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This isn't my Corvette, unfortunately, because our family didn't have Corvette money in the 60s, so I didn't want to randomize the "Personalized Plate" thread. I've had the same plate on the same car for 49 years. Here's me and my Dad installing it in 1971, the oldest photo I could find. And we'd take a photo each year.
Then he passed away in 1996, but I still have the actual car. I still have the plates. I have my own kids and we take the same photo every year, give or take.
When I was in Saskatchewan it was a "prestige" plate, where lower is better. The Governor got 1. The Premier got 2. My Dad got 116.
When I moved to WA I had to do it as a vanity plate to keep the number, which is what I did.
So same plate number on the same car for ~50 years in the same family. It might be a record, but I doubt it!
Here's me and my Dad in 1971, and then me and my kid in 1999. And we continue to this day (he's 19 now, youngest is still little).
I know there's one C1 original owner out there from a magazine article I saw, but I imagine there are a number of "black plate" Corvettes out there.
Great story, I have a similar one. Back in the early 1920’s the governor of our state issued my grandfather a low number plate, 1-389, to match the street address of our family’s home. In our state only the governor or Director of the DMV can issue a four digit plate beginning with a 1. The plate number has remained on one of our family cars for three generations and currently resides on my daily driver to this day. In the early ‘70’s, my father did have the hyphen removed the to exactly match the house’s street address.
In 1957, my father registered it to his new car on which it remained for many years. Although, it is no longer registered to that car, the car does resided next to my daily driver, on which it is mounted, in the garage. The 57 currently has its delivery plate on it. Congratulations on maintaining your family’s traditions as well!
The Emerald Eagle displays an Ohio "Bald Eagle" plate # 12-NL which my mother let me transfer to our C-7.
NL was dad's initials and also are mine.
The 12 was the lowest number he could get with his initials.
I have a 1942 registration card with that plate number for his 41 Chrysler Windsor Club Coupe. I don't know if he had it on an earlier car.
That's over 75 years of displaying that number by our family. After the war I think it was always on a GM car.
Very cool!! Most people think a plate is just a plate but I like a story that goes with it. Yours is a great family story.
NY allows vintage plates but you have to jump through a few hoops. I just got approved for my 1960's plates. Not much of a story but they are a great conversation starter at the cruise-in. I'm going to post more about how to use old plates on the C2 forum.
Last edited by Jeffthunbird; Feb 2, 2018 at 07:57 PM.
I have had "2KA" on every car I've driven since the first day I got a driver's license 38 years ago. I have a twin brother that I shared a car with through college. When he graduated I asked for the plate and have kept it in my name since.
I have had "2KA" on every car I've driven since the first day I got a driver's license 38 years ago.
I was kinda the same way. Always thought personalized plates were cool growing up, so all my vehicles have them. When I first went online in the 90s, I picked "DWS44" as my online name. (My initials and my favorite "lucky" number, which came from the 80's NASCAR world...Terry Labonte's #44 Piedmont Airlines Chevy, for the old NASCAR fans). So when I got my first car, an illustrious 91 Geo Storm () in 1993, I christened it with "DWS44" Plates:
So far, at least one car in the garage has worn that continuously since. The GS wears it currently, and is the 3rd Vette, and 12th vehicle overall to carry it:
My grandfather had T-359 on his Cadillacs when i was growing up. Back in 1978 New York let you order custom plates and my first choice was T-359 and i did not get it. I got JJR and over the years i would look to see if it was available. And in 2015 it was and i got it. It is not on C7 but on my daily driver.
I always transfer plates. Never opt for a new one unless I am forced by the state. I would have had the same plate on my Corvettes for a lot of years if NY State hadn't changed plates every now and then. First had the yellow and blue, then the statue of liberty plate then the white plate without the statue of liberty. Never went with the new yellow and blue because they let us keep the white one. Lost that when I moved to NC.
When I moved to NC I got three plates with sequential numbers so I have been transferring those plates from the old car to the new car. Cost is only $20 but it seems to surprise dealers when I say I want my old plate.
I always transfer plates. Never opt for a new one unless I am forced by the state. I would have had the same plate on my Corvettes for a lot of years if NY State hadn't changed plates every now and then. First had the yellow and blue, then the statue of liberty plate then the white plate without the statue of liberty. Never went with the new yellow and blue because they let us keep the white one. Lost that when I moved to NC.
When I moved to NC I got three plates with sequential numbers so I have been transferring those plates from the old car to the new car. Cost is only $20 but it seems to surprise dealers when I say I want my old plate.
I have had my "FRAGIL" plate since 1977.
And if I had a dollar for every time I've had to explain it...
I get a lot of 'I thought these Vettes were supposed to be bad a**, what's with FRAGIL?"
It came about after my wife was hit in an intersection in our '70 and we decided that the Vette's fiberglass was like an egg shell - very fragile...
So, we applied for the plate and have had it ever since - it's been on 8 different Corvettes...
I used to keep the same plate until I started doing vanity plates for all my cars.
0AT E03 was my original plate on my Grand Am (and the Premier before that), this plate was "abandoned" when I got my Malibu (because that car was actually leased when my fathers cars lease was up).
QSM 975 was what I got stuck with on the Malibu, I kept that on my 9-3. Then I started vanity plates...
THETR0T (a college nickname) was on the 9-3 and the 08' Corvette, which eventually migrated to LS3 MN6.
I got a Jeep to tool around in for Winters and for a hot second it had a regular plate, BXT 6498, then it was 2NDTR0T (to match the Corvette), and then EKG DGJ (again to match the Corvette, in terms of it being Engine/Transmission code).
My GTO was LS2 MN6 (to match the Corvette).
My current plates are MK3 ST3 (generation/trim) on the Focus, and LT1 Z51 on the '16 Corvette.
So I guess I have the antithesis of keeping them a long time. I think my original plate I had the longest which was 6 or 7 years. Nothing has broken 5 after that (although MK3 ST3 turns 5 this month)!
I was kinda the same way. Always thought personalized plates were cool growing up, so all my vehicles have them. When I first went online in the 90s, I picked "DWS44" as my online name. (My initials and my favorite "lucky" number, which came from the 80's NASCAR world...Terry Labonte's #44 Piedmont Airlines Chevy, for the old NASCAR fans). So when I got my first car, an illustrious 91 Geo Storm () in 1993, I christened it with "DWS44" Plates:
So far, at least one car in the garage has worn that continuously since. The GS wears it currently, and is the 3rd Vette, and 12th vehicle overall to carry it:
I noticed your SC plate has 7 characters. Did your DMV centered your 5-character or you have to remake the plate elsewhere? I also have 5-character for my plate and CA DMV shifted everything to the left giving me two blank spaces on the right. I already specifically asked them to center but still did it wrong. Worst is I waited 4.5 months for my plate and don't want to go back and reorder.
Oldest Plate?
) in 1993, I christened it with "DWS44" Plates:
