Yep, just a bs rumor. I took a New Laws & Legal Update class this past Thursday. Nothing has changed. The only thing that really changed on the Traffic side was that it did away with the blue insurance sticker that goes on the motorcycle plates, and that a motorcycle operator can't be stopped now for ONLY not wearing a helmet.

 

i just got a ticket for this about a month ago, just tape it up, take picture, remove plate and get ticket dismised, only a 20$ dismissal fee

 

It seems your more likley to get messed with over having it on your dash then to not have it at all. I have gotten flack about no plate from webster PD once, but nobody else. I have driven around for 11YRS with my 97.

 

I don't have one on my TA

 

i didnt have one on my impala for 2 years and havent had one on my TA yet, not even in the front windshield..... havent been stopped, ever for it...
i've had a cop mention it to me when i was puled over for something else but never been pulled over solely for not having a front plate....

 

You guys are lucky then... I've been messed with countless times over the years.

 

i honestly think they will give you more **** for having it on the windshield rather than not having one at all... if you have it on the windshield that is just telling them that you know it should be on the front bumper but you don't want to put it there which to them is breaking the law... if you don't have one at all and just have the license plate filler in the bumper then you could atleast play ignorant with the cop and act like you didn't know

 

Exactly thats what I was saying....

 

Sounds dumb, but putting it in your window makes them go after you more. It being in the window calls attention to the fact that it's in the wrong place. Just dont mount it anywhere and hope for the best. Thats what i do and i've gotten pulled over a couple times. Not one cop ever brings up the fact that i dont have a front plate.

EDIT: didn't see that other people had already said this. Still true though.

 

I have mine on my airdam. Couple little holes, some zip ties and done. It's been dinged up on some of the HORRIBLE roads we have in SA, but oh well...

For those of you wishing for a slightly better alternative and still dont want to mount it using the factory location/drilling holes, there is a retractible one (PM me for link as I dont think its a vendor) and the SLP mount available via Afterthoughts Auto

 

Yeah I agree to an extent. Just depends where you are I guess... I've been stopped with it both ways...in the windshield and No plate displayed at all
(put up inside the car).

I will say I've been stopped with it in the window more then the 1 time for not having it at all.

 

I had to buy a plastic bracket from GM after getting a ticket.

 

How many license plates am I required to display?
State law requires that you display two (2) license plates, one to the front and one to the rear. Placement or mounting of license plates is not defined.



*This guidance is referenced in TXDOT's requirements to properly display the registration certificate. DPS does not inspect the license plate itself, but instead inspects the license plate lamp.



View Transportation Code
View Sec. 502.404. OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITHOUT LICENSE PLATE OR REGISTRATION INSIGNIA
View Department Rules/Regulation Inspection criteria
View 04.20.00 Details of Inspection & Search for 20.18 License Plate Lamp




Sec. 502.404. OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITHOUT LICENSE PLATE OR REGISTRATION INSIGNIA. (a) A person commits an offense if the person operates on a public highway during a registration period a passenger car or commercial motor vehicle that does not display two license plates, at the front and rear of the vehicle, that have been:

(1) assigned by the department for the period; or

(2) validated by a registration insignia issued by the department that establishes that the vehicle is registered for the period.

(b) A person commits an offense if the person operates on a public highway during a registration period a passenger car or commercial motor vehicle, other than a vehicle assigned license plates for the registration period, that does not properly display the registration insignia issued by the department that establishes that the license plates have been validated for the period.

(c) A person commits an offense if the person operates on a public highway during a registration period a road tractor, motorcycle, trailer, or semitrailer that does not display a license plate, attached to the rear of the vehicle, that has been:

(1) assigned by the department for the period; or

(2) validated by a registration insignia issued by the department that establishes that the vehicle is registered for the period.

(d) Subsections (a) and (b) do not apply to a dealer operating a vehicle as provided by law.

(e) An offense under this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $200.

(f) A court may dismiss a charge brought under Subsection (a) if the defendant:

(1) remedies the defect before the defendant's first court appearance; and

(2) pays an administrative fee not to exceed $10.

(g) A court may dismiss a charge brought under Subsection (b) if the defendant:

(1) shows that:

(A) the passenger car or commercial motor vehicle was issued a registration insignia by the department that establishes that the vehicle was registered for the period during which the offense was committed; and

(B) the registration insignia described in Paragraph (A) was attached to the passenger car or commercial motor vehicle before the defendant's first court appearance; and

(2) pays an administrative fee not to exceed $10.



Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.

Amended by:

Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1027, Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2007.

 

We should all print that off and keep a copy in our car, so next time we get pulled over for it we can show them that we are doing nothing wrong.

 

Im just going to point out that as far as police are concerned the plate has to be at the most forward and most rearward place on the vehicle, and no part of the plate can be covered up. SO the windshield and the airdam are both illegal. Also license plate frames that cover "Texas" is illegal. It is also illegal to put a grill or brush gaurd in front of the plate.

I highly advise you not to argue with a cop, or show him an internet prinout of "the law" when they pull you over. You are likely to have a bad day.

 

That's good advice, you will probably end up getting more than a fix-it-ticket.

 

I drove for a few months with my license plate cover in, and not having my plate anywhere to be seen with no trouble but some BS stop by campus police who inquired. I played dumb and he let me go. I kept it on the dash for awhile, but it kept sliding around and for fear of it scratching something up, I just kept it in the back seat. I recently put it on my air dam and haven't seen or heard any issues about it... knock on wood.

 

Displayed at the front and rear is how the law is written. If you are standing at the front of the vehicle, the windshield still displays the tag to the front. Alot of dealers place the paper tags in the rear window..perfectly legal because the tags are displayed towards the rear of the vehicle. The plate must be visible though, and TEXAS cannot be obstructed. Several years in Law Enforcement here..and this one leaves a grey area because it does not define an exact location for the plates..just that they must displayed at the front and rear.