While many may argue that the "two plate" law is merely a money-making issue for the State, I've lost count of the number of times (as a street cop) that I was forced to contact a vehicle from the front, and thankfully was able to read the LP and have critical information (stolen vehicle, dangerous owner/occupants) via the computer where otherwise (no front LP) I wouldn't have. Saved my butt many times. "I'm going home at the end of MY shift."

First and foremost for me, it is an aesthetics issue. If someone spends $50K - $75K on a Vette, Caddy CTS-V, Porsche or the like, it kills me to drill a bunch of holes in the front of a new car bumper to hang some gaudy chunk of tin on it. Same when someone spends untold hours building a classic hotrod, street rod or the like. It just screws up the look of the car for many of us. I really don't care about the front plate on my old Ford truck but It really irritates me on other cars. An officer once ask me when he stopped me for no front plate why? My response was an honest "It looks like a**!

As a prosecutor for over 25 years, I have never had a case solved based on a front license plate. the only use of the law I have seen is when it used as the sole reason for an "interdiction"/pretext stop. It is effective but I'm not sure how "right" it is. So from that perspective and since I'm not a big fan of laws whose sole purpose is revenue generation or PC for traffic stops, I've never seen the point.

The other reason I dislike front plates is performance. Several of my cars have been supercharged cars or cars with cold air induction that I race. The supercharger or cold air induction in many cars draws air front the front grill where an intercooler is placed. The plate frequently covers a significant portion of the intake slowing down airflow and robbing the car of horsepower. Not good when you are racing or running timed laps.

My solution for the last several years has been a license plate "flipper"(although that name is a bit inaccurate). The device mounts under the front bumper and allows the plate to retract up under the car when you want it too. It doesn't change plates or "flip" quickly to hid a plate. The process is activated by a remote control switch and takes about 30 seconds to complete. It is only designed for the front LP. Before these were declared a CLASS A misdemeanor, I could legally drive my car to the track or a show with my ugly a** front plate legally displayed, then, when I arrived, retract the plate to race or show the car. Then, before returning home, I simply raised the plate back up and drove home. It seemed to work fine but some genius in the Lege, who probably drives a Prius, decided they were a threat to public safety and made them illegal.

As an aside, I also hate window tint laws preventing light tint on the windshield and at least 20% on the driver and passenger side windows. However, I do better understand the officer safety issue in these cases

quote:

As a prosecutor for over 25 years, I have never had a case solved based on a front license plate.

That surprises me. About 4 times a year I have a case that starts out with "Dispatched to a report of a vehicle/fence crash, the vehicle having left the scene. Upon arrival a LP was located within the wreckage of the fence . . ."

Window tint is a min of 25% on the sides by the way..

Tuck, you and I should talk sometime. Although I've never been an active car enthusiast, my dream growing up was to be a race car driver (I'm still growing up, so I guess it's still my dream ). I also worked in college with a small business that sold parts for 1932-1976 Chevy/GMC pickups for restoration. They're still in business, as far as I know.

The fix is in:

Details.

And the next time the Leg drops the ball, there is a safety net:

SEC. 504.948. GENERAL PENALTY
(a) A person commits an offense if the person violates a provision of this chapter and no other penalty is prescribed for the violation.
(b) An offense under Subsection (a) is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $5 or more than $200.