Throw away that front license plate

[GasSavers_Scott]

One of the most usless pieces of equiptment only for lazy parking officers who are too tired to walk to the back of the car to write down the plate. Also when was the last time a cop drove in front of you to check your registration. It's not like you need a spare, in most states if you loose one, they give you two back. Never before since the flat Model T winshield has something so unaerodynamic been required by law. Once in San Francisco, I was writen a ticket in my Fiat for no front plate, when it was mounted on the front of the car anyways, it's a $100 fine too!

Now I'm suprised we haven't gone the way of England, a sticker over the nose of the car. A front license plate is silly, blocks air flow, disturbs aerodynamics, and has been an overall gaudy addition, who's time is up. Maybe the new president will lift the laws on front plates, for a few MPG. Besides the saving of manufacture, spending 50% less producing one plate, rather than two and still charging the same registration.

Now as far as photo intersections, TOO BAD!!! Cities should find some other means of revenue. It creates an enemy out of the people and anexiety to people who either slam on thier brakes or floor it going through every intersection. Not to mention, it is unethical and not legal. Two things, Lack of Show of Force. If a cop was at that intersection, you would slow down. Second, Lack of Due Process, your never pulled over and sign a ticket, and some times you don't know you got photographed. If cities were truely trying to save lives, they would extend the dead time from 3 seconds between light changes to 5 seconds. This would make no profit and save lives.

In Baltimore a group sued the city for lights that are unsynchronized and have a cycle rate of 1 minute 45 seconds. They sued for a cycle of 45 seconds and 5 seconds of dead time and won. The cities responce, they don't have the man power to reset all those lights, nothing was ever reset.

So the argument for tearing off that front plate stands, let your car breathe.

[VetteOwner]

hmm save $0.00001 by removing front plate or pay $100 instant fine... hmmmm


really, it cant be doing that much aero problem to your car...
Ya know the front plate is there for lots of reasons not just cops giving tickets...

Why the hell would a state give you 2 plates back if you ever lost one?

gaughty? yes ill agree BUT rather have a plate that i can remove to show a car instead of a permanent paint peeling sticker...

im all for photo reenforcement, anything to keep retards from running red lights is A OK in my book. Sure seems to be legal to me since they've been doin it since the 70's. Those things are so a cop DOESN'T have to be at every intersection so he can be out arresting drunk drivers or breaking up meth houses and not being bothered by dumbasses running redlights...

changing the time between lights would work a month topps. People then realize they can make it thru the intersection while its red to everyone so they still run it...

guess what? its impossible to sync all the lights in a city. You could sync them all (lets sat north south as an example) but the east west would be off.

[GasSavers_RoadWarrior]

On many vehicles you'd do better mounting the bottom plate holes to the top fixing points and tweaking it back a few degrees. This would make it into a partial grille block and windslammer for the grill.

[101mpg]

Not all states require a front plate. WV doesn't, and at least back in the 80's NM didn't. I know there are others.

When amber lights (legal term) times are increased from the base of 1.5-3 seconds to six seconds, the number of accidents goes down over 99% at any given intersection, and fatalities go down 99.9% to totally. Links at bottom. Several cities have even been successfully sued for having light times less than the legal minimum. There is a legal minimum in most states - read your vehicle code.

Red light cameras can indeed increase accidents. (Last link at bottom) Red light cameras repeatedly get struck down, but almost always for only one reason. They do not get struck down if you claim they are illegal, but they DO get struck down if you claim they are unconstitutional. They violate the ability to question witnesses. The "witnesses" they provide will either be law enforcement who were not at the scene (designed to scare you into compliance) or experts from the camera company, who attest to the validity of the photographs but were not at the scene. The ONLY way that these "witnesses" get struck down is if you question why they are being called as a witness BEFORE they testify. If you question it after, then their testimony WILL stand, and you're likely out the amount of the ticket.

Police are not there to prevent crime, unfortunately. They are specifically called law enforcement, not lawbreaker prevention. Go ask any of them. They only can show up AFTER something has gone wrong, either a threat or an actual crime. That's why we have the First Amendment, among other things.

Bunch
OF
LINKS

[Tepco]

I moved to NC because they don't use front plates..JK but we only get issued 1 plate in NC, i would imagine this would save the state some money as well.

We also had red light cameras in Greensboro but they stopped using them because the camera company was taking too much of the money. Im glad because they shortened the dead time and cause people to slam on the brakes when yellow, Im not sure they reduced accidents.

And i agree increased dead time would save lives.

[JanGeo]

In RI the front plate is there as a reflector (special paint) for night time in case a car is running around with its lights off going the wrong way on a street or is on the wrong side of the road. I agree though . . . the automakers forget to provide proper mounting in the front bumper.

[theholycow]

Originally Posted by Scott

I was writen a ticket in my Fiat for no front plate, when it was mounted on the front of the car anyways, it's a $100 fine too!

Well, when you put it that way, I can see that I'm a fool for not discarding my front plate...

Seriously, though, it's probably not going to save any FE, and like someone else said it can be used as a partial grill block.

[GasSavers_DaX]

Originally Posted by 101mpg

Not all states require a front plate. WV doesn't, and at least back in the 80's NM didn't. I know there are others.

No front plate required for GA.

[dosco]

Front plate needed in MD. Got a warning once by a County cop.

As far as red light cameras, they worked pretty well in Phoenix. FWIW people would stack up in the left turn lanes, and then 5 or 6 cars would go through the red light after it changed from yellow. The stupidity was nicknamed the "Tempe train."

I have no problems with red light cameras *or* photoradar. And seeing as how people like to go over 50 mph in many developments, I'm all for very steep speed bumps.

[VetteOwner]

haha we have a stretch of road that has speed humps but they call it "traffic calming" i find it funny to hit those suckers going mildly fast lol