Polish License plate Or use plate cover??

gti · 09-10-01, 04:31

Just received my new plate.

I polished the plate last night. But saw some plastic plate cover in clear or smoked.

Q1. Is those smoked cover legal in CA??
Q2. Pros and cons of using a plate cover??

Thanks.

Bill Lessard · 09-10-01, 05:58

From all I've ever seen, the plastic cover for plates, starts to yellow with time and washings. I've never seen them last for a long time. I can't answer the part about legality in CA.

I recently received new plates for my vehicle. I did treat them to a coat of AIO, and then 3 coats of SG. SO far the bugs just dust off the front plate with ease. Works great.

If you have SG or Zaino, or even carnauba, give them a coat or three, I don't think you can go wrong. Enjoy!

Dave N · 09-10-01, 07:08

I drive about 90 miles round trip to/from work every day, so I bought some of the clear covers for my plates (my truck is 4 months old). So far they have done great. My only complaint is that a little water gets behind the cover when I wash. My last car didn't have any protection on the plates, and they were really crapped up from bugs and rock chips. This time I bought some with nice chrome brackets and thick plates. I figure that even if I have to replace these covers once a year, it's worth it. If you don't commute a long way, maybe you'll do OK with the Klasse...

Brad B. · 09-11-01, 06:13

I like the covers as well and have a couple different shapes depending on the car it is on. They keep the plate clean and protect the stickers which often get ripped off around here. I treat the plastic with Plexus plastic protectant inside and out. The cover on the Porsche is 3 years old.
<img src=http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=781637&a=13475241&p=51601675>
I also have a clear cover on the Audi. Too bad the Germans never figured out what size the USA plates are. Notice that the backer plate doesn't fit the plate perfectly. This is another project on my plate...to remove the factory backer plate and replace with a custom sized one.
<img src=http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=781637&a=13475236&p=51601541>
I am not into license plate frames. I don't like to advertise and I feel it detracts from the look of the car to call even more attention to the plate itself. It's the designer in me! The best plate.....is no plate at all!
<img src=http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=781637&a=13475236&p=53003791>

YoSteve · 09-11-01, 02:31

the sell ones with warranties if it yellows at most autostores, I've considered putting a bead of silicone to prevent the back drippage, but haven't done that yet.

PrinzII · 09-11-01, 03:28

I bought 2 black plate frames with plastic covers and security bolts. Since IL just changed their plates, I am going to treat my plates to some Klasse and clean the inside plastic of my frames.

JS · 09-11-01, 07:08

The only drawback I can see to the covers is water getting trapped in there causing the plate to rust faster.

jjzzo · 09-11-01, 09:50

In Ohio we are required to have front lic. plates too.
A few years ago, a good friend of mine developed and sold a front Lic. plate cover (dark yellow) that absorded laser beams rendering cops using lasers helpless. Don't know if any of you ever saw any of the articles on it in magazines but it really does work. It was thouroghly tested and has some polymer coating that simply absorbs the beams. If you talk to a policeman, they will tell you that to get a reading they need a flat surface. Since most hoods are curved, they shoot for the front lic. plate.
My friend gave me one of these things and it's been sitting in my garage till I got my Ifiniti J30t and put it on. Just a couple weeks ago I was heading from Cleveland down I90 and there was a local cop out there with a laser. When I went past him he gave me a funny look!!! Gotcha. I believe my friend told me that Minnesota outlawed the use of them but no one else has.
Unfortunaltely, He and his partner had a falling out and he sold out to the other guy. Don't know if he's still making the things or not. Hell of a concept though. Keep your plate looking good while keeping the cops at bay. Pretty important around here as Ohio leads the nation in tickets written. If you ever come across one of these things I suggest you get one. They work.

SteveL · 09-12-01, 08:14

I use a black matte finished frame with a clear plastic cover. Makes a big difference in the overall look to me. I've also gone one step further to get some black plastic screw caps from Lowes that hide the screws and match the black frame. I'll try to get a close up of the screw caps in a couple of days. Plastic does not seem to yellow if you take care of it.

<img src=http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1324434&a=13568583&p=52358564>

BradE · 09-12-01, 08:34

I have AIOx2 and SGx3 on my plates. I have a chrome plate holder on the back (no advertisment, just plain chrome) and it is also treated with Klasse. The plates here are not made out of good materials, and they tend to look bad after a couple of years. The treatment of Klasse seems to be keeping the plates in very good shape.