What do you do with the sticker? I just got an original tag today at the flea market, 1927 Virginia for $5 and I did not talk him down. I'm letting etching primer dry as we speak and was wondering where the tags go and the bolt pattern is different too. Five Bucks! Woot!
I think it depends on your state DMV,here in South Carolina we are not required to display the current sticker on the tag but we are required to keep the sticker with the registration and produce it upon request.HRP
CA gets worse by the year. We used to own our cars, now the DMV does. Imagine, a gov't agency that can dictate when or where you can drive "your" car... Makes me mad enough to lay rubber.
There were little plates that bolted to the license plates upper bolts that are made for the tags....Calif DMV send them along with the registration tags
I agree with HRP that the best way to approach is to contact the DMV and find out what the rules are to the game and proceed....
Ok, here's the lowdown on CALIFORNIA YOM plates/program.......from my experience dealing with all my cars personally at the DMV (6 of them) and my research of California plates. This is going to be a long read........... *If you choose to go to the DMV yourself know the rules first, be prepared to walk away and go to another DMV since the laws are open to interpretation. Some might say you'll need to restore the plates, the color is off, the material is wrong or other condition issues but other offices will be fine with them. * You MUST have 2 plates (1945 was the only year to have a single and 1946 was a 1945 plate with a 1946 tab) * It's easier if the car is registered already, if you try to do both at once the DMV in Sacramento will get confused and problems will arise. Register it first get the regular plates and title in your hands and then go back to the DMV for the YOM plates. * They'll fill out their side of the paperwork (after you fill out yours) which consists of them checking/filling out boxes for color, material, condition and number of plates (this is where you will need to walk away if there's a problem and go to another DMV). They'll check the numbers against cars, trucks and motorcycles currently in the system and check each box off as they complete each search. Make sure their side of the paperwork is complete as most don't know the program well and if they screw up your paperwork will get sent back to the DMV office to complete (meaning you'll have to return again). California solely uses the configuration of digits on the plates and not the year for identification. Those digits get re used over the years which can render the original plates useless if a vehicle (car, truck, motorcycle and government) is still in the system (registered or not). That is why you have to make sure the set of plates are "clear" before you buy them. * They will photo copy a plate to send to Sacramento, give them 1 plate only and the best one. Be reluctant to give them both. * They'll take your new white plates and give a 30 day pass. Then you pay the fees, wait for your title, new stickers and tabs for the stickers. * Be nice, it goes along way.
California license plates facts: New plates came out every year until 1945, then they went to metal tabs until 1957 and went to stickers. New plates were issued between tabs and stickers in 1945, 1947, 1951, 1956, 1963. In 1947 plates were issued in aluminum and steel. You can use plates that have COM, PC, BE for commercial trucks (any pickup with an open bed and non passenger vans/panel trucks).
You can also check with AAA, I just did with a set of 56 Cal plates. Cal used alot of early plate number on motorcycles this is why you need to check
What 1oldtimer said before is right on. I am currently working on my 4th YOM plate registration and the process is not as scary as it sounds. I buy my plates from ePay and find buyers willing to refund your money if the plates are not clear. Because the plates are clear when they are selling them is not a warranty that they will be clear when the process is over. Having a good refund policy can save you money. Patience will take you a long way, each DMV office will have their own process and every Supervisor think they are subject matter experts. I've done it 4 times and between LA, Hollywood, Culver City and San Fernando, I have found the Van Nuys office to be the easiest office to deal with. If a clerk doesn't seem to know what they are doing, or hasn't done the process before, step away and go to another DMV. If you stay the results will be an incomplete application/process and eventually you will have to start the process over...been there sone that. From experience I can tell you make your own photocopies of your plates, so you can ensure they are clear. Also, after the clerk completes the application ask them to make you a copy for your records...Yes, Sacramento can loose your application....happen 2 times to me. and without a photocopy...you have to start over. The process can take some time, in my case, an average of 3 months each. You can call Sacramento and ask them what submitted month are they reviewing and that way you can have an idea of how long it will take. Once the process is completed you will get a new registration with the two metal tags to put the month and year on.
In CA, the YOM plates ARE the current registered plates for the car, not requiring ANOTHER "modern" set of plates. One set of plates per car --> whether it is modern, YOM, continuously registered (63-up black, 70-up blue), etc. plates. Plate numbers --> simple --> in the CA DMV, no duplicate numbers across all styles of plates. Luckily, is it pretty easy, once the homework is done. 1OLDTIMER has it nailed.
Lots of great info. Thanks! I'm still a ways out from finishing my build but was looking at some plates in the mean time. It sounds like if I were to pick them up, and the DMV cleared the number today (but I didn't move forward with any kind of registration), there's no guarantee that the number will be clear when I actually do register it?
That is correct, someone could use that same number on a personal plate - although not likely. If the car is currently in your name, I would go and get them registered now, so that doesn't happen. I've done 5 sets through the Fullerton DMV and they were pretty good, but patience is required. The San Clemente office sucked and I walked out. Santa Ana is pretty clueless too.
You are correct, it's best to register them as soon as you get them.....you can put the car in "non op" (non operational status) AFTER you register it and it saves the plate numbers for you (I have a few car this way). roll of the dices made a good point about having them photocopy the form after they fill it out. I agree with Don, San Clemente wanted me to restore first. I've done 4 YOM set-ups through the Laguna Hills DMV, with only 1 problem early on (they didn't check all their boxes). 1 Last thing about plates, if you do research you will be able to notice plates that will most likely be clear just by the way they're configured. I had a set of '47 plates for 5 years and the numbers were clear the whole time and '47 are the ones that are hit the hardest.
Check this with DMV but I believe you can put a "hold" on the number by paying an annual fee. Having a car is not a requirement of the hold. Charlie Stephens
It's a new 32 build from the ground up. Nothing has ever been registered or on the road before. I don't know if I can register a "project". Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using H.A.M.B. mobile app
By "real" he meant a 1932 Ford factory frame with a title not a aftermarket frame. If it's a stock car with a title you can go down with the title and say you want to put it in your name before you work on it. Then you get the plates issued to you, then go back with the YOM plates issue them and then non op it. My '36 has YOM plates (and non op) and has never seen the road.....I bought it as a parts pile. The big deal is if they want to see the car to verify the VIN and you just have a frame/body. Then you might want to either have a VIN verification company check the VIN at your home and then go to the DMV or just have them go through the whole process to get the YOM plates and non op for you.
More plate info, If you have say a 1939 car and it has 90's white plates on it, but you have a set of 1963 black plates that came with the car. If you can prove (ie, old title or registration) that those '63 plates were on the car you can run them again as regular plates with regular registration. Just give them the white plates and re register with the black ones.........this would take some serious pushing at the DMV on your part but it is legal.
Good luck with that - A new car & frame that has never been registered before is a touchy subject in CA. To do it by CA DMV rules, you need to apply for a SB100 which is a Special Construction exemption - this requires that the car be inspected by CHP for a VIN #, which you won't have so they will issue one, then a light and brake inspection, then a Smog inspection which will require that you have the smog equipment that is appropriate for the year of the engine. There are other ways to register using paperwork from an original car but this is shady at minimum and illegal at worst - I am not recommending this
My Special Construction experience was a nightmare. I would never do another again. A ground up build with custom frame just as hotroddon said "shady at minimum and illegal at worst" but easier than Special Construction for sure, at least it was in my case. I would never recommend registering a custom made frame as an original one. I don't think is worth the possible consequences. A clean free tittle is a first and a must. Buying and selling titles is not very legal and just like YOM plates because one is free and clear today it doesn't mean it will be tomorrow. A title can be clear in your state but being used in another state....not all DMV offices cross-reference from state to state. You need to stamp your custom frame with the vin on the title, hopefully with matching font and same locations as original. This is where you start crossing the line and your investment and freedom start slipping away. CA DMV no longer releases info for title status to non title owners. This makes it even harder to know if a title is clear or not. DMV is also requiring VIN verification if a car is "out of the system" not registered for 6 years +. This verification is especially difficult for "pile of parts car" as DMV wants to ensure you have a working semi complete car. If you have a "pile of parts car" and need a vin verification it is best to have it done by a third party vin verification company, before going to the DMV. Once you have the verification, go to DMV and start the registration process and in most cases they will accept the verification and complete that step. If you do it the other way around, and go to DMV first to start the process, they can and most cases will require the verification to be done by DMV personnel or CHP office and both will require the car to be at least semi complete. Not all third party Vin verifications will do a "pile of parts car" , especially older cars. You will need to search and call around to find those that will. Do yourself a favor and do some homework before time... find out where the vin numbers are to be located on the frame and should the body have or not any vin tags....if you do this the less problems they will have and the easier your experience will be. As it was mentioned before, I wouldn't do registration and YOM plates at the same time. Do your registration first, wait at least 3 working days (this is how long DMV's system takes to recognize the registration) and then do your YOM plates.
@oj Here in VA all you need to do is take the plates to the DMV and register the vehicle as an "antique". I have a small DMV that I go to in Bowling Green VA and it takes 15 min. Once you register it as an Antique, it is a lifetime registration, till you sell the car anyway, and no sticker is required or given. You end up with a registration card that says permanent like a trailer registration. Easy as pie and no yearly taxes on the car either. Done this with 6 cars in the past including my current 51 chevy with no problems.
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