California Black Plates

FWIW I don't think it's comparable to the alger issue, and think doing that causes issues in that debate.

It seems the issue is about accuracy of a reproduction part, im not sure if the plates are meant to be an accurate repro for you guys or just look similar to the period black plates. Obviously the reflective lettering is to do with modren requirements, and I would guess its for the legibility of speed cameras etc in low light conditions .

In my state period plates are a big $ thing and can be bought and sold to put on any car. They are numerical on the early plates and were a large stamped plate with a vitreous enamel finish, they went from single digit to 99999 .... If you had a plate reissued they replaced it with the then current smaller plates with the original number... In the last 15 years with reflective numbers... If you have the original plates you can still use them.

Any single digit plate would set you back 1million + anything in 2 digit 500k and 3 digit over 90 depending on number.... Ironically I bet 88-888 is worth the most...
 
Also in Australia but North in QLD, personalised plates vary from a few hundred to many thousands. I think I was lucky to get TI6ER in white on black for $2,000.:)
 
Plate Costs

steven said:
Also in Australia but North in QLD, personalised plates vary from a few hundred to many thousands. I think I was lucky to get TI6ER in white on black for $2,000.:)
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Gee: Our antique "0neof5" plate cost us $25. If they tried for more, we would be sneakin' around without any. . . . .
 
0neoffive said:
Gee: Our antique "0neof5" plate cost us $25. If they tried for more, we would be sneakin' around without any. . . . .
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I know a guy with several original paint sub 1940 cars , on a 1936 Ford Woodie he does it all the time with a plate out of his collection.

The black plate program as word has it was pushed thru by collectors of early cars like Jay L.

The good thing about Legacy plates is people can dress their cars old and new and not be constrained by the pesky year it was built.

Plates can now be property, but Calif. gets a piece of the action as they say that YOM can't be non op by their rules so they get their $ every year. I believe it is the same for a Vanity plate, and have seen many guys who have converted them to black style using the now defunct vendor that was stopped by the state as well as a nice strip and repaint to period colors, which is technically illegal.

It will be nice to see what the market on a good clean original paint plate fetches in the future. I call AAA when I find a set but there is no way to know until Sacramento sends you the rubber stamp letter in the mail that they approve your plate for use.
 
Adding my $.02 here. I've seen a number of them now. The colors don't seem to bother me as much as the width of the yellow paint. The numbers/letters seem wider and not as crisp as the original ones.

I still want them for one of my cars though! Fortunately, the Tiger still has its originals. My Alpine has personalized blue/yellow plates. I've had the car and the plates since the mid 70s. So that's what is "correct" in my eyes for that car.

I know it's admittedly on the wrong car - but in high school, it was "close enough." My Alpine plates are: N LVN IT.
 
Fuzzy

They look fuzzy and cost something like 40 more dollars per year then standard. My pal who had them was reluctant to say how much exactly it was on his 2 year old Z something Camaro.
Not crisp is a easy description as well as the color is close but is hardly the school bus yellow or in a can the only on pre mixed dead on is X-0 rust Caterpillar Yellow. 45 minutes in the DMV on a good day, the cost of a original plate a 65,66,or 67 sticker plus 10 bucks a year on top of the 90 ish renewal fee

How fuzzy is it well it like you forgot to put on your reading glasses or okay from 10'-15'

They are clearly better then a white standard plate though:)
 
Just installed ours yesterday 1965TGR looks awesome ! Getting the bottom license plate nuts back in through the frame of the trunk was a major effort. Finally figured out a solution that did not involve trying to hold the nuts with fingers. Took the hole end of a normal wrench, put the nut in and then duct tape on the back of the wrench hole. Then put wrench in the tight space between frame and trunk and moved it around until I saw it pass by the hole, then lined it up and inserted bolt and pushed with wrench while tightening
 
1965TGR...that's cool. :)

I went 180 degrees, but same idea!

(While it would be nice to have real black plates on my car these do look a lot better than the new white plates, particularly on a dark car, imho)

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These new black plates are like continuation Cobras - almost as good but still very cool.
 
looks good. Way better than a new white plate. I'm surprised how many of these are popping up on new cars.
 
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