Front Plate Mount Project [Pic Heavy}

[Dimka]

Greetings,

I think a quick intro is in order. I have been in the VW/Audi scene for a long time, but of my life has been spent mostly on Vortex and FourTitude...and it wasn't until I couldn't find what I wanted on FourTitude that I stumbled onto Audizine. This forum is AMAZING and I've been able to find just about every bit of info for my recently acquired 2014 S4 (CPO). To say this is my dream car would be an understatement!

As most of you guys, my first order of business as soon as I got the car was to make it more "me," and an ECS intake and AWE exhaust (bought used on this forum) were installed this last weekend. I am still waiting for the ECS RS4 grill, but I've been wrestling with a license plate configuration that wouldn't detract from the front end design of the S4...especially its distinctive grill. There are quite a few mount options out there, and the US Mill Work looks like a very nice product...BUT...it wasn't meeting my needs. I don't like that the plate is flat and doesn't curve with the bumper, and the vertical right side of the plate FEELS in conflict with the lines of the grill. Not finding exactly what I wanted, I decided to build my own.

Before I go into the build, let me just say I live in Oregon and they unfortunately require a front plate. If you are luck enough to live where this is not the case, good for you. Also, to achieve the design I was after, I need to cut my plate. I am sure this is illegal but I tried to keep the trimming to a minimum so not to attract the attention of local law enforcement. Also, I did the project in a single evening, and the total cost was pretty much free since I had all of the materials already laying around.

To get a sense of the general shape, I made a template...



This picture will give you general idea of how much I would have to trim...and I wanted to make sure all the characters were still legible...


Once I was happy with the general shape, I transferred the template to 16 gauge steel. A huge thanks to my buddy Matt at Land Cruiser NW for letting me use the sheer at his shop...it creates much cleaner lines than just a cutoff wheel.



Once I had the general shape, the obvious challenge was the get a curvature that would match that of the bumper...


While I originally thought about using rollers to get the right curvature, I decided against it because it takes some practice to get it right...so I used a pipe bender die that seemed to be perfect...




Now that I had the general shape for what the license plate would attach to, I needed to mount it to the car. So I took my tow hook, cut it in half, and welded a bung to the end. The bung was a strategic way to be able to tighten and loosen the threads that go in the bumper....which I heard can be a challenge to remove after you leave it for some time...



Next I made an adapter that would bolt to the newly made tow hook piece, and would be welded to the license plate mount...


Here you see the everything bolted together up to this point...



Next, I cut a hole in the license plate bracket using a step drill and lined up with the pieces made to bolt to the car. Once you are happy with the alignment, tack weld it for now...




Take everything apart for finish welding and metal finish...



This is where you can take a step back with a beer in hand and enjoy the handy work...




And now with a coat of paint...


Make minor cuts to the license plate using some tin snips. You can bend the edges around for a cleaner look...



Use some stainless hardware and you got yourself a new license plate mount...



The design likely isn't for everyone, but wanted to throw another alternative out there. If you are so inclined, you may be able to make this work by modifying a US Mill Works design...though I didn't want to spend $, since I had all the materials.

If there is enough interest, I may be able to produce a few of these after the holidays.

[schirm]

Nice work man!

[AnotherJake]

Looks cool but I wouldn't have cut my plate.

Ummmm...Do you have to turn that plate back in to the DMV? Oregon.GOV says "License plates may not be altered and must not be covered by any material that alters their appearance." Good luck man.

[schirm]

Looks cool but I wouldn't have cut my plate.

Ummmm...Do you have to turn that plate back in to the DMV? Oregon.GOV says "License plates may not be altered and must not be covered by any material that alters their appearance." Good luck man.

If I got pulled by a dickhead cop for that I would laugh and just take my ticket. I have not been running a front plate in NJ for over 10 years. Never once received a ticket.
But I do believe you have a less chance of getting a ticket for not having it then cutting one in half. What they don't see they wont notice.

[Dimka]

Looks cool but I wouldn't have cut my plate.

Ummmm...Do you have to turn that plate back in to the DMV? Oregon.GOV says "License plates may not be altered and must not be covered by any material that alters their appearance." Good luck man.

In Oregon, you don't have to turn your plates into the DMV...they just stay on the rig. If the next owner asks about, all I know is that it "got destroyed." :)

[Dimka]

If I got pulled by a dickhead cop for that I would laugh and just take my ticket. I have not been running a front plate in NJ for over 10 years. Never once received a ticket.
But I do believe you have a less chance of getting a ticket for not having it then cutting one in half. What they don't see they wont notice.

So I've taken this gamble many times, and I almost always got bit for not running a plate. It isn't the cops who bust you...but...wait for it...the F'ing parking patrol. I have a Land Cruiser where I was building a front bumper and temporarily displayed the front plate in the front window on the passenger side. The parking patrol not only fined me for an expired meter, but also for not having the front plate "Attached" to the front bumper.

I fully acknowledge that this is a gamble...but from a "preserving the style of the car" perspective, willing to chance it.

[MrFunk]

Wow - the work is very detailed... but I must be honest - I don't think it looks very good... The plate cut off looks strange because there is a crease on the top and left, but none on the right and bottom... the cut off Y looks strange... just looks "hacked"...
Maybe it's just off because it's not symmetrical. I'd have maybe followed the line under the headlight instead of the grill line. With these types of plate holders they never look proper though... i gave up on my US Mill plate and just run none now...

Nice craftsmanship though!

[creativecody]

Seems like a lot of work for basically this....

http://www.usmillworks.com/audi.html

And I agree with what someone else said.....is it even legal to cut/manipulate the plate?

[MrFunk]

Seems like a lot of work for basically this....

http://www.usmillworks.com/audi.html

And I agree with what someone else said.....is it even legal to cut/manipulate the plate?

OP is aware of US Mill plate holder and even commented on it in his post.

[Dimka]

Wow - the work is very detailed... but I must be honest - I don't think it looks very good... The plate cut off looks strange because there is a crease on the top and left, but none on the right and bottom... the cut off Y looks strange... just looks "hacked"...
Maybe it's just off because it's not symmetrical. I'd have maybe followed the line under the headlight instead of the grill line. With these types of plate holders they never look proper though... i gave up on my US Mill plate and just run none now...

Nice craftsmanship though!

Fair enough on the styling. I knew that the design wouldn't be for everyone, but it works for me. I played around with the various car lines to follow, including the bumper line below the headlight, but IF I wanted to keep a matching line with the grill (which was my priority), I would need to even have a steeper line on the right...which would require more cutting of the last character on the plate.

[fesmail]

I appreciate that everyone has their own taste, but I never understood how someone thinks this looks good??.....sure you get the full grill visual effect but the off center plate (in my opinion) is such an eye sore on any car..... No symmetry with this look, just seems so out of place.....but again, this is my opinion and to each their own! Good on you for what looks like decent workmanship

[fesmail]

So I've taken this gamble many times, and I almost always got bit for not running a plate. It isn't the cops who bust you...but...wait for it...the F'ing parking patrol. I have a Land Cruiser where I was building a front bumper and temporarily displayed the front plate in the front window on the passenger side. The parking patrol not only fined me for an expired meter, but also for not having the front plate "Attached" to the front bumper.

I fully acknowledge that this is a gamble...but from a "preserving the style of the car" perspective, willing to chance it.

Parking patrol??????? What! They don't have that authority here in Canada......police only

[Shimmy]

Nice! looks good!

[hotleadsingergu]

So I've taken this gamble many times, and I almost always got bit for not running a plate. It isn't the cops who bust you...but...wait for it...the F'ing parking patrol. I have a Land Cruiser where I was building a front bumper and temporarily displayed the front plate in the front window on the passenger side. The parking patrol not only fined me for an expired meter, but also for not having the front plate "Attached" to the front bumper.

I fully acknowledge that this is a gamble...but from a "preserving the style of the car" perspective, willing to chance it.

But that's the same as what schirm was saying: what they don't see, they won't think about. No plate at all and almost every cop won't notice. A plate that's in a weird place, a weird shape, or not super visible...and it draws attention. Cutting a pretty large portion of the plate off like that is going to net you a lot of attention.

Why didn't you just make it a bit wider so you didn't have to cut off part of a letter? That seems like semi-poor planning.

[bknewtype]

you could of gorilla glued a shit load of earth magnets behind the bumper and just slapped on the plate whenever you are parked, and remove it when driving

[schirm]

you could of gorilla glued a shit load of earth magnets behind the bumper and just slapped on the plate whenever you are parked, and remove it when driving

That is a great idea!

[Dimka]

But that's the same as what schirm was saying: what they don't see, they won't think about. No plate at all and almost every cop won't notice. A plate that's in a weird place, a weird shape, or not super visible...and it draws attention. Cutting a pretty large portion of the plate off like that is going to net you a lot of attention.

Why didn't you just make it a bit wider so you didn't have to cut off part of a letter? That seems like semi-poor planning.

I actually spent a lot of time prototyping the pattern...the version you see in the pictures is V4. It sounds like I might be the only one on this forum who wants the plate to flow with the lines of the grill (and I'll own being the only one), but making it any wider runs it very close to the headlight washer.

I'll also report back on how much attention I get from the local cops. I agree that if it isn't there, they won't think about it...but the F'n parking patrol nails me on that shit ALL the time.

[Dimka]

you could of gorilla glued a shit load of earth magnets behind the bumper and just slapped on the plate whenever you are parked, and remove it when driving

That is a fantastic idea...but I would be far too lazy to do that routine day in and day out.

By the way...I LOVE the stance on your S! If mine wasn't a company car, I would be definitely looking at bags.

[pdqgp]

I can appreciate the effort but for $30 off amazon a basic tow hook mount works for me. I thought about the magnet idea but I didn't want to chance losing my plate to someone who wanted to just pluck it off. I don't trust anyone. Ohio is also notorious for front plate tickets and I'm not interested in paying $100 tax for it.

I fastened mine to the bracket via velcro and the clear/tinted cover with a thin strip of packing tape all the way around the edges to seal it against water and dirt. Works great and holds strong as heck. I like velcro as I don't have to look at any screws or run the risk of them hitting my bumper.

I also have my bent to angle towards the passenger side vs straight to the front. I don't have a good picture to show it but this angle keeps the plate from covering any of the grill or edges of it. Very clean look. It's not even apparent that it's angled either. Clears the headlight washers too.

Sorry for the crappy pic but it's all I have handy showing the plate mounted..

[bknewtype]

That is a fantastic idea...but I would be far too lazy to do that routine day in and day out.

By the way...I LOVE the stance on your S! If mine wasn't a company car, I would be definitely looking at bags.

Thank u! Its a lowly a though

I mean u could just leave it on day in and out and just take it off for pics (:


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