k_lundquist

MB-BOB those are some really good points.

I would think though that a front plate would be helpful to law enforcement on non-highway streets. A stationary officier, or one traveling in another direction, could see a front plate easier than the back.

Just playing devil's advocate! :v

Wish I could ditch my front plate, but Connecticut cops are *****s about that stuff.

SteveL1

If it bothers you that much, make one last "polite" attemp to have them satisfy your request................and if they refuse, tell them that you would like to test drive whatever car is near yours and then back in to your bumper. Their insurance should take care of a new bumper that way!!!

Just kidding actually!!! Caveat Emptor = Buyer beware

If this was that important to you, you should have put it in writing when you bought the car. I feel your pain, but it really was not the dealers fault. The poor guy that put the bracket on was doing his job.

MB-BOB

Yes, you have a good point, too. I've thought of that but didn't mention it, because in my experience, the police cars approaching me from the opposite direction have one eye on the road (concentrating on driving themselves) and the other eye on the radar gun readout screen, to see if the speed displayed warrants a 180 to run you down. With one's head half in the c-ockpit like that, there isn't much extra eye-time available to scan for details like front license plate numbers -- and other esoterica like drivers running lights, drunks weaving over centerlines, etc.

I do use a radar detector, so it's interesting to get the heads-up so I can get that extra time myself to look at the officer in detail once in view. If they're running mobile radar, they seem oblivious to anything else. I couldn't do any better myself... You simply can't multi-task that much, in spite of what we think. IMO, it's all about the revenues, at least where I drive. :p

FIXEDupW209

I took off the bracket today to see the damage and they managed to drill between 6-8 holes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How the hell do they do that???

Blake P

They must have been working really hard to be sure and get it perfectly centered for you!

Trekman

wow they only need two holes.... I would be pissed off show it to them

shorthair

The requirement for front license plate precedes the invention of red light cameras and speed guns by a very long time.

More likely it was just someone thinking that it would be good to see the plate of the car coming and going, (for as many reasons as you can possibly think of) and then once adopted other states jumped on the bandwagon.

I like to think it was because the plate would leave an imprint when you hit pedestrians, therey possibly making it easier to track you.

MB-BOB

That's certainly true of my home state that has had front plates since before I was born.

In Texas, the front plate law was a late comer (1996) well after the invention of radar speed guns. And the police officers I know tell me they rely on that front plate as the aiming point for their lasers and radars. So my thought is that cops in states that haven't had the plate until recently heard from their brothren in the "have" states that's it's a good aid to have. Maybe that's why they lobbied so hard for it in Texas.

Moviela

But that was when the police worked for us, catching criminals. Now that they have joined the revenue department, they enforce the rule to line their department pockets. Our Sheriff spends millions each year on helicopters to ferry him around the county. Someone has to pony up!

mick1

someone told me in California, (except for SF and LA), most cops usually won't stop you for not having a front license plate unless you have committed another violation like speeding or not wearing the seatbelt. Furthermore, it's not like you would run into the lawman everyday.

mleskovar

Rumor has it in CA that the police/CHP "save" the license plate pull over for when they are suspicious/curious but don't have a reason to stop you. I think that's possible but I think the real reason is that it's a nuisance to them as well!

sytfu_c230

they always use that one to get you for other stuff, esp if you drive a modded car, they'll use it as their "justifyable cause" to pop your hood,etc...

benzo-boi

I purchased my 2005 C230SS in August 2004. There was no problem with not having a front license plate from Rusnak. It was never an issue. For those of you that think its not big deal....well that's your opinion. I for one, think it's a big deal. It's bullsh*t that the dealer would do such a thing. I asked my lawyer for fun and there is no law requiring dealerships to put a front license plate holder. It should be more of a request from the customer. My lawyer also said the a "class action law suit" would only bind the dealer to drill holes for all the plaintiffs suing them. Because its a lawsuit disputing a service not legal tender.

I don't have rear or front plates, and I never have a problem.

benzo-boi

I forgot to include my other analogy. In the city of New York and various other cities, it's illegal to talk on a cell phone without a car kit or headset while driving. So do cell phone reps. make/enforce you to buy a headset or make you sign a stupid waiver when you're buying a cell phone? No. It's not their responsibility to babysit you and make sure you follow the law. This analogy might be a little far away from this topic, but it's the same concept. bottom line: when you're buying something as a customer (especially a car) you're always right, as long as it's within reason.

C43AMG

Where's the pics?

e1000

Yeah - I asked them not to drill my bumper too but the damage was done.

The front plate takes 6! holes. 4 for the bracket itself and 2 more for using long screws for the licese plate....

BrabusClK04

Which dealer did you go to in Los Angeles???....I was planning to do my service soon. Boy would i have been PISSED if they did that on my brabus bumper. REall really pissed. Glad I ready this forum, i guess when i get to the dealer, i am going to ask to sign something, and if they wont let me, F- it, im going to a specialzed MB shop to get the service done, or i might just Double side tape the front plates on just to make them happy, and take it off when im done.

BTW, in regards to the no-front plate, during the past three years, i have gotten about 5 of them, of 5, couple were parking violations, and they gave me a front plate ticket along with the parking tichet, and the rest, came along with other traffic tickets. I remember getting one, when the cop pulled me other thinking my car was blown, but after popping the hood and finding nothing illegal, he just wrote me up for no front plate.

06C230

eh not much of a rumor, it's the truth. Same goes for tinted windows, but mix the 2 together and i'm sure you'll get pulled over. Police do use the no front place for a reason to pull you over if something doesn't seem right but bottom line is they can always find a reason to pull you over. I know of one guy out here that was proving a point about the whole plate thing and how much they care. Not only did he not have a front plate but he removed his rear plate. It's been just over 2 years now and he's never been pulled over. He's not the only one I know to do that but he's done it the longest. It may be the law to have the front plate but the law also says the speed limit is 65 and 55 in some areas. If you drive at those speeds it's more dangerous than speeding.

kev

this coming from someone who drives a car with a V6 3.4L engine with EPA 21mpg!? i mean, like, are you for serious? i appreciate this noble sentiment you supposedly have, but let's not blow things out of proportion -- there are so many other things we could be doing as individuals, as a country, as mankind to reduce pollution from cars. and don't even get me started about the 'price of gasoline' and the politics of oil consumption.

don't get me wrong; i would much rather not have a license plate on the front of my car, but at least i'm honest enough to admit that that's for purely aesthetic reasons. if you're concerned about gasoline consumption, there are hundreds of things you could be doing. raise awareness about checking tire pressure or something, start car-pooling, take the frickin' bus, don't drive places you could walk to. if every american maintained proper tire pressure, that alone would decrease our gasoline consumption by a significant amount. and i'm not even telling you switch to a hybrid car, or write your congressman or anything that's HARD to do like that.

listen, i know that at some negligible level if you do a bevy of tests and everything, sure, fuel efficiency is decreased by a fraction of a percent or something by having that plate at the front. but i find it ridiculously laughable that you might take such a marginal difference and tout that as a justification for your preferences when so many other things you (or our fellow MB drivers) could be doing to maintain fuel efficiency. hell, if we really cared that much we'd all be driving corollas and civics. maybe it lets you sleep better at night, but frankly it's pathetic.

blume

YOU OWN THE CAR; DO WHAT YOU WANT WITH IT. personally i would back out of the deal if i didnt want the holes and still got the holes... i would make it personal and make sure that i bought the car else where and got it at a better price! good luck.

wingless

My ordered vehicle included the statement: "Customer will not take delivery with front plate on". My salesman met the vehicle at the trailer to ensure no error at preparation.

mleskovar

Actually he has a 3.2L but who's counting. Other than that a nice rant kev, I say 8.7 on a scale of 10

MB-BOB

Thanks for your remarks, Kev. That the car looks better without a front plate is so obvious it goes without mention. Thanks for your earth shattering revelation.

If you'll read my post carefully, you find I gave SEVERAL reasons for my stance, mileage issues being only one. Also reading carefully, I believe you will conclude that I was writing about the cumulative effects of millions of cars effecting the price of oil, not my particular vehicle. You have no idea what else I drive, either.

I also guarantee if you spoke with the engineer who designed that bumper to create the lowest coefficient of drag so as to minimize wind resistance and increase mileage (class leading cd in 2001, as I recall the press reviews), he would express how pissed he was that 100 sq in of barn door license plate ruins his work -- if only a little. But I suppose his opinion would be "pathetic," as well.

I'm sorry (I guess) that I apparently am not allowed an opinion on conservation issues unless I drive an insanely small, stick-shift, Hybrid "Greenie-mobile." But since you bring up the point, I will tell you I've been there and done that, and remember most of it. My C320 (with 40lbs of air in the 44psi tires) gets 23-25mpg on my regular commutes (345-mile tank average=23.4mpg), which is on par with the 1977 Honda Accord I drove years ago -- a stick shift, 68hp, insanely small car (13" 4-bolt wheels) -- that could barely get out of the way of the 2 ton+ American iron behind. I loved the car, but since I couldn't lean my 175 lbs on the front fender without denting it, I was mindful of my safety the entire 7 years I owned it, albeit not enough to sell it. But I was young then, bullet-proof, naive and supremely idealistic about the "price of gasoline and the politics of oil consumption," as you are today.

But hey, this is a Mercedes-Benz forum. It presumes you also drive an MB, so perhaps since you have so few posts, you can share which Honda beating MB you drive? It better not be an ML or R class... In fact, anything other than a B-Class or SMART car would disqualify you from calling me out on this.

BTW, after a week and 3 1/4 hours driving, here is my current tank mileage with my gas-guzzling 3.2L...

mick1

I don't believe the dealer would install the front plate on the cars they service (that don't have one). They would only do that to the cars they sell. So, you are safe

LAZARU5

That's exactly what I did when I got my E500 last April. See this link for some photos. Not shown in the photo are a few short strips of 3M Dual Lock used to hold the top edge of the plastic license plate bracket to the face of the bumper.

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w211/95223-cheap-fix-front-license-bumper-holes.html