I know somebody out there has the answer. I can get some YOM plates but the guy that has them dosen't know if they're DMV clear. How do I go about checking that? Do I need the plates to take to the DMV or can I just have them checked with the number? This is in Calif.
You can go on the dmv website and look under custom plates and type the number in there, i would call also.
here in Minnesota i just go to the local DMV and they check them , if it's clear they say they are good to use.....if not they just say i can't use them. no secret information or ownership is given out. on my `66 Honda the first plate i brought in was not clear. the guy i bought it from had two more ..i called him to get the numbers and they just checked the numbers for me
Skoty & Oldtimer are both right. Make sure you have the correct year tab or sticker for the car you're putting these plates on, when you go to the DMV. I know few guys who have done all the paperwork & taken the plates to the DMV, only to be turned away because they didn't have the year tab or sticker. Just a heads up.
yup, you have to have everything BEFORE you go to the dmv. you could try the personalized plate deal online but i use that only....call them. after your done quickly get them registered, numbers are being taken up everyday (depending on the year of the plate 47 & 51 being the worst). make sure you fill the paperwork out completely and so do the dmv or it will take months (it will take a few weeks under normal conditions), the dmv has to send paperwork to sacramento for finally ok. some dmv's will not let you use them if they deem them un usable or needing restoration or don't know how to do it at all, so you might need to try several dmvs and even talk to managers. here's the form as i remember it. you fill out the top parts and they fill out the bottom. they need to fill out: *their employee number *the office number *the plate number *number of plates *material of plates *condition of plates *type of plate (comm, car, motorcycle) *they have 4 or 5 boxes to check off and all of them HAVE to be checked off. the boxes are to make sure they checked the numbers against each catagory (commerical, car, motorcycle, trailer...) *date *thier signature i think that's all, if any of it is missing the sacramento office will kick it back to the local office........happened to me.
So the way I understand it. I need to have the plates in hand to have them cleared by the DMV. Can't get the plates cleared with just the plate number.
What year is the vehicle and is it vehicle a car or a truck?? Here's the form you'll need to fill out when you register the plates. http://www.dmv.ca.gov/forms/reg/reg352.pdf
just did this the other day. you can call the DMV's # and see if the plates are on the computer or if they are clear, if there in use oh well. if there clear you have to go down there and make them scratch there heads for a few minutes and they check everything out and send the forms thru to Sac. and then they will issue you a temporary permit. or you can go thru a registration service
calling that number is a pain in the ***. prolly worse now with furloughs and budget cuts. somebody on here went in to the DMV with the numbers and got them checked. another guy said someone got thier expensive plates confi****ed at the DMV office. could be an urban legend. I'd be careful none the less. I got 20 pairs of "1963" black plates to get checked. no way I'm bringing them into the DMV with me.
you only need to call or visit the dmv to check if the plates are usable (no plates needed, just the numbers). if your going to put the plates into your name then you need BOTH the plates (1 plate for 1945/46), tabs or stickers (also depending on what year plates) and some time to kill.
You absolutely can NOT clear plates using the California DMV website. They only way is to call them or take the plates in and have them run. The online is only used for personalized plates and does not look in the YOM database. They have to enter separate codes to check the plates. I can enter my own YOM plates that have been on file for years and they come up as clear.
I called the State of MN on a plate for my '46. They would only give me info on whether or not it is currently being used and said that there are other things that could make them not usable, ie condition and whether or not the plate number was reserved (and they couldn't give me the reserve status of the number!). I paid my fee to get the clear plate tagged to my truck, then after a couple weeks got a letter in the mail saying the number was reserved and I couldn't use the plate! Pissed me off, why can't the guys have a frickin database of reserved numbers so that you know if you should buy a plate or not. So I got a pretty expensive wall hanger!
yes, on the condition...it must be readable. my local DMV makes a copy of it and sends it to the state with the application. also, if you read the rules it says that the plates must be original can not be restored..but i know many that do and have no problems. how can the state tell from a photocopy? i know a guy that made his own plate with his own numbers with stick on numbers from the hardware store...true! they made a copy of it for the application and it all went through , he is driving around with a home made license plate i've also aware of guys cutting up plates and re welding together to get the number they want. a little welding , a little grinding , some smoothing off with bondo, and some paint and you have the perfect plate. i won't mention names..... my `36 has an original un-restored 1936 plate the "reserving" of plate numbers is new to me
Gee, here in AZ, you just find an old plate in good condition or restored to the proper colors, bring it to the DMV, the agent calls a woman at the main PHX office, and describes color/condition to her. She runs the plate, 9/10 times it's fine, agent runs it like a specialty plate at that point, so it's an extra 25 bucks a year, hands you the new sticker for it, and off you go. If you go to a DMV that runs the lines fast, the whole thing takes 20 minutes max. Last time I did it, the agent was a guy who had never done it before, didn't know it could be done, thought it was way cool, and asked me where I got the plates. I gave him the info for the collector I bought them from, he bought a pair for his '65 Chevy pickup and registered them to it. The YOM program is a great idea. -KK
Not to high jack but I need a good set of 1929 California p***enger car plates. Pm me if you have any. Now back to our regularly scheduled program.
Absolutely right. I ran a pair of YOM plates through the personalized plate website and they came back as unavailable or taken, but when I called the 1-800 number and talked to the clerk she said that they were available to use as YOM. So, the best thing to do is call the DMV and find out.
The '46 plate that I got is 6 numbers. The current collector plates are 6 numbers also. Although no collector plate was currently printed with this number it was reserved for a future printing so they wouldn't let me use it. Personally I think the explanation is BS, it can't be that hard with everything run by computer now to not print a single plate in the future or even have a rule where I would still be required t buy that plate when it got printed. They ended up sending me a set of collector plates that they decided to ***ign to my truck. I would ***ume that just about any 6 number plate will likely get denied right now -- but like I said not at the local DMV level. I keep looking for a 5 number '46 plate. Still got the letter from the DMV if you want to see it.
CA DMV "Special Processing" 916-657-7606/7654 would tell you if "NOT IN USE". They have no idea what you mean by "cleared".