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Got the DMV rejection for YOM plates today

johnpro

Active Member
This is the stupidest thing in the world, but nothing less than I would expect from any state agency in California. It is official ... the plate goes on whatever year that the sticker is. In other words, if the plate was issued in '69, but has a '64 sticker, it's a '64 plate. The number/letter sequence doesn't matter, only the sticker. How asinine!

According the DMV:

"The base year license plate must have the appropriate year sticker validation attached to the license plate to be authenticated as other than a base year. For example: A 1956 license plate with a 1962 sticker affixed is now considered a 1962 license plate and can only be assigned to a 1962 year model vehicle."


That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Ok, I guess I heard one thing dumber (it involved building a POS in a driveway and selling it for $70k).

Guess I'll put my '66 sticker on the plate and resubmit my application. At least they sent me a new registration, so I finally have a valid registration for the first time in 2 months!
 
Well that is odd, I must say. Comparatively, I was able to get updated tags for my '62 Galaxie and it had black tags with the sticker reading 1980 (the last year it was registered).

I think they're still mixing in bits of the old YOM tag rules with bits of the new rules. Hopefully, Frank or someone else more knowledgeable than me will clarify.

And, BTW, Zing! :scar
"johnpro" said:
That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Ok, I guess I heard one thing dumber (it involved building a POS in a driveway and selling it for $70k).
 
Im so sorry to hear that John, that really sucks.

Thank you soo much for sharing your DMV experience so the rest of us can go prepared. I will be making my journey over to the CA DMV with the balck/yellow plates and the 65 sticker(that I got from Frank aka crustycurmudgeon) on the plate for added precuation later next week.

Glad to hear your not giving up.

The Great Stuff Mustang last I heard was trying to sell for over 100k. :$$$
 
The bill that was passed stated that the DMV would consult experts to determine if the plate sequence was appropriate for the individual car's model year. I wondered at the time who would be doing this and how they would do it, since sequences were specific to individual DMV offices and not to a particular model year. They do make fake CA registration stickers with old dates on them, don't they? Sounds like you've already got a 66 sticker. Good luck.

Ken
 
"RagTop" said:
The bill that was passed stated that the DMV would consult experts to determine if the plate sequence was appropriate for the individual car's model year. I wondered at the time who would be doing this and how they would do it, since sequences were specific to individual DMV offices and not to a particular model year. They do make fake CA registration stickers with old dates on them, don't they? Sounds like you've already got a 66 sticker. Good luck.

Ken

Ken:

I too shared your skepticism about specific sequences allocated to particular model years as i recall specific instances back in the day of widely spaced sequences being assigned during the same model year. For example in 1965, my Dad bought two new cars for his business, one came from Sacramento and the other from San Francisco. The Sacto car got "MMV" and the SF car got "CZM". Again in 1967, one car got "AVS" and the other "UAS". The thing to remember is back then, plates were not issued from a central location, rather each field office received plates whenever they needed them, some more frequently and others less frequently. It really depended on which field office the selling dealer sent the application to for processing and what volume that field office had during any particular year.
 
The part about this that cracks me up is that RagTop was able to register a blue/gold plate onto his '69 vette. This means he put a '69 sticker on a blue/gold plate to get through the process. No Blue/Gold plate was ever issued with a '69 sticker on it. The first plates issued would have had a '70 stickers on them.

The DMV is too stupid to understand their own rules, though. Apparently, they don't even realize they give you a registration that is good for the next year, not good for the year that just ended.

Whatever ... I have a new appointment on the 22nd of December.
 
"johnpro" said:
The part about this that cracks me up is that RagTop was able to register a blue/gold plate onto his '69 vette. This means he put a '69 sticker on a blue/gold plate to get through the process. No Blue/Gold plate was ever issued with a '69 sticker on it. The first plates issued would have had a '70 stickers on them.

The DMV is too stupid to understand their own rules, though. Apparently, they don't even realize they give you a registration that is good for the next year, not good for the year that just ended.

Whatever ... I have a new appointment on the 22nd of December.

Actually John, it may have been possible for a blue/gold plate to have had a '69 sticker on it. Remember that prior to 1976, all vehicle registrations in California expired on 12/31, so, for example, a new car being registered for the first time in September of 1969 would have been charged for 4 months fees and given a '69 sticker. I can't recall exactly when the blue/gold plates actually started being issued but it would have been around that time. I had a '69 BMW sold new in June, 1969 and the series was "ZJU", pretty close to the end of the black/gold run.

As far as DMV stupidity, the average DMV employee today was probably not even alive in 1969 so at least part of the stupidity is based upon ignorance!
 
I have several pairs of blue plates with early letter sequences (A**), and they all have a '69 sticker.

I believe the rules for the black plates are the same as the rules for the yellow plates, in that you need the correct year sticker that matches the model year of your vehicle.

Frank
 
I am so glad to find you guys. These are the kind of discussions I like and look forward to.

It doesn't surprise me that you had trouble with DMV, John. I don't believe anyone else could have this happen to them.

I wonder what they would do with the plates off the 67 if I moved back? They have a sticker that is only three years ago. they would probably let me put them on a 2006 car. Hehehheeh

Nice to see you guys!

Mel
 
"guruatbol" said:
I am so glad to find you guys. These are the kind of discussions I like and look forward to.

It doesn't surprise me that you had trouble with DMV, John. I don't believe anyone else could have this happen to them.

I wonder what they would do with the plates off the 67 if I moved back? They have a sticker that is only three years ago. they would probably let me put them on a 2006 car. Hehehheeh

Nice to see you guys!

Mel
Mel:

If the '67 was registered here within the past 3 years, your car is still in the system so you could proceed without dealing with the YOM process....
 
I would not want to go back, but, it has been 4 years....

Just wanted to pose a question of I wonder if since my black plate has a 2004 sticker if I could get it put on a 2004 car?

CA should just go ahead and let the plate belong to the person not the car like Utah. the 65 plates on the fastback and the 67 plates on the coupe are my plates, I own them and when I sell those cars I keep the plates. I can put them on any 65 or 67 car I want to. The plates on my daily drivers are the same. In fact since Utah changed the design on the plates I have saved my old ones to put on the next daily drivers.

Sorry to hear your troubles John.

Mel
 
John,
My experience for my '65 F100 was pretty much the same.
-Local office seemed OK with every thing, made copies, sent off to Sacto.
-Got a call from Sacto office with same lame "what ever year sticker is on the plate is the year car it is for".
-The plate had a '68 sticker on it so she said it would only work for a '68.
-Told her there was a '65 sticker under the '68.
-Said I could peel off the '68 and send them a copy.
-She said she would send my app back to me.
-App came back with a SAE to send it all back to her.
-Made a color copy of the plate with the '65 sticker(temp taped to it, saved it in case needed again) and mailed it all back.
-Got every thing, new 2010 stickers and reg, pink(in a separate mailing), with new(old B&Y) plates assigned to the truck.
-They never asked for or told me what to do with the White & Blue plates and I'm afraid to ask.

You are right they are very dense. So using her logic if the plate had been kept in service until 1998 and had a 1998 sticker on it, it would only be correct for a 1998 vehicle. Yea, that makes sense, a 1998 vehicle with Black & Yellow plates.

They will make a lot less revenue off this program then they could with this logic.
Our tax dollars at work! I work for government this kind of thing makes even me say that.
 
I have a 68 coupe that was sitting for 20 years in a guys drive way before I got it. It has blue plates on it? How would that work out then?

Also, how would i go about getting black/white plates? I want black plates with white numbering. Is that a major redflag of sorts for a 68? What are my options?
 
"68angrypony" said:
I have a 68 coupe that was sitting for 20 years in a guys drive way before I got it. It has blue plates on it? How would that work out then?

Also, how would i go about getting black/white plates? I want black plates with white numbering. Is that a major redflag of sorts for a 68? What are my options?

The black plates of the 60's all had yellow letters/numbers. You would need to locate a pair of plates, either on eBay or elsewhere, and a '68 sticker if the rear plate doesn't have one. Look for my ad in the classified section.

Frank
 
I can't believe that CA is that screwed up. They need a sticker, how messed up. Now you gotta find the plates and a sticker and pay for both. Way to go politicians! A new Ebay industry is born!

Mel
 
What kind of trouble would I get myself into if I either did it myself or had a license plate re finisher do a black plate with white lettering? What sticker are we talking about here? The last year my stang was registered according to the plate was 86. When I started the process at the DMV they had no record of my vehicle and had me start to fill out paper work. Besides the plate number from the pink slip, they didn't ask/care about anything else in regards to the plates.
 
It's a misdemeanor.

I know from first hand information that CA doesn't mess around with that. I used to live there. I also don't think CA made a black plate with white lettering. CA guys, help here.

Mel
 
Mel,

Can you expand a little about the first hand info?

Georgia has really lax YOM plate laws, and I have a '66 plate in my garage that I plan to register to the car, but I have also considered buying the exact same plate from http://www.licenseplates.tv to actually afix to the car. I can't imagine anyone ever noticing, knowing, or caring. I'll actually have the REAL '66 plate, and the number on my car would match the number registered to my car.

I know GA is not CA and YMMV and all that...but I'm wondering if maybe my plans to get an illegal tag and "risk it" might not be worth it if there really is a way someone would notice/do something about it.

Thanks.

Steve
 
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