Yesterday, I came across a car plated with Northwest Territories plates in Kingston, ON.
Some of the farthest I've also seen include:
Distrito Federale, MX in Niagara Falls, ON
Morelos, MX in Toronto, ON
Yukon, CA in Sherbrooke, QC
German plates in Toronto, ON (it was a Mercedes-Benz corporate car)
I've also seen Hawaii somewhere in the lower 48
What are some of the farthest license plates you've seen?
Hawaii, among plates that actually function (so excluding decorative European plates).
I see every state at some point during the year in California. Sure helps that I work on a military base, there is always variety with the enlisted people.
I've seen Alaska and Hawaii plates in my area before. There was even a time when I saw a Mexican plate (I forget what state) and even Puerto Rico on a trip to Mystic Seaport.
Arizona in Switzerland
Québéc in Coahuila
Quintana Roo in Kansas
Guam in Kansas
Germany in Colorado
Hawaii everywhere I have seen one.
Alaska otherwise.
Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, a U.S. territory north of (but not including) Guam, which I saw somewhere in the D.C. area. The car might've belonged to CNMI's non-voting delegate in the House of Representatives, which might explain how that car got transported to the D.C. area, and also kept its CNMI plates.
I've also seen Alaska and Hawaii plates here. Maybe those states' Congresscritters, or military personnel relocated here (the military has generous relocation allowances, to help get their vehicles here along with their other belongings).
Many years ago, I saw a Sterling with plates from Guernsey (British dependency in the English Channel), at a rest area along I-70 in Colorado near Vail Pass. It sounded, from a chat with the occupants, that they were permanently relocating to the U.S., so their plates might've had to be changed out once they established residency.
Yeah, DC is a gold mine for odd license plates.
In greater Boston:
Alaska
Hawaii
Diplomatic plates
I've seen a Guam plate several times here in the DC area. I regularly see Alaska and Hawaii plates. The other day I was out for a walk and a lady with a Hawaii plate stopped to let me cross the street and seemed surprised when I gave her the shaka sign.
On our most recent trip to Florida, I saw a Distrito Federal plate in Weston.
In 1982, I saw Northwest Territories and Yukon plates on the Island of Newfoundland.
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 15, 2022, 08:51:53 PM
On our most recent trip to Florida, I saw a Distrito Federal plate in Weston.
Was it a legit rear plate? How long ago was that?
I ask because there hasn't been any such thing as a Distrito Federal plate since the 2015 issue. Every issue from 2016 through early 2019 has said CDMX instead, and everything from late 2019 until today has said Ciudad de México. Plates from 2015 and earlier really shouldn't be circulating anymore by now.
Quote from: kphoger on March 15, 2022, 09:05:11 PM
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 15, 2022, 08:51:53 PM
On our most recent trip to Florida, I saw a Distrito Federal plate in Weston.
Was it a legit rear plate? How long ago was that?
I ask because there hasn't been any such thing as a Distrito Federal plate since the 2015 issue. Every issue from 2016 through early 2019 has said CDMX instead, and everything from late 2019 until today has said Ciudad de México. Plates from 2015 and earlier really shouldn't be circulating anymore by now.
I posted it on the forum. I'll follow up and edit this post when I find it. I think you may have made the same observation when I posted it.
Edited to add a quote:
Quote from: kphoger on June 02, 2021, 03:46:48 PM
Quote from: 1995hoo on June 02, 2021, 01:22:48 PM
Don't see this too often in Broward County! Parked next to us last night.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210602/ada48717911e9443b776f8a7b14c44d0.jpg)
I'm surprised it's still got a current registration. That base hasn't been issued since around 2007. I haven't seen one in years–even in Mexico.
In Ontario:
- various Mexican plates (unfortunately I forget which states)
- I think I've seen Hawaii and Alaska at least once each
- All three territories (Nunavut only once, but that's still impressive!)
I was surprised to see several Quebec plates on Vancouver Island, a lot more than Ontario plates.
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 15, 2022, 09:07:56 PM
I posted it on the forum. I'll follow up and edit this post when I find it. I think you may have made the same observation when I posted it.
I'm guessing they're in the US on some sort of visa that allows them to drive a vehicle with an expired registration.
A lot of Mexican states allow a US-plated car's license plates to be expired, so long as the vehicle importation permit is still up to date. On the one hand, that's convenient if your tags expire before you need to make a border run. But on the other hand, it makes it rather dicey to drive the rest of the way, between the border and your hometown tag office, when you eventually do decide to renew. Several other Mexican states have passed laws in the last few years requiring even US registration to be kept up to date.
I've seen a Hawaii plate in Alabama, over 4200 miles away from its home. The farthest Mexican plate I've seen is Jalisco.
In Indiana I've seen plates from all 50 states. From Canada I've seen Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Manitoba and BC. I know I've seen a couple from Mexico but don't remember which states.
Hawaii is the furthest U.S. state from Washington and it's not uncommon due to the Navy's presence in my county. I've also seen quite a few non-functional European plates on imported cars.
Hawaii. Like others, due to military presence nearby.
I did temporarily put a non-functional Japanese plate on the front of my Toyota Aristo while I was waiting for its permanent plates to come last year. The DMV only gave me one for the rear. When the Virginia plates came I had to get an adapter because Japanese plates are slightly different, though not to the degree of Euro plates.
Quote from: kphoger on March 15, 2022, 09:23:23 PM
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 15, 2022, 09:07:56 PM
I posted it on the forum. I'll follow up and edit this post when I find it. I think you may have made the same observation when I posted it.
I'm guessing they're in the US on some sort of visa that allows them to drive a vehicle with an expired registration.
A lot of Mexican states allow a US-plated car's license plates to be expired, so long as the vehicle importation permit is still up to date. On the one hand, that's convenient if your tags expire before you need to make a border run. But on the other hand, it makes it rather dicey to drive the rest of the way, between the border and your hometown tag office, when you eventually do decide to renew. Several other Mexican states have passed laws in the last few years requiring even US registration to be kept up to date.
I have no idea what the circumstances were because we simply parked next to the car (a nice white Mercedes S-Class, if memory serves–may have been an E-Class, but I think it was an S), I saw the plate and did a double-take and took a picture, and then we went to the restaurant where we were meeting our relatives for dinner (Tarantella, for those who know the Weston area) and when we came out afterwards that car was gone.
The only other Mexican plate I've ever seen in the USA was about three-quarters of a mile from home stopped at a red light, but I was just far enough away that I couldn't reach which state it was.
Bahrain in Costa Mesa, California (about 7150 nautical miles):
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220316/ec54a2ed7531391ad251986f0f34d537.jpg)
Mexican license plates are quite rare in Southern Florida, I probably spotted 2 or 3 in my 25 years of living down there. Whereas they are quite common in most larger cities throughout Texas and not completely uncommon along the Gulf Coast region.
You see a lot of distant plates near any military base, DC, and near any large private college, as military, congressional representatives and some employees, and college students are exempt from the rules about changing registration when relocation, as they are considered to be just visiting. I have seen all of the pacific territorial plates in DC and most in the Tidewater area. Seen a lot of different states in Hawaii as well.
As to the Mexican plate thing, in reverse, seen several US plates in Cancun, including Michigan and Florida. These were on late model cars driven by obviously not Hispanic people, AKA tourists. I get the whole RV thing, but driving the family car 1000s of miles deep into Mexico is something I wouldn't do.
Quote from: SP Cook on March 16, 2022, 09:34:53 AM
You see a lot of distant plates near any military base, DC, and near any large private college, as military, congressional representatives and some employees, and college students are exempt from the rules about changing registration when relocation, as they are considered to be just visiting. I have seen all of the pacific territorial plates in DC and most in the Tidewater area. Seen a lot of different states in Hawaii as well.
As to the Mexican plate thing, in reverse, seen several US plates in Cancun, including Michigan and Florida. These were on late model cars driven by obviously not Hispanic people, AKA tourists. I get the whole RV thing, but driving the family car 1000s of miles deep into Mexico is something I wouldn't do.
I seem to recall I once saw a Texas plate on the Island of Cozumel, I believe on a pickup. That one really surprised me. I could potentially expect to see something like that in Cancun, but the car ferry to Cozumel is a hassle. I suspect it had to be someone who was down there for several months. The distance isn't totally crazy–Google Maps says it's 1551 miles from the southern end of I-35 in Laredo to just beyond the car ferry dock in Cozumel–but, as you note, you'd want to have a compelling reason to take your US-plated vehicle that deep into Mexico.
Quote from: SP Cook on March 16, 2022, 09:34:53 AM
As to the Mexican plate thing, in reverse, seen several US plates in Cancun, including Michigan and Florida. These were on late model cars driven by obviously not Hispanic people, AKA tourists. I get the whole RV thing, but driving the family car 1000s of miles deep into Mexico is something I wouldn't do.
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 16, 2022, 10:04:50 AM
I seem to recall I once saw a Texas plate on the Island of Cozumel, I believe on a pickup. That one really surprised me. I could potentially expect to see something like that in Cancun, but the car ferry to Cozumel is a hassle. I suspect it had to be someone who was down there for several months. The distance isn't totally crazy–Google Maps says it's 1551 miles from the southern end of I-35 in Laredo to just beyond the car ferry dock in Cozumel–but, as you note, you'd want to have a compelling reason to take your US-plated vehicle that deep into Mexico.
Most likely expats living in Mexico more or less full-time. When it's time to renew their tags, they make a border run–which they have to do every so often anyway if they're not on a resident visa.
As for why you'd take your US vehicle in such a case instead of buying a Mexican one, well there are several reasons:
1. Non-residents cannot register a vehicle in Mexico. If you're living there on back-to-back tourist cards or a non-resident visa, you have no choice but to use your US-tagged car.
2. Comparable vehicles in the USA are less expensive to buy than in Mexico, due to low taxes and tariffs.
3. Used vehicles from the USA are much more likely to have been maintained well than those from Mexico, as preventive maintenance isn't really a thing in Mexican culture. Therefore, buying a used vehicle in Mexico is more of a gamble.
4. Nationalizing a US vehicle in Mexico is an expensive process that requires a customs broker. Also, it's only an option for NAFTA-built vehicles, and only for certain model years. If you have, say, a 2013 Toyota that was built in Japan, then it cannot be nationalized in Mexico, therefore it cannot be registered with Mexican tags.
When I lived in the Omaha area, I lived close to Offutt AFB, so I would routinely see Hawaii and Alaska. I recall seeing Guam once. After moving to Mason City, I have seen Hawaii and Alaska, but not Guam. The most surprising one, though, is one of the other tenants of my apartment complex, when he first moved in, had one for Oaxaca, Mexico.
Hawaii plates here in Mississippi.
I saw Panama plates in Lawton one time.
British Columbia in Charleston, SC. Think I've seen every Canadian province/territory except Nunavut and maybe Yukon.
I just saw a Massachusetts plate on I-20 in Louisiana.
I saw a Range Rover with Dutch license plates like ten years ago in Puyallup, Washington. It had some kind of camper setup going on.
I saw French plates on some kind of small European caravan somewhere north of Seattle a few years ago.
I once saw a Hawaiian license plate and an Alaska license plate in California, both on the same day. That's got to count for something.
Excluding the (decorative, I'm assuming) European style places, I've seen a California plate in Ohio before.
British plates (yes, on a RHD car) in Seattle
Quote from: SkyPesos on March 21, 2022, 10:46:25 PM
Excluding the (decorative, I'm assuming) European style places, I've seen a California plate in Ohio before.
You know, now that you mention it, I once saw a Ford Mustang convertible with Illinois license plates, front and back, when I was living in Paris. Oddly enough, a friend of mine from Chicago was visiting me at the time.
It's possible, of course, that the plates were a novelty or perhaps some kind of fraud, but I wonder if they belonged to someone in the military who had the car shipped over.
I have seen a California license plate in Washington, DC years ago and a DC plate in San Francisco (apparently it would park around my neighborhood from time to time.)
In the Albany, NY area, I saw an Alaska and Hawaii plate. More than one of the former.
Saw a Guam plate...but can't remember exactly where in the Lower 48.
In Ontario/Toronto. I saw Yukon And NW Territory plates.
I once saw a Prince Edward Island license plate on a truck while I was going to Boston. I know that’s not far, but I’ve never seen one otherwise. As for contiguous states, the ones I see least frequently are Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Nevada.
I saw a Quintana Roo plate the other day in Vegas.
I once saw a Nova Scotia plate at the US 301 Welcome Center on the Maryland Eastern Shore. OTOH, I saw a Florida plate in Arezzo, Italy in 1992.
Saw a Hawaii plate the other day...in Geneva County, Alabama.
Quote from: Techknow on March 22, 2022, 02:12:13 AM
I have seen a California license plate in Washington, DC years ago and a DC plate in San Francisco (apparently it would park around my neighborhood from time to time.)
California plates in the DC area are extremely common.
Quote from: CtrlAltDel on March 22, 2022, 01:07:19 AM
You know, now that you mention it, I once saw a Ford Mustang convertible with Illinois license plates, front and back, when I was living in Paris. Oddly enough, a friend of mine from Chicago was visiting me at the time.
It's possible, of course, that the plates were a novelty or perhaps some kind of fraud, but I wonder if they belonged to someone in the military who had the car shipped over.
Until the mid 00s, US issued plates for people with Status of Forces rights that said they were issued by the US DOD. These were US style plates until the mid 90s, Euro style, with the NATO symbol replacing the Euro symbol afterwards.
Since then they have issued sort of fake Euro plates. Which is to say they are legal
and just another number in the host country's scheme but are issued tax free and if the cops run the number it just comes back to "US Forces" rather than a particular person. Apparently this is for security reasons.
Turning in the local plates is a big check mark anybody shipping out from Europe back to the USA needs on their forms.
I've seen some Alaska plates here in Virginia.
Minnesota. However it was during a carnival parade. On the road, it was (coincidentally) Ukraine. I've also seen Siberia (n.b.: I've self-imposed a ban on saying the real name of that country, it was from St. Petersburg which is not in Siberia proper) in Castile La Mancha.
I was going to say Yucatan, Mexico for Maryland, but actually it's probably Hawaii.
Quote from: SP Cook on March 23, 2022, 09:34:51 AM
Quote from: CtrlAltDel on March 22, 2022, 01:07:19 AM
You know, now that you mention it, I once saw a Ford Mustang convertible with Illinois license plates, front and back, when I was living in Paris. Oddly enough, a friend of mine from Chicago was visiting me at the time.
It's possible, of course, that the plates were a novelty or perhaps some kind of fraud, but I wonder if they belonged to someone in the military who had the car shipped over.
Until the mid 00s, US issued plates for people with Status of Forces rights that said they were issued by the US DOD. These were US style plates until the mid 90s, Euro style, with the NATO symbol replacing the Euro symbol afterwards.
Since then they have issued sort of fake Euro plates. Which is to say they are legal
and just another number in the host country's scheme but are issued tax free and if the cops run the number it just comes back to "US Forces" rather than a particular person. Apparently this is for security reasons.
Turning in the local plates is a big check mark anybody shipping out from Europe back to the USA needs on their forms.
Thanks for this. I guess that means what I saw was off the books in one way or another.
I recall seeing a bear-shaped Northwest Territories/Nunavut plate in New Brunswick, which was interesting because I never saw a plate that's not rectangular before.
Quote from: LilianaUwU on March 24, 2022, 04:45:01 PM
I recall seeing a bear-shaped Northwest Territories/Nunavut plate in New Brunswick, which was interesting because I never saw a plate that's not rectangular before.
My neighbor in western MA had the polar bear plate from the Northwest Territories.
Once in Lawrence, KS, near where I live, I saw a plate from Tabasco in Mexico.
Also, on a trip to New England, I remember seeing a California plate in a town in Vermont.
I just got back from a few weeks in the Orlando, FL area, and I saw plates from as far away as Washington state. I also saw a lot of Ontario and Quebec plates
I was in downtown Jackson today and saw an SUV with a Quebec tag. I've seen a Manitoba tag here before.
Several years ago, I saw a plate from Chihuahua, Mexico, on a Ford Lobo (their version of the F-series) in Des Moines. And it wasn't even on any of the Interstates – it was on US 6 through town.
I've seen Jalisco, Mexico in Rock Hill, SC. I've also seen Hawaii when I lived on Long Island.
I saw a Hawaii license plate in Yellowstone NP, 3,105 Miles.
Oh, and both our cars are registered in Alaska. Not sure if that counts though. If it does, probably when we lived in FL. Orlando FL (most southwest I have ever been in the car) to Juneau, AK is 3,236 Miles.
Here in western NY I have seen Alaska Plates a few times. Oregon and Washington show up every once in a while and I'll see California plates at least once a week.
I just wondered: has anyone seen a Mexican license plate in Canada, or vice versa?
Quote from: KCRoadFan on March 31, 2022, 12:32:47 AM
I just wondered: has anyone seen a Mexican license plate in Canada, or vice versa?
I have, in Vancouver. Cannot recall which state. I think I took a picture, I'll have to see if I can find it.
Hawaii, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Texas license plates are the most common out of state license plates I seen in California.
Quote from: KCRoadFan on March 31, 2022, 12:32:47 AM
I just wondered: has anyone seen a Mexican license plate in Canada, or vice versa?
Yep. Already mentioned it.
Quote from: kphoger on March 15, 2022, 06:37:11 PM
Arizona in Switzerland
Québéc in Coahuila
Quintana Roo in Kansas
Guam in Kansas
Germany in Colorado
I had a bet with my child once. We were in Mt. Rainier National Park in Washington. She bet we'd see more California license plates than Oregon plates, and I bet that we'd see more Oregon plates than Californian. I figured the ability to make a day trip from Portland would make up for the larger number of cars in California. She won, but it was very close. California would be ahead for a while, then Oregon, then California again.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on March 15, 2022, 06:19:08 PM
I see every state at some point during the year in California. Sure helps that I work on a military base, there is always variety with the enlisted people.
Including Guam and Puerto Rico, especially near Naval and Air Bases. I don't know, if I have ever seen a USVI or CNMI plate.
As an aside, doesn't USVI drive left (often with drive right cars)?
Quote from: KCRoadFan on March 31, 2022, 12:32:47 AM
I just wondered: has anyone seen a Mexican license plate in Canada, or vice versa?
Yes! Morelos (in Toronto) and Distrito Federale (in Niagara Falls)!
California plates in both Orlando, Florida and Washington, DC.