Front license plate on your MINI?

[turbofuzzy]

Hey all. I finally got my registration so I could mount my plates. I also was able to get the correct mount bolt for the USMillworks front plate mount. Our SE’s require a longer bolt than the normal Cooper S. Fortunately USMillworks has a pretty wide selection of bolt lengths with the Mini thread pitch and diameter so we found one that worked great! I was also able to mount the plate so it didn’t block any parking sensors.

If you do want to pick up this kit I would recommend emailing them and letting them know you need a bolt that works with the Mini Cooper SE. You can mention that they just worked with Jason in Seattle to get the right one.

Without further ado, pics!!
View attachment 17851
View attachment 17852

Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs

Thanks for the info! Did you get standard or lightened? Which bolt holes did you use to prevent blocking the parking sensors?

 

[-Amanda]

I bought a set of black license plate frames on Amazon and it blends with the car better now.

I’m not concerned about the vents being blocked as it sits forward enough that airflow can still get behind and cool the batteries. If I had mounted in the stock location the upper vent would have also been covered anyway. Next road trip I can monitor battery temps via an OBD reader and remove the bracket easily while traveling if it seems to have an impact.

The bracket only sits 1” lower and 1” forward of the bumper so you’d have to be a crappy driver to be getting close enough to hit it.

Besides, I’m not looking for opinions. I’m just sharing a license plate bracket option for those that are required to have them and don’t want to drill holes or use the tow hook mount.

 

[LittleWoods]

FWIW, I just got back from a 900 mile road trip with 80F+ outdoor temps everyday and experienced no overheating issues or loss of power with my Sto-N-Sho installed.

 

[Niet1]

I tried to order the Sto-N-Sho licence plate holder but it was +/- 300 euros incl. shipping costs and VAT. In Europe they are hard to get and the contacts on the Sto-N-Sho site don't exist anymore or don't have a webshop. I'm not in a hurry and keep on searching, because the MINI is coming later and later anyway. Does anyone have any other ideas or options?

 

[jwzimm]

Thanks for the info! Did you get standard or lightened? Which bolt holes did you use to prevent blocking the parking sensors?

I have the lightened plate kit with the quick release option (all the bells and whistles). I did have to adjust a bit to get it to clear the sensors. I have the plate mount upside down (the engraving is inverted) and used the farthest over holes to bring it toward the center. For up and down I used the holes that put the plate as low as possible in this configuration.

Something like this:

 

[SameGuy]

Besides, I’m not looking for opinions.

I almost choked. What? You don’t want to hear about a chip crab?

 

[WildHare65]

I bought a set of black license plate frames on Amazon and it blends with the car better now.

I’m not concerned about the vents being blocked as it sits forward enough that airflow can still get behind and cool the batteries. If I had mounted in the stock location the upper vent would have also been covered anyway. Next road trip I can monitor battery temps via an OBD reader and remove the bracket easily while traveling if it seems to have an impact.

The bracket only sits 1” lower and 1” forward of the bumper so you’d have to be a crappy driver to be getting close enough to hit it.

Besides, I’m not looking for opinions. I’m just sharing a license plate bracket option for those that are required to have them and don’t want to drill holes or use the tow hook mount.

Hey @-Amanda, it's been a couple months now. How's that plate mount holding up? I just crawled under my Mini and loosened that screw. The self tapping screw and resulting hole seem fairly flimsy to me. I'd prefer this mount over a tow hook mount, at least with the square tow hook cover on the newer mini (my R55 has a round tow hook cover, so the mount looks great). Anyway, just would love some first hand feedback on the stability of this mount.

 

[-Amanda]

Hey @-Amanda, it's been a couple months now. How's that plate mount holding up? I just crawled under my Mini and loosened that screw. The self tapping screw and resulting hole seem fairly flimsy to me. I'd prefer this mount over a tow hook mount, at least with the square tow hook cover on the newer mini (my R55 has a round tow hook cover, so the mount looks great). Anyway, just would love some first hand feedback on the stability of this mount.

Hubby has the plate in the trunk most of the time. So can’t give much for a long term review at this point but we did a 1,800 km road trip with it on and no issues. It’s pretty light so doesn’t require a lot of support. There’s also 3M tape that gets installed beside the screw for additional support.

 

[Scrappy03]

I have the lightened plate kit with the quick release option (all the bells and whistles). I did have to adjust a bit to get it to clear the sensors. I have the plate mount upside down (the engraving is inverted) and used the farthest over holes to bring it toward the center. For up and down I used the holes that put the plate as low as possible in this configuration.

Something like this:
View attachment 17912

We ordered our front plate mount from US Mill Works but the bolt was too short...you didn't have this issue, did you? (see pic)

 

[turbofuzzy]

We ordered our front plate mount from US Mill Works but the bolt was too short...you didn't have this issue, did you? (see pic)

Before I ordered, I asked USMillworks about the longer bolt Jason needed. They told me the equivalent kit is for the BMW X3 (F25). It fits great. Just know that, as of this moment, this is an unofficial workaround for the SE.

 

[Scrappy03]

Before I ordered, I asked USMillworks about the longer bolt Jason needed. They told me the equivalent kit is for the BMW X3 (F25). It fits great. Just know that, as of this moment, this is an unofficial workaround for the SE.

Thanks...I found out the hard way by just ordering the Mini F56 kit. Their customer service is very responsive and it looks like they are just sending me the longer bolt (and I'm returning the shorter one).

 

[luluna]

Before I ordered, I asked USMillworks about the longer bolt Jason needed. They told me the equivalent kit is for the BMW X3 (F25). It fits great. Just know that, as of this moment, this is an unofficial workaround for the SE.

Does this kit trigger the parking sensors?

 

[teslarati97]

I use the Cravenspeed Platypus 2022-2023 MINI Cooper (ICE model w/ extra bracket for 2022 LCI2) and there are no issues with the parking sensors. It's comparable to US Mill Works.

 

[jwzimm]

Does this kit trigger the parking sensors?

If you are careful with how you position it, no, it will not block the parking sensors. See my previous posts. You may need to order the lightened version as it contains more mounting hole options to allow for precise placement.

 

[fishbert]

Pretty happy with out this turned out. Very clean.
(holes at corners are from previous car; not used here)

 

[insightman]

Pretty happy with out this turned out. Very clean.
(holes at corners are from previous car; not used here)

There are no states that require front plates that allow odd-shaped front plates are there? Can you simulate what yours really looks like (maybe scramble the symbols or show another car with the same style plate)?

 

[fishbert]

There are no states that require front plates that allow odd-shaped front plates are there?

Oh... that's a story. Back when Ohio still required a front plate, careful reading of the law told me they just required the numbers on the front of the vehicle, not an "official" plate. Like, you could just paint them on the bumper and it would meet the text of the law.

Anyway, a state trooper disagreed, and I got 2 tickets (from the same guy) over the span of 2 weeks before I could argue it in court. When I did get to court, the county magistrate agreed with the trooper, and I was going to appeal, but was moving at the time and missed my 30-day window. Might have been a moot point anyway, as they changed the text of the law the following year to explicitly require an official plate (I like to think because of me, but probably not)... and then in 2020 they got rid of the front plate requirement entirely.

Can you simulate what yours really looks like (maybe scramble the symbols or show another car with the same style plate)?

I got it from German Plates back in 2015, and they have examples and a "your plate text" thingy to see what it'll look like.
https://www.germanplates.com/us-eurostyle-license-plate.html

 

[Tommm]

There are no states that require front plates that allow odd-shaped front plates are there? Can you simulate what yours really looks like (maybe scramble the symbols or show another car with the same style plate)?

Timely question insightdude. Saturday at "racoon" lodge dinner I was at the same table as the guy our governor referred to as the license plate guy. The state no longer offers a Masonic plate. An older fellow said that's OK, he has his for some 30 years. Just dont sell the car, because we have a new law that basically says the plate gets tossed when you sell the car. The next car has to get a new plate.

But, what if he then orders a vanity plate with the numbers on his Masonic plate, and puts the masonic plate on his new car? "Handcuffs" was the answer. When the cops run a plate it tells them all the info, plus the type of plate (green, black, red, white, Avalanche, Rockies, Broncos, blah blah blah over way too many choices) and if it doesn't match... So I will be risking it with the 5.25 x 10.5 bumper sticker on my SE's front bumper like on my kman.

 

[insightman]

Timely question insightdude. Saturday at "racoon" lodge dinner I was at the same table as the guy our governor referred to as the license plate guy. The state no longer offers a Masonic plate. An older fellow said that's OK, he has his for some 30 years. Just dont sell the car, because we have a new law that basically says the plate gets tossed when you sell the car. The next car has to get a new plate.

But, what if he then orders a vanity plate with the numbers on his Masonic plate, and puts the masonic plate on his new car? "Handcuffs" was the answer. When the cops run a plate it tells them all the info, plus the type of plate (green, black, red, white, Avalanche, Rockies, Broncos, blah blah blah over way too many choices) and if it doesn't match... So I will be risking it with the 5.25 x 10.5 bumper sticker on my SE's front bumper like on my kman.

I want to repaint my license plate. Michigan created a retro license plates with a great color scheme (University of Michigan's maize and blue) from youth. Unfortunately for me, the retro plates use the same large font as they did in the '60s. That means my 7-letters in my vanity plate won't fit. So I want to repaint my plate with the retro-plate's color scheme. The 51% voting partner has informed me there will be no re-painting of our plate, so no handcuffs test for me.

 

[SameGuy]

Up here, any kind of paint would get you a “altered plates” citation and fine. My SBD is already chipping and flaking away around the bolt holes… /mckaylaisnotimpressed