DIY Front License Plate Flip Around

[Intrepid]

Where i live it is required by Law to run a front licence plate, so the dealer installs the front bracket on the car prior to delivery.
In my case the plate was mounted in the middle of the front bumper as you can see below in the picture.

So what i have done is removed the plate (4 bolts) and underneath the plate there is a single phillips head screw
in the center top, and below there are 2 - 10 mm bolts that hold the bracket to the bumper. once these are removed you will have the front bracket free and clear of the vehicle.

I tried to just use the bracket upside down with the same bolts but the bolts are just a 1/2 inch too short so i had to replace them with a couple of bolts that were a little longer and i also used a couple of washers to make sure that the bracket didn't come off inadvertently. Now i didn't put the screw back in, it would go into the bottom lip and i didn't want it to make another hole so i just left it mounted with the 2 bolts, guess the wind at speed would force it back but so far i don't hear any noise or rattling from the front and after a week of running the plate that way there doesn't seem to be any marks or scratches on the bottom lip

i didn't take any pics during so all i can offer up is the after photo

 

[webby]

looks good like that. Did your dealership drill your bumper at all?

 

[KennyGS]

I think it looks way better! Can you take some close ups of how you positioned the bracket?

I see you have a temporary handicap placard. I have one that I used to use, but don't need it anymore. It's still good until April of 2016 in case I am injured again.

 

[Chris Shawn]

Looks good

 

[Intrepid]

yes they drilled one small hole into the bit of trim above the bumper, and it was positioned in the factory holes just upside down

 

[Kiegell]

On my front plate, the top holes are right in the middle of the bumper. When the dealership had the paper tag on the car, they ran the screws far enough to put two small holes in the bumper. When I put my permanent plates on, the screws run just into the hole, but nothing to grab. Trying to decide whether to modify it some how, or run longer screws. There's nothing holding the top of the plate up, so I am afraid it will get caught and ripped down.

 

[MrsJrotax101]

Looks much better!

 

[webby]

Kiegell - any pics of yours? It may help myself or others try to help you out. Are the new plate screws a smaller diameter to the previous ones?

 

[Intrepid]

this is a side view of it flipped around, you can see the bolts in the top of the pic

 

[Intrepid]

That is how they hand out the Handicapped parking here, My wife has MS so we have one for her. But i personally love having a specially anointed parking pass

 

[webby]

at high speeds is the plate going to start bending back and rubbing on the lower painted bumper?

 

[Intrepid]

It hasn't yet and, I had seen that and said if i noticed anything i would take a piece of double sided tape to it or break down and install the screw but don't really want to put another screw hole into it

 

[Kiegell]

Kiegell - any pics of yours? It may help myself or others try to help you out. Are the new plate screws a smaller diameter to the previous ones?

Sorry, with the power outages and extreme heat, I haven't taken the time to get pictures yet. I will try to do that in the next few days.

 

[KennyGS]

the power outages and extreme heat

Really sucked!

 

[Kiegell]

I was out of power from Friday Night til Tuesday Night. I had to bail out of work to take my dog and hang out at my parents' house.

 

[Ian Robertson]

Did this on my LX Sedan, looks good especially paired with the ezlip. Makes it seem a bit lower. I had to buy some longer bolts from the hardware store. The 10mm tip didn't help me. Not sure why, I just couldn't seem to buy the right bolt. Ended up just taking it off and bringing it in to the hardware store because I felt like I was going insane. I bought one that was quite long so I couldn't mess it up. 3 or so inches long, much longer than the original. It's a bit annoying to pull this off. Lots of laying on the ground with a wrench and swearing to yourself. It does look pretty good though.

 

[KennyGS]

It does look pretty good though.

 

[shimp]

Be careful, where the plate has been lowered, it is blocking the air flow to the radiator, and possibly the transmission cooler.... if the temp runs slightly higher, will eventually cause warped head from excess heat

 

[Dar-Dar]

It will be fine. The temp will not drastically change. This has been done to numerous cars (like mine) and they never had any sort of issue.

 

[mongoose221]

f*cking dealership screwed mine front and center into the bumper instead of just from below... so i can't flip it over, i'll have a hole in the bumper