In Virginia it depends entirely on the cop. I have a colleague who has a Mini Cooper S with no front plate and she's never been hassled; on the other hand, I have a friend whose front plate was stolen and he got pulled over the very first day.

Do NOT drive into the District of Columbia without your front plate. They WILL give you a ticket for "improper display of a license plate." DC law requires all vehicles to display front and rear plates, and the cops/meter maids carry lists of which states do not issue front plates. Vehicles from those states will not be ticketed, but if your state issues a front plate and you don't have it on your car, you will almost certainly get a ticket if you park somewhere where they can see your car. (I know someone with Virginia plates who got a ticket in DC because he put the "month" and "year" stickers on his license plates in the wrong corners.) DC is rapacious when it comes to such things.

It does no good to grouse about how much better it looks with no front plate. Of course that's true, but that and $3.17 will buy you a gallon of 93 octane at the Shell station near my house. It's one of those asinine laws that Virginia will never change.

 

That's interesting, because I was parked in little-tokyo, and when I walked back to my car, I had a ticket on my windshield for no front plates.

Personally, I don't know why more manufacturers don't design an integrated front plate mount, like some of the GM cars do. On my Grand Prix, the front plate mount is integrated with the front bumper, such that when I installed the front plate, the plate is completely flush with the bumper all around. I even bent the plate in the middle so it didn't disturb the curve of the front bumper.

The mount on our TL looks like it was tacked on as an afterthought.

 

I think my friend was speaking mostly for himself and the other members of the force he knows. I doubt it's policy. He was saying it basically comes down to how picky a cop wants to be. Perhaps in your case, a cop was nearby with nothing else to do and he didn't like your ride for some reason.

I fully agree about coming up with a design that integrates the plate. I'd rather have a nice looking spot for a plate than not. If I choose to not show a plate, I could still get an "Acura" plate or something. My wife's GMC Yukon would look rather silly if it didn't have the front plate.

 

i think the tl with the aspec lip and no front plate looks so much nice so therefore it should be an exception for the tl for no front plate

 

boy, you're too naive

 

I didn't mean to make it look like I was disagreeing, I was just reminiscing

But on the same note... I have heard from LAPD that they tend to not care about such things, but warned me that they knew of a bunch of "CHiPpies " (CA HWY Patrol for non-Californians) that may have a field day.

Some have even said that if you didn't have front plates, you increase your chances of being able to weasle out of a speeding ticket by instead getting a no-front plate ticket. Although others have said the no-front plate gives em' a reason to be nitpicky about other things. So who knows. It's all a gamble.

That's why I mangled my front plate and broke the mounting bracket and threw them in the trunk. When I got busted, I told em' I was recently in an accident and had the car fixed, but the plate bracket was backordered

Not sure if that excuse will work twice

 

thats what i did, although someone actually backed into me. i still have the damage to prove it so i hope the cop will let it go once. knock on wood that i dont get pulled over now that i posted

 

You're too close-minded to sarcasm. It's just a joke.



Anyway, having a front plate sucks too if it blocks airflow to your radiator. Also, do cops care if the front plate is mounted anywhere on the front bumper other than in the middle?

 

man is this crazy, just today i was out on the highway and a police on a motorcycle is behind me and than come next to me. i immediately roll down all my windows and he is checking my car all around for tints. he just goes ahead and does the same for the other cars.

 

All I can say is that NJ needs money and having front tint with no front plates is just making you a easy target to collect money from you. Better you then me dude! JK!

 

They shouldn't, considering some cars come equipped from the factory with the plates mounted closer to the side of the bumper.

 

yeh man nj is in dire need of money. a few of my friends have been pulled over for tints and loud exhaust on their mustangs. one officer said that he can give him a ticket for his car being too low, lol i thought that was funny

 

^-its true if your state requires his headlights to be a certain height

 

In addition, many states also have laws in regards to the lowest point of the car having to be a certain height in relation to the lowest point on the wheel of the car.

 

man does nj have some weird rules, im so scared to take my tl out now, i have no idea wat other reason they would give me a ticket for.

 

Why do you keep giving them a reason to pull you over? Put your plate back on the front, and get rid of the tint on the front (windshield, and front sides) of your car.

I live in NJ too. I understand the desire for tints and no front plate. Tints make the car look cool, and front plates make them look like crap - I get it. But, the laws are what they are. I agree, NJ has some of the most idiotic laws (and taxes) in this country. If you don't want the hassels play by the rules. OR, be ready to deal with the consequences. Life is full of choices....

 

yeh i guess to save me money i should just put my front plate on.

 

psh... i have limo tint on my back two windows, and 5% in the rear, and 5% on the driver/passenger side... ive had it forever... never been pulled over.

 

^ - Ok.....

 

i had my tints taken out, still debating wat percent to get

 

I've been having this debate before I even picked my car up in November. MD law is 35% tint all around. So I am thinking maybe 30%? Yeah, or maybe 20%. Do people that have an NBP with Ebony interior think 35% is dark enough? I haven't seen a TL with dark interior with 35% tint. Do not confuse that statement with I don't know if there are any. I just haven't seen them or knew that's what they were in my area. I don't see any modded TL's in my area at all! Just mine! I want this tint job done soon though.

Pics would help. 20% vs. 35% with dark interior on any color car.

 

i got pulled over two weeks ago in paramus new jersey for tints and no license plate got a ticket for license plate 54 bucks

 

I feel you.......you must be a civil servent like myself.

Kevin

 

What was the officers name that pulled you over........depending who it is........maybe I can give you some help.

Kevin

 

In NJ you do have to put the front license plate...and the new jersey plates are yucky

 

NJ has definitely gotten worse in terms of vehicle law enforcement.. for example.. a lot of the car insurance companies were trying to get out of NJ around 2002-2003 because they claimed they were losing money. Gieco did not offer their services here, state farm stopped taking on new customers in NJ, etc. up until some type of legistation was passed where surcharges were put into effect and a percertange of that somehow helps the insurance companies.. i'm not sure how it works but its very coincidental that at about the same time the surcharges became active every insurance company(plus a bunch of others that came into the state) started offering their services here.

now the last time i got a speeding ticket(about 1.5 years ago) i went to court to fight it. i saw a LOT of other people there doing plea bargains and receiving a mandatory $250-350 NJ "surchage" in addition to whatever their fine was. i too also received a $250 surchage on top of my $250 fine + $30 court fee(careless driving ticket(2 points) reduced to unsafe operation of a motor vehicle = no points)

oh and i received a ticket for tints for my toyota camry 2.5 years ago.. it was around $40 and he pulled me over for something else(i dont remember, i think it was for speeding) but tints can be a double edged sword.. IF you have tints and you get pulled over for something else(illegal lane change, speeding <10 over limit, etc.) the cop may just give you a ticket JUST for the tints, which i would definitely take over some other ticket i have to go to court for.. the bad side is, having tints can make your car a target.. a part of it has to do with luck and the cops mood when he pulls you over
so ignoring the law isnt bad _all_ of the time, just somtimes
just my .02