Ummm, saw this today driving on Florida's Turnpike, this is super cool, wanted to know if it's legal, I want one for my MINI!

 

No it is not, it appears to be a UK style tag condensed to the US size. Unless the tag is a specialty tag from out of state, it would not be legal.

 

Best answer is - it depends...

If the car is actually registered outside of the US and that's the tag they use - then yes it's completely legal. However, if the car isn't registered outside the US, then no it's not legal.

Every so often in VA I'd come across a car with US Forces Europe or NATO tags that look like your picture. As long as the registration was to either of those organization then the tags are legal.

 

I've thought about getting a euro style plate with my actual numbers on it. I'd keep my regular plate in the car so when I get (eventually) pulled over I'd have it.

There are people on here that do it and it usually takes a while to get pulled over.

Like this:

 

It's one thing to do that in the front... But you're asking for trouble running a Eurotag on the boot...

And the time I got pulled over for not having a front tag (in a state where it's required) the officer didn't care that I had the tag in the car and accessible. The law in every state is that the legal tag must be permanently affixed - and having it in the car almost never meets the letter of the law.

 

If that's the only tag on your car - get your checkbook ready... Bottom line, if it wasn't issued by the state your registered in, the tag is illegal. Even if it's the same number as your registered tag you can and will get ticketed for it if that's the only tag you're running...

Some folks here went through this fight many years ago - and lost....

 

I realize that I can/will get a ticket (that's why I haven't done it yet). I was also toying will the idea of keeping the real plate in the rear window but that's kind of ugly.

Also, I work at a university and the campus police and/or parking people will and do give tickets for expired tags so they would probably ticket me within days.

I just think the euro plates look good.

 

I did 20-years of active duty. It looks like the plates that military members get in Europe.

 

US ex-pats bringing in US cars can get those, so not to have to get new brackets.

BTW Military personnel on PSC are no longer identified as US military in their cars. They are urged to get true EU plates, same as no uniforms off base.

 

A number of years ago I worked with a French guy. Our company had transferred him from the European offices in France and he had brought his car with him. He was allowed to drive for six months with his french license plates but quickly changed them to pennsylvania ones after he got sick and tired of getting stopped by cops... Nobody gave him a ticket but they stopped him around ten times in two months time. They could not figure out if they were legal or what so they would stop him and call it in, only to find out that he was legit and they would let him go. Each stop lasted a half hour so it quickly got old...

Now I can only imagine the harassment from cops for truly illegal license plates...

 

Now a days you'll probably get tasered.

 

I know the feeling . . .


in VA, front and rear plates are required in MOST cases.


I got pulled over driving my 79 and the officer asked 'where is your front plate?"


"In the garage," I replied . . .


so he began to write a ticket .... I reached into my glovebox and pulled out a copy of a page from the VA state codes .... where there is an exception for a car with classic plates, and 'no provision for a front plate' to run without one . . I had classic plates a custom front end and no bumpers.


he took that to his car, got on the radio and got HIS code book out and about 20 minutes later came back . . . "sorry, they didn't teach us that one in cop school."


I played the grey zone, but won. I ended the confusion later and moved to FL ... only rear plate required!

 

The "QQ" plate is the current "shipping" plate for US Military returning home from Europe. They're only good for 90 days from the date of issue so don't get them until the day before you ship your car, otherwise you may not have much time once you arrive back stateside. Interestingly I don't have any pics of my Clubman with the plates as I sold it shortly upon getting back stateside. I did however run shipping plates on my G wagon as long as I could:



As for the plate comment about US Forces in Europe, you have no choice but to get European standard plates. Everyone gets "long" plates unless your rear bumper has no provision for the long plate and in that case you're issued one long and one short. FYI, the plates on the VW and my G are not even US standard size! They're slightly smaller as someone screwed up when setting up the shipping plate system.

 

MINIMan, just a heads up, you cannot run a front plate that was ever issued anywhere in the U.S. in the state of FL as it's illegal. I do have an expired Australian plate on the way for the front of my Chevrolet (Holden) Caprice though as the specific design is quite fitting...and from the country the car was built in.