I registered my '53 f100 for the first time in 14 years. I'm hoping that in about two weeks I'll be road testing it. Then I'll have to get it inspected. I read through the Vermont inspection standards and did not find any slack when it comes to license plate visibility. As I read the inspection standards, I could take my truck in without the rear bumper and it would pass, because the base model truck did not have a bumper. Without the bumper, the stock location of the license under the driver side tail light is okay. Theoretically it would pass. But, without the bumper there may be a problem having to do with the rear tires being able to toss stuff back onto a following vehicle. I believe I would need some sort of mud flaps. With the bumper on, it looks like I could show that mud flaps would not be necessary, but a good portion of the license is blocked from view. It is my understanding that if the truck was bought back in 1953 with the bumper option, then the setup would be exactly as I have it right now; plate visibility is partially blocked by the bumper. Every now and then, I read a post where this topic comes up. How have others dealt with state inspections on these old trucks? I am considering mounting my plate on the bumper. I will have to figure out a way to illuminate it. Back when the truck was my daily driver, I never had any problem with inspections, but it seems that these days every thing is more complicated.

 

I apologize for being brash in advance.

I live in CA, rules are pretty tight here. I have not had license plates on my truck

1) I remember meeting guys that said that they couldn't get certain vintage plates legally affixed to their vehicles so they completely took down the legal plates--threw them in the back seat or trunk--took out a totally illegal non-assigned plate that they bought on ebay or a car show, bolted it to their car and drove it in some cases for over 10 years without a single hiccup.

2) My truck was off the road for 20 years and when I got it back on the road, they asked me to bring in the plates. But in CA you must have a complete pair and I only had one. They said even if that plate was correct to the truck, I could not run it--period.
They gave me a set of new plates that I didn't like since they didn't fit the vintage of the truck.
In protest, I left any numerical identification(plates) off of the truck. To be clear, I have driven my truck at least 12,000+ miles(broken odometer after 10k) and not a single one of those miles did it have a license plate mounted.

I have been on two lane highways with cops riding my *** while I pushed her at 55mph just to barely keep up, and they STILL didn't ever bother me. EVER.

3) As a result of #2, I have a funny feeling that cops typically like to leave old American steel alone. Maybe because it's patriotic, maybe coincidence. I don't know.


If I were you, I slam the bumper on. Zip tie the plate to the bumper for 10 minutes, get it inspected, then go home and do whatever in the hell you want.

 

Or take the bumper off and mount it, then slap it back on after inspection and not worry about the plate being covered.

I ended up just drilling into the bumper and mounting it there. Personally I thought on the taillight it stuck out too much and was a bit of an eyesore, just my opinion though. But putting it on your bumper might be a good compromise since you won't have it covering behind the tail light, and you can still keep the bumper on.

 

My thoughts not knowing Vermont DOT regs.

Your truck is stock and unaltered. your bumper is stock and your taillight and license plate holder are stock. So shouldn't it be grandfathered in. Do you have seat belts? Mine does not and it passes because in the year of manufacture seat belts were not installed.

In PA I have driven my truck with a bumper and the stock license plate holder since 1999 and not been stopped once. Recently I did get pulled over for a headlight that was not working by a young college campus cop. He gave me a written warning and had to have it fixed in 5 days. I argued with him and got mouthy. He said he could have cited me for an obstructed license plate. I told him I have a stock unaltered truck with a stock bumper and a stock license plate holder. If you have a problem with it you need to take it up with the Ford Motor Company!

I don't understand why you think you need mudflaps? You have a pickup bed with fenders right? Not a flatbed? If you have stock fender you shouldn't need flaps.

Good luck. If you are still worried, go to the inspection without the bumper.

Who does your inspection? Certified garages and mechanics approved by the state? Or is this a special one because it hasn't been registered for such a long time?

 

Recently i went to the MVA and was talking to them about frame swaps and such. They told me no matter what body i put on it, it will be titled as the year of the frame and must comply with all safety standards up till then. All the states would just love to see our old iron just disappear.

 

...But the State isn't the one throwing your frame into a scrapper and replacing it with something newer. Who's doing the disappearing of the frame?

In a hobby of people who "love" originality, I am surprised by how many people run fancy aftermarket electronics, bucket seats out of a '98 suburban, IFS, IRS, bags, giant engines, auto transmissions, tilt this, chopped/shaved that, metallic paints, and oversized rims.





My point is(roughly):
The state doesn't care what you do, they just want to modernize the rules your car is governed by at the same rate you're modernizing your ride.

Hobbyists don't care that their cars and trucks aren't actually anything like they were originally, just as long as they can enjoy the nostalgia factor.




The gov't likes to soup-up its governance just like hobbyists like to soup-up their rides. The outer shell of both is the same, but what's underneath both is what is modded in hopes the original principles remain and can still be enjoyed.



I know my point isn't apples for apples, but I hope someone can see how the two issues really do parallel each other. The gov't is not attacking our right to express ourselves any more than we are attacking ourselves when we throw away our original engines and frames for some newer crap that doesn't "belong" there.

Make sense?

/end rant.

 

In Pennsylvania there is no state inspection required when you have antique tags, you pay a one time fee for the license then you dont pay again

Ed
near Philadelphia

 

I have heard many times the general statement that, if a vehicle is stock, it is "grandfathered" and street legal. But, I read through the Vermont Inspection Standards (the document that state inspection stations use to determine compliance) and did not find clear language that supports a general blanket "grandfather" clause. The Vermont standards are written in short chapters (lights, brakes, body, etc.) that deal with specific requirements. Some, but not all, of these chapters are prefaced with references to the stock configuration of older vehicles. For example, if the vehicle was not originally equipped with seat belts, then they were not required to pass inspection. Turn signals are another example. But, in the chapter on license plate visibility, there is nothing that appears to exempt my truck from the current standards. As for mud flaps, my truck always passed fine without them for many years. Then I moved back to California for a few years, When I returned to VT and went to get it inspected, I was told that it would not pass without mud flaps. And, there had been no change in the truck during the time it was in California. In a recent Vermont court decision, an inspection station was ruled liable for a fatality which resulted from failed brakes in a car that had just passed a state inspection. So, I'm pretty sure that if the language in the standards is vague, the stations are going to move toward a tighter interpretation of those standards.

 

I'm in neighboring New Hampshire. I'm running a rear bumper and mounted my plate in the center below the tailgate. Looking at it from a distance part of the plate is obscured but standing behind the truck up to about 20 feet away it's fine. I had no problem passing NH state inspection.

 

Individual state law, laws are the only thing you can go by - What you do in your state doesn't count in any other state unless they have identical language
Who, what and where the law is being interpreted is the next step - Some entity needs to invoke the law to give licence for that vehicle to be legal, in states that require inspection some group needs to be given authority to inspect and issue compliance stickers NOTE: If it is not the state police/inspection section then the mechanics that preform the inspection must be approved by the police/inspection section
The after all the above is complied with the the whim of everyone's interpretation law enforcement will enforce the law as they understand it
I once had a new car impounded three months after I bought it when I moved to another state - Some where between the time of manufacture and the issuance of the original title two digits were transposed - The gaining state had to check all the vehicle marking locations, see if they all match then check the trail of paperwork back to the point of origin (Sweden) and then flip a coin and rule on the solution - That was fine except the region That I was in did not have a qualified inspector due to a retirement
If you don't agree with any of the above you may request your day in court
Also you have to make sure that the yellow paint marks are skunks
I don't understand why everyone bitches about this process

 

Because it is complicated. The law is only applied by Humans, and humans are imperfect and have the ability to rule differently on different things. (Judges on a court bench, for example).

Different officials at different locations will interpret both law and your vehicle in different ways.

How do I know? Because I had 4 different DMV clerks tell me I had to pay $2,500 in back fees until I met a manager/clerk who said I didn't.


That is why this is debated. Humans have the ability to interpret law how they see fit, and this causes inconsistency in application(and you can bet I'm happier than hell that this is true).




I'm not trying to start an argument here, it's just the reality of motor law and societal law.

 

While I was getting my son's car inspected today, I had a chat with the garage owner. I was told not to worry about the mud flap thing. And, he knew enough about these old trucks to know that the rear bumper was an option. And, who's to say whether my truck was originally purchased with a rear bumper or not? So, if I come in without my rear bumper, there is no license plate visibility issue. And what I do to my truck when I get back home with an inspection sticker on my windshield is my business. One less thing to worry about.

 

Great, go get it done there asap!

 

That's similar to what I do with my blue dots. Technically they are illegal in New Hampshire so after the truck is inspected with stock lenses I put the blue dots back in...