. Where did you place your decal?
abasile
Conscientious investor
Maybe I did place it a little high. Here's a photo:
Ours is about 1-2cm higher than the one in this photo from licenseplatewrap.com:
I wouldn't think that'd be a problem, but looking at photos of used Model 3 cars online, it appears that I did place the license plate higher than most but not all other cars. Another issue is that I had a little difficulty laying the sticker flat, and it has some creases, though it's not a huge issue aesthetically (in my opinion).
abasile
Conscientious investor
Sure enough, over the weekend, we removed the license plate decal and the front radar started working again. I'm going to try to acquire a new decal (not for the full $50, though) and mount it much lower.
abasile
Conscientious investor
So, I finally got around to asking licenseplatewrap.com to send me a replacement decal for a reduced price. After I shared the above Model 3 photo from their website, with the decal mounted relatively high, they agreed to send me a new decal at no charge and they're going to remove that photo from their site to avoid further confusion. Very happy that they're making an effort to take care of me as a customer!
MelaniainLA
Member
Where's the front radar in the (refresh) S and the X?
Yes, you have partially blocked the radar. Probably the stickers contain some kind of metallic foil. Here's an image showing the location of the radar module (source: Twitter). It's the black rectangular device below the hood left of center.
Eno Deb
Active Member
I don't have a picture, but on the S it's in basically the same location as on the 3. Just put the wrap where the regular plate would normally be (centered directly above the opening of the air intake) and it should be fine.
abasile
Conscientious investor
We received a new decal from Tested by the California Highway Patrol of Sacramento, installed it in the lowest reasonable location, and it works fine with Autopilot now. Very happy with this vendor and with the way our car looks!
abasile
Conscientious investor
It was a pain to remove and took a while, but probably because it had not been on there long, I don’t see any paint damage.
garygid
Member
If the car was coated with Ceramic Pro:
1. Would normal 3M clear vinyl stick properly?
2. Would the LPW stick properly?
3. When one applies 3M vinyl, one usually floods the surface with Rubbing Alcohol.
When applying the LPW, does one do the same thing?
4. To conform the LPW to a compound curve like on the Model 3,
does one use a heat gun to stretch the LPW, or is there a different technique?
Thanks, Gary
1. Would normal 3M clear vinyl stick properly?
2. Would the LPW stick properly?
3. When one applies 3M vinyl, one usually floods the surface with Rubbing Alcohol.
When applying the LPW, does one do the same thing?
4. To conform the LPW to a compound curve like on the Model 3,
does one use a heat gun to stretch the LPW, or is there a different technique?
Thanks, Gary
garygid
Member
To be sure to get the LPW off without harming the paint (red model 3),
has anybody applied a layer of clear 3M vinyl first, then applied the LPW
on the clear vinyl?
Suggestions?
Thanks, Gary
has anybody applied a layer of clear 3M vinyl first, then applied the LPW
on the clear vinyl?
Suggestions?
Thanks, Gary
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