Dealers who use self-tappers to fit number plates - why?
Discussion
BrownBottle said:
Jimboka said:
Denis O said:
Not only are screws a pain, the donuts that put the plates on pissed are an equal pain.
Haven't people ever heard of a spirit level FFS.
You'll need to go a long way with the spirit level to find a flat road first!Haven't people ever heard of a spirit level FFS.
morgrp said:
I still laugh at the number of dealer installed plates on new cars that are fitted on the piss - come on, not hard to fit a plate on straight is it?
Saw one yesterday on the back of a Land Rover. It wasn't level and covered the top half of the 'Discovery' badge. Wonder what went through the mind of the moron who fitted it Denis O said:
Thanks BB for understanding a relatively simple concept, that some of our fellow contributors cannot grasp.
What if the car has a few years under it's belt and the suspension is a bit saggy on one side. If you use a level then technically the plate will be straight and the car will be wonky HTP99 said:
Tape is all very well and good, however if it is cold, they don't stick very well and if the surface isn't cleaned properly they don't stick very well, however a properly stuck on plate is a real bugger to remove.
Renault say that their dealers have to use rivets now; we used to use self tappers, the problem with rivets is, sometimes a bit of metal pops off in the tailgate so you get a bit rattling around and if the plates need to be changed, they have to be drilled out if attached to a metal panel and this is a pain and time consuming.
Rivets! Bloody hell. Not looking forward to changing out those in a few years time!Renault say that their dealers have to use rivets now; we used to use self tappers, the problem with rivets is, sometimes a bit of metal pops off in the tailgate so you get a bit rattling around and if the plates need to be changed, they have to be drilled out if attached to a metal panel and this is a pain and time consuming.
Edited by HTP99 on Saturday 11th April 15:01
Saying that given I normally need to drill out rusty old self tappers it won't make that much difference
Tape is great as long as the bumper isn't too curved and the surface is prepped. Heat gun mandatory.
Riktoid said:
A million times worse is number plates that aren't quite straight. I had a car a few years ago with this. At first glance it looks fine but once you notice it your eye is always drawn to it.
If I ever had the opportunity to buy a brand new car and the number plate wasn't attached perfectly plumb level, I would go bananas. I'd probably reject it!
Only bought a brand new car once and made them send it back to the workshop for this reason If I ever had the opportunity to buy a brand new car and the number plate wasn't attached perfectly plumb level, I would go bananas. I'd probably reject it!
Denis O said:
BrownBottle said:
Jimboka said:
Denis O said:
Not only are screws a pain, the donuts that put the plates on pissed are an equal pain.
Haven't people ever heard of a spirit level FFS.
You'll need to go a long way with the spirit level to find a flat road first!Haven't people ever heard of a spirit level FFS.
Going back to 2003, you can imagine my delight at picking up my brand new BMW to discover that the dealer had held the rear number plate up to the boot and simply drilled a couple of holes (despite there being two pre-drilled and gromitted holes) and then they'd fixed the plate with a couple of self tappers. There are no words for ****s like that!
Jimboka said:
Your fellow contributors are perfectly able to grasp, thank you for your concern. It seems you cannot grasp that a car having a PDI is not always performed on a perfectly level surface. I'd much prefer to measure from a known datum, so the plate is parallel to the rest of the car, rather than parallel to whatever it is parked on at the time, or what the tyre pressures are for that matter!
Joking aside you're right, even on a level ramp the car itself might not sit perfectly level for various reasons. I just do it by eye it's really not that difficult Oh and drilling into a metal panel like a boot lid and using self tappers is totally unprofessional and shows a complete lack of respect for the owner of the car.
Have a look at this Veyron:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOCZO69Ec6s
Four screws right into the bodywork.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOCZO69Ec6s
Four screws right into the bodywork.
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