It only took 7 years, but I finally got hassled by a cop for no front plate

"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein) 08/12/2020 at 12:51 • Filed to: None

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Ever since I got my 135is back in 2013, I’ve been driving some kind of stupid BMW coupe with no front plate. My 335xi similarly has no front plate. Yet, I’ve never been hassled by a cop for it, until now. Yay?

This past weekend I visited my parents at their vacation house near St. Michaels, MD. Usually my wife and I do this together and take her CX-5, but because our old-ass cats are getting increasingly decrepit, we’re now going individually while the other stays home to take care of the cats. So I took my 335xi. This is actually the first time I’ve taken it out there.

Hey there, dirty car out my front window!

On my way home from my folks’ place, I pass through downtown St. Michaels. Heading into downtown from my parents’ place is a nice speed trap where the limit drops from 50 to 35 and then 25. There’s at least this one little sign that tells you the limit is dropping to 35 ahead, but it’s easy to miss.

A ways up the road before this speed trap, there was a cop parked on the shoulder facing the opposite direction as I was headed. When I passed them, they pulled a U-turn and started following me. I figured, hey, they see the hopped up car, they want to follow me through the speed trap. So I set my cruise, paid attention to the speed limit signs, and slowed down when I needed to. Then the cop turned on their lights and pulled me over. I was like, hell, what did I do?

I masked up, and the cop told me they pulled me over for not having a front plate. They asked me where my front plate was, and I said “back at my house near DC, I was in a fender bender a few months ago and the body shop didn’t put the bracket back on.” I left out the part about how I directed the body shop to do this.

Back in 2013, a state !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! was proposed, but did not pass, which would have added the following exemption to the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! :

If a vehicle for which two registration plates are required was manufactured without a means to secure and display a front registration plate, the front plate may be stored inside the vehicle in a manner that makes the plate easily accessible for verification.

It’s a common misconception that this exemption is real. It’s not, but a lot of people keep their front plates shoved between their dash and windshield in the hopes of conforming to this not-actually-an-exemption. Similarly, I crafted my story about the lack of a bracket based on this exemption. I figure, hey, even though it’s not actually law, the fact that it’s out there with people talking about it that maybe it’s a good way to come up with an excuse.

After being very deliberate with saying where I would be reaching for my license and registration, the cop took those items back to their car, while I waited. Eventually I saw them print some kind of document, which gave me pause. But their first comment to me when coming back to my car was, “Have you ever been pulled over?” I responded, “Uhh you mean in my whole life? Yes, just not lately I guess.” Then they explained that I had provided a valid reason why I didn’t have the front plate, and handed me the document, which was an official written warning from the St. Michaels Police Department about the lack of front plate. Not a fix-it ticket, just a warning.

So, now I know, even though the front plate exemption doesn’t actually exist, my car out in that part of the state is apparently a cop magnet. The cops here in the DC area have better things to worry about, and there are far more fancy cars around here where mine draws minimal attention. Duly noted, St. Michaels cop, duly noted.

Sovande > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 12:57

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Clearly they don’t have anything else to do or they wouldn’t be parked under a tree waiting for a speeder to protect and serve.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 12:58

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oooo no front plate....naughty!

over here i dont think they would have let you drive on with a missing plate

too many damn rules over here

DasWauto > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:01

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My front plate mount on the WRX broke a couple of years ago  after tackling a few too many snowbanks and it took me less than 2 weeks to get pulled over for it. I ordered a new one that night. 

Textured Soy Protein > Sovande 08/12/2020 at 13:03

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They were so eager to protect and serve me that they chose another reason to pull me over when I proved to be already aware of the speed trap. 

ranwhenparked > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:03

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I think that's near Martingham, one of my best friends who I also worked for for about 10 years lives in there. Haven't been since well before the lockdown

lone_liberal > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:05

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I think it really depends on the car and whether the cop wants to stop you and uses that for a handy justification. Many, many years ago when I bought my first Camaro, a ‘72, it didn’t have a front bracket on it. E ven back then it wasn’t like you could go to a Chevy dealership to get one so I put the front plate on the dash and ordered a bracket through a repr o parts place . Sure enough while I was still waiting for it to come  a sheriff saw the car, did a U-turn, and then followed it for five miles and then proceeded to pull it over. Twist ending, my mom needed a car and I let her borrow it so the cop walked up to the window only to see a little gray haired woman driving. My mom still laughs when she describes the look on his face. According to her he mumbled something about the plate in the windshield not being good enough and left.    

Textured Soy Protein > farscythe - makin da cawfee! 08/12/2020 at 13:06

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Here in ‘murrica there are some states that require front plates and others that don’t. I’m in Maryland, just outside of DC. All of Maryland, DC and Virginia require front plates. But my theory is since this is an area so many people travel to from elsewhere, the local cops don’t really single out cars with no front plates, because they could conceivably be from some other part of the country that doesn’t require them. But out in a small rural vacation-y town with a lot of tourists and/or rich people with second homes, the cops are definitely  looking for opportunities to write petty tickets. 

Sovande > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:06

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How may miles from actual DC do you consider “near DC?” Because Rockville is 30 miles west of the District and St. Michael’s is 90 miles East across the largest estuary in the world.

mazda616 > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:08

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Praise be that I live in Kentucky where front plates aren’t required. I hate the way they look! I’m glad you didn’t get a ticket.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:09

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small town cops are fun like that...its no different here

Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:09

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No front plate requirement here but that didn't stop the dealer from shooting screws directly into my front bumper when I bought it so they could affix their dealer plate.  Just about shat myself.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:09

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I used to run my Grand Prix in Maryland with no front plate.  It has this cool little filler plate, color matched to the body, with a stylized "Pontiac" embossed on it, to fill the opening in the bumper where the plate was meant to go.  I never got pulled over for my, but both my parents did when driving my car.  The "theres no provision to mount front plate" worked for mom, but not for my dad.  

Textured Soy Protein > lone_liberal 08/12/2020 at 13:10

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My guess is they saw the fancy/hopped up looking BMW with no front plate and assumed either tourist, or local ne’er-do-well with a long list of infractions on their driving record. When I turned out to have a perfect driving record and was visiting my family who actually live there (although not full time) I was no longer someone worth ticketing.

fintail > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:12

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A massive amount of Tesla around here lack a front plate (supposedly mandatory here, but the serve and protect set enforces this one with extra discretion, I suspect), and many other premium brand “sporty” cars lack one. I’d wager there’s a socio-economic component to local enforcement.

HammerheadFistpunch > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:13

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I got a ticket for it once back in college but no one has since bothered me about it.  Frankly I can’t answer where my front plate is.  Its at the bottom of some river, either in American Fork canyon or someplace in the Swell.

Future next gen S2000 owner > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:14

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Front plates are dumb.

Textured Soy Protein > Snuze: Needs another Swede 08/12/2020 at 13:15

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GM did this on many cars including the C4 & C5 Corvettes. They actually brought it back on the C8 . Except on the C8 apparently you’re supposed to bend the front plate as the frigging plate holder underneath the hide- y panel has a crease running through the middle of it instead of being one flat surface. Gotta love GM.

lone_liberal > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:15

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It would have been interesting to see what the sheriff would have done if I was driving my car. I’ve never had a ticket in my life but he would have at least seen what he wanted to see, a (then) younger guy driving a Camaro. I’m almost certain he would have nailed me for the plate not being “properly” displayed. 

Textured Soy Protein > Sovande 08/12/2020 at 13:17

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Uh, Rockville isn’t 30 miles from DC. It’s about 8 miles from my house to Chevy Chase Circle on the MD/DC border. I figured a St. Michael s cop wouldn’t necessarily know where Rockville is so might as well keep it general. 

SBA Thanks You For All The Fish > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:22

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Maryland cops are dicks.

The plate scanners are all set up to read the REAR plates, so they probably don’t notice missing fronts as much. But the MD State Troopers have the highest installation rate of plate scanners of any state in the union. Just wait until they finish up the insurance-VIN-coverage tracking database. That’s going to be all kinds of fun.

Maryland cops are dicks, nevertheless.

SBA Thanks You For All The Fish > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:24

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Yeah, I think I bored you already with my “getting stopped by Maryland Trooper outside the gates to Ft Meade” in my new Audi because the cop didn’t like where my “out of state temp tag” was mounted on my “not going to be registered in your use less state anyway” new car.

Maryland cops are dicks.

Tim (Fractal Footwork) > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:25

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Back in Illinois I never ran a front plate and only ever got 1 $60 ticket when parked in a Chicago public parking space, not a fix-it ticket, just a pay-us ticket. Never was pulled over.

Here in Washington State, I was just pulled over a couple weeks ago for not having a front plate on my M2C, but the cop didn’t even get out of his car when he saw my Illinois plates (just moved, and the WA dmv is closed or whatever for covid), he just pulled up alongside and said sorry.

jminer > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:28

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I drove without one on my car (Explorer) for probably 4 years and only got pulled over for it twice.

The real reason was that I tore it off in brush while off-roading but the answer I gave cops was had body work done to it and hadn’t reinstalled it yet. Then I’d point to it in the pocket of the passenger door.

Never got a ticket or a paper warning though - just a ‘ put it on when you get a chance’ .

Sovande > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:31

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True, but it’s what, 20 miles to downtown? Chevy Chase is split between MD and DC, after all .

I would think Rockville is a pretty well know city, no? It’s even mentioned in a REM song which I think presented the best advice as regards the area: ( Don’t go back to) Rockville.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:38

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I was no longer someone worth ticketing

Another missed revenue opportunity.

::sigh::

Textured Soy Protein > Sovande 08/12/2020 at 13:38

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It’s about 14 miles from my house to the White House if taking Rockville Pike & Connecticut Ave . I gave Chevy Chase Circle as a specific point on the border for reference. With the Metro red line running out here and my having a station in walking distance, I tend to associate somewhat closely with the city, not only being out in suburbia.

In my experience with the Eastern Shore, it’s kind of its own little world so I just wanted to make it clear that my house wasn’t round the way rather than go through “where’s Rockville?”

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:40

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You know what would prevent this from happening again? Pitting on the front plate as required by law.

Textured Soy Protein > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 08/12/2020 at 13:41

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But front plates are ugly.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:43

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My state requires a front plate, but since I drive a black Town Car (AARP cruiser ) nobody’s bothered me. Yet. 

John Norris (AngryDrifter) > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:45

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No front plate required in Georgia. They issue you exactly 1 plate. I think that is the case with most other states in the deep  south.

Boxer_4 > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:48

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I’m glad that PA is one of the no front plate states. If that ever changes, I’ll be very sad. 

nerd_racing > farscythe - makin da cawfee! 08/12/2020 at 13:55

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If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 13:58

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You sound like an antimasker

Textured Soy Protein > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 08/12/2020 at 13:59

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The difference is being an anti-front-plate-r doesn’t hurt anyone else, and I have a plentiful selection of lovely masks which I wear religiously.  

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 14:08

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“legislation shouldn't apply to me when it's inconvenient"

Textured Soy Protein > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 08/12/2020 at 14:19

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You may now consider me sufficiently chastised and reprimanded. 

The Snowman > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 08/12/2020 at 14:29

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My car can't breathe in a front plate.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 14:40

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Damn straight

Shoop > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 08/12/2020 at 14:43

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You sound like an authority loving bootlicker. Don't you have an hoa to be a part of? 

Shoop > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 14:51

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I live in CT, a front plate state. None of our 8 cars have plates, and no one has been pulled over for it. 

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Shoop 08/12/2020 at 15:02

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The only boots I lick are those of my sexual partners 

Sovande > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 15:06

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I hear you, and I tend to agree that Rockville is close enough to basically be DC.  But I used to work with a guy who commuted from Front Royal.

Textured Soy Protein > fintail 08/12/2020 at 16:33

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Pretty much every car I see in my neck of the woods (i.e. affluent part of the DC burbs) without a front plate is some kind of nice luxury/performance/tuner car, which are plentiful. Generally the cops don’t make much of a habit of bothering these cars as long as they’re not actively doing something stupid. If I were to guess, the more obnoxiously loud and/or stanced cheaper/mainstream cars, or stereotypical hooligan cars like WRXs,  are more likely to be hassled by the cops around here. There’s probably a racial/socioeconomic component to this distinction.

When I got my 135is, that was when I lived in Madison, WI. The BMW dealer there as a rule didn’t install front plate mounts until someone bought a car and then they asked if you wanted the front plate. So a lot of plain regular leased new BMWs were running around Madison with no front plates.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 16:50

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I got the Vettes did this as well. But the new C8 bendy bracket is pretty funny indeed.  Oh GM...

fintail > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 17:18

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I somewhat joke about how a kid in a fartcan 20 year old Civic registered to a less affluent suburb would fare if he lacked a front plate. Probably not like the annoying techdork in a Tesla or luckyboomer in a high zoot Porsche.

I’ve always ran a front plate just to be under the radar, so to speak.  Although no doubt in outlying areas, driving a fancier car not sold in that region might make one an infraction target too, someone more likely to just pay it rather than drive back to fight it.

Textured Soy Protein > fintail 08/12/2020 at 18:20

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St. Michaels is a specific kind of outlying area: a rural, geographically distinct place (it’s on the Eastern Shore of Maryland) where there are a lot of tourists, and even more vacation homes owned by rich people from the semi-nearby major cities like DC.

What I’ve seen of tuner cars out on the Eastern Shore is more high-dollar muscle cars and otherwise mostly crapcans with questionable additions. My car isn’t that flashy, and since the tourists and vacation homeowners are rich I’m sure there are plenty of luxo brand cars, but if I were to guess, the locals definitely treat them as “not from round these parts.” But at the same time these folks are at least semi-permanent residents who contribute to the local economy, so I’d guess the local constabulary doesn’t want to tax them with petty traffic tickets too badly.

Just one example of this : there are a bunch of tchotchke shops in downtown St. Michaels, and one time I was shopping in them with my wife and the guy running one of them had a sign for 10% off for locals or something like that . I want to say he had some signs or just was talking about some typical “the government can’t fuck with me” kinda vibe, but somewhere in the course of conversation we mentioned we were visiting my parents who have a house nearby, and he was all like, WELL HEY YOU GET THE LOCALS-ONLY DISCOUNT!

fintail > Textured Soy Protein 08/12/2020 at 20:28

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In WA, I think some city cops might behave the same in not wanting to “tax” the out of town absentee resident moneybags, but county sheriffs can be notoriously bad in hunting for non-local cars (or so I have heard) , probably a factor of being virtually unfireable with an a vid idiot fanbase who will support them no matter what.

The “I hat e government” set usually has amazing mental gymnastics and personal hypocrisy - I bet there’s a federally subsidized small business loan or mortgage in that guy’s history, if not an outright public sector meal ticket. Of course, those parts of government don’t count.

zipfuel > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 08/12/2020 at 20:55

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Ahem, excus e me sir but where is the front plate on your avatar?

MoarPWR! > Textured Soy Protein 08/13/2020 at 20:48

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I just happened to drive through St Michaels on Tuesday this week and I don’t have a front plate. Granted, my vehicle  is registered in NC and they don’t issue front plates, which I am very happy for as I am not a fan of front plates. Would not bother me so much on my truck, but I hate how they can muck up the front end design of cars.