This state requires the front plate. The plate holder (black) is pretty flimzy. Wondering how it would look painted to match the car? Any Pics? Thanks

 

I'd think that anything closer to body color would be an improvement. Give it a try - can't hurt anything - if you don't like it, you could always "paint it black" (with apologies to the Rolling Stones).

 

I had the frame painted by a local body shop to match my car. It cost me $75. It helps a lot, especially if you have a bright colored car. Sorry, don't have a picture to show you what it looks like.

- Mark

 

I painted mine torch red to match the car. Just get a can of spray paint from your dealer to match your color. Sand the bracket to get it smooth. Spray with plastic bumper primer (available from your local parts store). Sand and spray with the GM paint. Lightly sand and apply another coat. Finish it off with some clear coat. It shoud look almost like the ones that cost $50 - $60.

 

Just buy a smoothie license plate surround in your exact GM color (available at MidAmerica or WestCoast for about $69); save your stock plate surround in original condition and have a better looking one on the front of the car. - AD

 

I have a painted front cover that I purchased from Kewl (forum vendor) which matches my car. IMO, the match is great and the cover looks awesome on the car. Cost was around $50 and it was well spent. Give Greg a call and discuss with him. He is great to work with.

 

Bought my Torch Red frame (part# 612-206) $69.99 from MidAmerica along with a clear polycarbonate cover (part # 600-698) $29.99.
Other C5 owners at a recent autocross complemented the frame-cover as making the best of a bad thing (having to run a front plate). Hardly take the plate off anymore. Less trouble just keeping it on.

 

Give a look at www.kewlauto.com.

Call Greg there at 888 534 KEWL.

The paint match he does is perfect!

 

We have the same problems here in Germany, we need to have a front licence plate.
What lots of us do is that we just drill holes into the normal nose cover and screw the licence plate on.
We do not use the European Licence plate holder in its ugly grey color.Thanks
rgds
The German

 

This is an easy Do It Yourself task and the results come out very good. All that you need are: 1000 grit sandpaper (optional if you want to sand your stock license plate holder smooth), flexible sanding block, isopropyl alcohol (or similar) to clean the frame prior to painting it, 1 spray paint can of your vette's color touch up (available from dealer for about $7.00), a spray can of clearcoat (also available from dealer for about $4.00) and a couple of hours. Beer is optional. To do this, clean your license plate holder with isopropyl alcohol or similar to make sure it doesn't have any dirt/wax, etc on it so that the paint will adhere. Grab your $7 GM spray touch-up paint, and in 2 minutes you'll have your bracket body-colored. Let it dry and spray on another coat or two. Make sure you spray thin, light coats. It should look pretty good at this point. If you want a smooth look, use the ultra-fine sandpaper WET. A word of caution: that touch-up paint sticks like CRAZY, and dries very fast, so don't over-spray it. Oh, and spray elsewhere for about 2 seconds if the can is new. Apply one or more coats of the clear and you are done. I have compared my handiwork with others that are purchased (such as from Kewl) and there isn't any (maybe negligible difference) in the two. Good luck. Don't be afraid to try. If you totally mess it up (don't see how) you can always purchase the Kewl plate frame.