At a couple of cars shows last year there was a vendor that makes license plates for California plates. Does anyone know where I might find someone that does make replacemant plates? Thanks Jim
Try the DMV. Those guy's making them are not making legal plates. Most of these guys make plastic plates in a hot press.
40 bucks extra a year, personalized or not is what I heard... Not for me. IMO Black plates on a new car look stupid.
The reproduction plates might be good for shows but don't expect to register them. I like the pairs to use for YOM registration but for a show where you don't plan to register them you don't even need a pair, who is going to compare the number on the front with the number on the back? Charlie Stephens
Heres a chuckle for you all...Numbnuts here (Stogy) had a chat at a cruise just a year or so ago with a fellow with 000 000 plates on his T-Bird and he carried on about how he aquired these rare plates after I asked him about them. I figured he paid a pretty penny and had a cool score. Fast forward to another cruise and I see another guy stopping and getting out and saying forgot my plates while leaving near the closing. I watch him take off those 000 000 plates. Then I see a business selling them near the cruise raffle. So going back to my chat with that guy about his plates...He must have chuckled for a bit after convincing me of his rare plates......I doubt those are legal tender. I still think YOM plates are a stupid deal.
Except those ones... To rephrase my comment about YOM Plates we should be allowed YOM and all others too date as long as numbers are clear for register. I have several pairs 1946, 1956, but with YOM they are useless except for wall art. I chose to run specialized custom plates as the price was the same to run YOM and I didn't have to find them...ordered them right off the MOT. Pretty sure things are similar your way. These prices made it tough for the Vintage original plate people...First you have to buy the old plate which can be large then pay the huge registration cost. Its a pretty pricey affair...
I understand YOM plates on a stock or restored car. I think a modified car would seem more real if the plates reflected to time period of the modifications. Does that make sense? Sent from my Nexus 7 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Yes it makes total sense to run a plate that reflects the period your car is...But you can't runem with the stupid YOM Law...man is it dumb. If they thought about it We'll still pay the money...They make money, I'm happy to. Then I could run 1962 plates that fit the period of my Hotrod.
I had Antique plates on my roadster, restricted use. Now my plates are what defines my roadster, OLD ROD.
I have been through this and can tell you what to do: Find a matched set of plates that have a clean title (not registered to another vehicle, and yes, this does happen). Take them to the DMV and fill out the paperwork. They may ask for a letter from the person you purchased them from, but they might just want your money. Every person at the window has a different understanding of YOM, so try a different person or DMV branch if things are not going your way. No one will make plates for you, not even some of the foreign vendors. There are several people that restore plates, but don't expect to get them back for a couple of months. It was hell for me to get my plates, and now I see black plates on rice burners and Porches. But - mine are original with the 63 stamping, and I do not have to pay any additional yearly fees like they do. Good luck!
Years ago, before I grew in wisdom, Grasshopper, I got one of those vacuum formed plastic plates for a couple of bucks. I've used it on all types of my cars..... but only for photographs, not for car shows.
In Maryland, you can register a pair of YOM plates, but you also have to pay for a set of street rod or classic car tags and keep them somewhere in your vehicle!
California law is different. The YOM plates are actually registered to your car and the only plates needed. No need for additional plates.
I do have to say that the new CA black plates are pretty damn close to original black plates, except for character spacing. I resisted them at first, but now I'm on board! I love original CA black plates and since I have the opportunity to get some new ones for my DD, I'm taking it!
BigDog and all. If your "new black Caliornia plate" is on a 1962 to 1969 I'm ok with it. In 1969 the yellow on blue came out and ran to 1986. I realize that you "could " keep your black plate on the earlier car and not put a newer one but in 69 or later you could not go back, if you bought a car with no plates you got blue on yellow which were the first ones that you could get personalized. We still have the yellow on blue personal plate of 4NCRSUC which has been on 4 vehicles and now on a 2006 Chevrolet pickup. My avatar has a YOM. It's a small thing but a Cal black plate on a 2016 Mercedes just looks dumb.
California DMV had a competition between YELLOW 1950's, BLACK 1960's, and BLUE 1970's, and the black won. IMO the black is tough to see day or night. I wonder if nostalgia and history or hard to see by law enforcement was the true reason the black won out?
Have seen the new black ones on new cars-looks strange at first glance. I have YOM plates and blue with yellow personal plates-have had for a long time.
OK, yes Martha there was a vendor in Florida that made amazing California METAL repop plates. I know of a number of rodders that had them, and what they did was have a current white plate series made into yellow or black plates, mostly yellow. And a couple of rodders even had CHP give them the look while giving a speeding ticket, they carried their white plates with them. The 'good' thing was you could order a plate to add to a single plate for a pair and with the right DMV person, they went through. Then about two years ago, suddenly he stopped making them. Word was he got a letter from California. Lately I found the vendor and he is making CA plates again for 'display' usage and will not mail to California. But with the new black plates, and we have one set, they are amazing and CA is making a bundle on them. I wonder if I order a new set with the same number series of a black plate I have?????????
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