Autoblog

From time to time, license plates wind up with unintentionally humorous alphanumeric combinations. Massachusetts had a run of plates with "POO" as the trailing characters, for example, but th North Carolina DMV's inadvertent pun takes the cake. About 10,000 plates were stamped up bearing the characters WTF before a 60 year old teacher's grandchildren whispered the internets meaning of the acronym in her ear, spurring her to raise the issue. Perhaps they need to surf the web a bit more in North Carolina's DMV offices, but at least anyone offended by his or her tag can get it replaced for free. The best part of the entire debacle? The DMV's own sample image for its website was "WTF-5505."

[Source: DriversDrive, Photo: WXII]

It is unlikely that most of us would pay for $400,000 for a personalized license plate. It is also unlikely that most of us are McLaren F1 driver Lewis Hamilton. The plate, "LEW 1S," was purchased by a real estate tycoon named Bob Lewis for under $100,000. When Lewis Hamilton decided he had to have it for his Mercedes SUV, he threw down more than four times that much to whisk it away from Bob. We have nothing against spending whatever you want on whatever you want. However, the plate purchase seems an interesting choice, since one of Hamilton's supposed reasons for leaving England for Switzerland, where he now lives, was to live a quieter, more anonymous life. Thanks for the tip, Eric!

[Source: One Stop Strategy]

While fuel prices continue to ratchet up and put a squeeze on all aspects of the world economy, times are flush within the borders of major oil producing nations. So flush, in fact, that several Emiratis found a total of 9.8 million dollars to indulge in low-number license plates at a recent auction. The fascination with distinctive tags is a world-wide phenomenon, but $926,000 for a plate that says "50G" is uniquely asinine. If that's what our last few fillups helped purchase, we're going to bike more.

[Source: Yahoo]

Yesterday it was chipped tires, today it's chipped license plates. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is becoming more popular in everything from credit cards and passports to toll transponders and now license plates. RFID tags can simplify life by providing an automatic ID when scanned. RFID uses a microchip and antenna that stores personal data and can be installed in a device or embedded into an object (or even under the skin). Although this raises a whole 'nother debate about the Big Brother aspect of monitoring people's movements and unwanted access to personal info by hackers, RFID can be used effectively to speed things up. Or to automatically register information. Which brings us to today's use generously shared by our brothers and sisters at Engadget: license plates.

Because of the frequency of auto theft in Malaysia, their Road Transport Department (RTD) has decided to start using RFID-equipped license plates. Integrated microchips will help make scanning and identifying vehicles easier for the authorities. Authorized mechanics will install the plates with the embedded microchips storing data about the vehicle's make, model, and driver info. Known as the e-plate, naturally, it has already been used effectively in Japan and the UK, where the chips can automatically record data from another vehicle's RFID in the event of an accident. Especially in hit-and-run situations this could be a Godsend. The RTD is hoping that Kuala Lumpur will see reductions in thefts as the new plates will make things tougher on carjackers because swapped plates won't match the vehicle ID. The program will start with new registrations and gradually work its way to older models on renewals. You just know these RFID tags are going to be implanted under the skin at birth in the not-too-distant future.

[Source: Engadget]

It's often been said that racing improves the breed. Here we have video of a solution to a problem only scofflaws like the Bullrun participants would encounter. What to do when the popo spots you flying by at three times the posted limit? Give them a nice blank license to photograph or write down.

For all you criminals out there who want to race your cars, but don't want to get caught, this dynamic license plate might help. When the operator pushes a button the license plate becomes totally blank. Your results may vary. Please don't try this at home. Far from encouraging this sort of thing, we just appreciate the resourcefulness of these speed demons, and appreciate their ingenuity. Anybody know where we can get one?

[Source: Fresh Creation]

Ford Motor Co. has been cleared in a class-action lawsuit revolving around the hardware required to attach a license plate to the front of car. Ted Strauss of Texas filed suit against the automaker after he received a $155 fine for not having a front plate on his 2002 Jaguar X-Type. Strauss sued not only Ford but also D & M Leasing, Co. claiming the two had violated Texas state motor vehicle and consumer protection laws, breached implied warranties and were negligent. While Texas is a state that requires motorists to display front license plates, U.S. District Chief Judge A. Joe Fish ruled that Ford and the leasing company had no legal duty to display front license plates, or rear ones for that matter, when a car is sold. We know the frustration Strauss must feel, as many of us live in states that require both front and rear plates. The precedent has been set, though, and by law we're all responsible now for affixing our own plates.

[Source: Automotive News]

We all know that particular type of concentrated anger that comes to the surface while being cut off, veered into and almost run off the road by bad drivers. Platewire is a website that lets you get back at those not deserving of a drivers license by reporting their offenses along with their plate numbers. Truly the site is more cathartic than anything, as most reports are full of creatively expressed cuss words and more exclamation points than periods.

Having just underwent an update, Platewire now also allows motorists to begin the reporting process while the wounds are still fresh. One just needs to dial the site's toll-free phone-to-web service, which will associate the entered plate number with the phone number from which the call was placed. The plate number can then be retrieved later on Platewire.com and entered with a detailed description of why, for instance, the woman driving her minivan while attempting to eat tacos should be banned from the roads.

[Source: Platewires.com via Netscape]