nynvolt

The dealership took it upon themselves to drill and put dealer license plate frame on my front bumper :angry: With all the excitement of getting the car I totally forgot to make a point of telling them to NOT drill my front bumper. It still had the bubble wrap on it when I first saw it.

So I took the plate frame off, don't want scratches, but the holes are pretty big and not cleanly drilled. I'm racking my brain what to do to fill them without it looking worse than having two 3/16" holes in the bumper.

California law says you must have front plates but I have had many cars without and never got pulled over for it, the bumber isn't notched like the V6 version, and for good reason it flows with the design of the car, a plate would really distract from that.

Any ideas on filling them? I was thinking of looking for those push pin things, the ones that look sort of like a screw but come with an insert then you pop them in and they sit flush against the surface. They use them alot on car bumper covers and other plastic trim pieces. Don't know what they are called or where to buy any. Was thinking maybe that would be my only option.

Any suggestions?

dallasw77

Im in the same boat as you. Hopefully someone will have a good idea!

cdemot02

Talk to the dealer...see if they have another mustang of ur color coming and swap the bumpers before they drill that one

Domainer

I'm gonna do the same thing .. I am not going to have a front plate on my stang .. A friend of mine has driven 4 years with his 4 year old car and never got pulled over ..

:cop2: And if I do get pulled over.., just make some excuse like you got a brand new bumper yesterday and the darn shop forgot to drill the holes for the plate, LOL .. Tell the copper you called the shop earlier in the day to setup an appointment and they said they would call you back when to bring it in ..

And ,the cop may still give you a ticket, but in most instances like this, the fine will get waived if you can show you have a front plate .. In that case I would just tape it on to avoid the fine when I show them, then immediately take it off. LOL !

Yes, I'm bad when it comes to the law. ROFL !

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RM Mustang 728

That stinks dude.. u should ask ur dealer bout that. i wouldent want a liscense plate on the front bumper either.. it just looks to messed up cuz it doesnt have the place to put it in like the V6 does. but ya i hope u get it fixed

nynvolt

found a fix, went to kragen and found some "panel/trim retainers" Going to hit the parts dep. for some touch up paint to match, should be hardly noticeable when done.

GRAYPNY

I also live in California where front license plates are mandatory. I told my dealer that I didn't want the front bumper drilled for the plate and he said he would have to ask the owner (small dealership). The owner told me that they wouldn't do it BUT starting January 1st there is a new law that requires dealerships to tell the CHP if they don't set the car up with the front plate. Personally I'm thinking that is BS but knowing California (the home of stupid laws) it might be true. I told him I would take my chances and DON"T DRILL ANY HOLES IN THE FRONT! I have a couple of months to wait and see if they do it or not.

TampaBear67

If I had to Mount a Plate on the Front of My Car, Fist of All I Would SCREAM and Then CRY, but then I'd try to find a couple of L Shaped Brackets That Could be Mounted From Under the Bottom side of the Bumper (Where the Black Plastic Insert goes) and Drill the Holes going Upward from under the bumper, so they wouldn't be Visible from the front of the car when the Plate was removed. I would also Mount some sort of Cushioning Material, like Rubber Stoppers to the Backs of these Brackets to protect the paint in case someone Bumped the Plate so it wouldn't damage the paint on the bumper. See Diagram Below.

Domainer

Tampabear, that is a heck of a service you have provided this board, with not only an explanation, but a well planned illustration.. Super. I nominate you "member of the month" for that one. LOL


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BillP

I am in California as well. On a car I owned from 1994-2001, I simply put the front license in the spare tire well, in the envelope it was mailed to me in. My plan was, if asked by a law enforcement officer, to simply say "my apologies, I didn't know it was required" and then accept the fixit ticket (yes, they could hit you for more, but cops tend to let respectable adults off easy, and hassle the kids and other hooligans <grin>) I received a ticket in that car, and one warning, and in both cases I wasn't hassled about the front plate.

I have done the same with my new plates. If asked, I'll probably mount them silimar to what TampaBear67 has described.