[blueskyguy]

I haven't put a front tag on my new S and have been told other owners in Texas have not done so either. If you haven't, have you been stopped or ticketed? What was the outcome? The front tag sure does detract from the appearance of the car!

[Guuyuk]

I have not been stopped yet for having it missing. It really depends on how law enforcement in your area sees it. I know not to drive up Highway 16 between San Antonio and Bandera as the DPS (state troopers) along there are really stuck on having it. Most of the police in my area (northeast of San Antonio) haven't even noticed anything wrong.

[D Dubya]

I was at my first club gathering here in Houston on Saturday, and out of 33 MINI's, roughly half had the front license plate on. As for me, I don't. I haven't used a front plate since 98, and haven't had a problem. I keep the front plate in the boot, but don't really worry about it. I know an Houston police officer, and his comment was that they won't pull you over for that alone, but if they pull you over for a traffic violation, that will just be an additional ticket.

[blueskyguy]

Appreciate your comments and observations! Speaking of Hwy 16, I enjoyed tooling around the hill country and was on 16 during the first week I had my S. Picked it up in Arlington a week before Thanksgiving and went to Austin and San Antonio for the next week. Hope the lack of a front plate doesn't become a problem. I'll post if I get stopped or a problem with the front plate comes up in the panhandle. Merry Christmas and Good Motoring to you!

[guasonjin]

My old car didn't have a front license plate for over 3 years after it received a new front bumper. I was pulled over for it 3 times, but recieved a ticket for it only once. All 3 times I was pulled over either going to or from the valley (5 hour drive from Austin), usually from some bully that had nothing better to do. I almost always have my labrador in the car, though, which seems to charm them out of it. Go figure.

[stereo144]

I don't have my MINI yet but the front plate has been off of my current car for over a year and I've never been pulled over.

[guasonjin]

Like I said, I always got pulled over when I was out of town. I never got pulled over for it driving in a major or even minor city - just rural areas by people who obviously had nothing better to do. I'm sure you can get away with it if you're either driving in a major Texas city or going between them; it's when you venture off the beaten path you get zinged.

The three places I've been pulled over for this were three rivers and george west both times by the local sherif and once by a DPS officer just before falfurrias - all during non-holiday travel times. My mom lives in the valley, so I usually make this trip about 8 time a year or so. You can figure your odds from that. Also keep in mind that this was a very nondescript couldn't-go-over-the-speed-limit-if-I-wanted-to Ford Taurus, not my eye catching OMG-it's-so-beautiful-and-watch-it-go MC.

[Woohoo]

I have the plate on the front of my mini. I used to get pullled over a lot in my MR2 which didn't have a front plate. Always by the state troopers. To me, it's not worth the hassle nor the cost of the ticket. Avoiding roads so that I won't get a ticket sounds kinda ridiculous to me. It got really old getting a little nervous every time a cop goes by in the other direction. Plus, if you're exceeding the speed limit (I've heard that a lot of people do that), it just gives them extra incentive to pull you over.

[BruceK]

I've gone about 8 years without a front plate, first on a Miata and for 19 months on my Cooper S. Never had a problem, never been pulled over.

[page]

You're lucky. HPD sucks -_- they're really irritating about the whole license plate thing. Now we even have to make sure that the part of the license plates that say "Texas" and "The Lone Star State" aren't covered up. I dunno if that's a statewide thing but I got a warning for it! Grr HPD blows!