Plate Repair/Restoration

[Miles_on]

I'm not sure if this is the right place to post, but I have a question about license plates.

I had the front and rear bumpers of our 3-4 yr old Vios repainted. Wala siyang major colission/dents, but may mga minor scrapes from grocery carts (dahil sa mga tamad mag soli ng cart sa parking) and reckless motorcycles/cyclists na pilit dumadaan sa mga gilid-gilid while stopped in traffic.

The bumpers are easy to fix-pull off & respray, but my problem are the license plates. They have a few gashes (bangga din ng motor)

With 2 pices of wood and a metal hammer we've managed to somewhat flatten out the dings, but they can't be repainted kasi some kind of laminating sticker na ang ginagamit ngayon sa plaka (latest seriest na black and white), and wala sa skill ng pintor to reproduce the QR code (hirap gawin yun, graphic artist na siguro for that).

Any ideas on how to restore them? Lagyan na lang ng white sticker yung gashed part (approx 2 inches long)? Hindi naman grabe (napunit or anything) but my thoughts are since ginagawa na rin lang, might as well try to restore them as best as we can. Is it possible kaya? Thanks in advance for any who'll reply.

[jakewise]

I suggest you leave it as it is, because any form of repair or painting might be to your disadvantage later on as LTO can say that you tampered it. There is a law against tampering of plates and hungry enforcers might use it against you, just my two cents

RA 4136

C. Violations concerning number plates and stickers
o Motor vehicle plates not firmly attached and visible
 Dirty or uncared for plates
 Inconspicuously displayed plates in front and rear
 No current registration sticker
o License plates different from body number on Public Utility Vehicle
o Improper display of motor vehicle plates by owner to accommodate a better display of
commemorative/other plates
o Display of expired commemorative/other plates
o Tampered/marked plates/stickers
o Illegal transfer and use of motor vehicle plates/tags or stickers from one motor vehicle to
another except security plates on authorized vehicle

I'm not sure if this is the right place to post, but I have a question about license plates.

I had the front and rear bumpers of our 3-4 yr old Vios repainted. Wala siyang major colission/dents, but may mga minor scrapes from grocery carts (dahil sa mga tamad mag soli ng cart sa parking) and reckless motorcycles/cyclists na pilit dumadaan sa mga gilid-gilid while stopped in traffic.

The bumpers are easy to fix-pull off & respray, but my problem are the license plates. They have a few gashes (bangga din ng motor)

With 2 pices of wood and a metal hammer we've managed to somewhat flatten out the dings, but they can't be repainted kasi some kind of laminating sticker na ang ginagamit ngayon sa plaka (latest seriest na black and white), and wala sa skill ng pintor to reproduce the QR code (hirap gawin yun, graphic artist na siguro for that).

Any ideas on how to restore them? Lagyan na lang ng white sticker yung gashed part (approx 2 inches long)? Hindi naman grabe (napunit or anything) but my thoughts are since ginagawa na rin lang, might as well try to restore them as best as we can. Is it possible kaya? Thanks in advance for any who'll reply.

[dr. d]

I'm not sure if this is the right place to post, but I have a question about license plates.

I had the front and rear bumpers of our 3-4 yr old Vios repainted. Wala siyang major colission/dents, but may mga minor scrapes from grocery carts (dahil sa mga tamad mag soli ng cart sa parking) and reckless motorcycles/cyclists na pilit dumadaan sa mga gilid-gilid while stopped in traffic.

The bumpers are easy to fix-pull off & respray, but my problem are the license plates. They have a few gashes (bangga din ng motor)

With 2 pices of wood and a metal hammer we've managed to somewhat flatten out the dings, but they can't be repainted kasi some kind of laminating sticker na ang ginagamit ngayon sa plaka (latest seriest na black and white), and wala sa skill ng pintor to reproduce the QR code (hirap gawin yun, graphic artist na siguro for that).

Any ideas on how to restore them? Lagyan na lang ng white sticker yung gashed part (approx 2 inches long)? Hindi naman grabe (napunit or anything) but my thoughts are since ginagawa na rin lang, might as well try to restore them as best as we can. Is it possible kaya? Thanks in advance for any who'll reply.

jake is right.
you can flatten them back to as original as you can, but you can't re-paint them, lest you be cited for "tampering".
you can probably glue it to a backing plate to strengthen it and prevent it from falling apart further, but you can't put filler material. let the punits stay as they are.
you can go to LTO and request officially for replacement plate. that way, pag sinita ka because your plate is barely read-able, you can show the resibo and say, "i already requested for replacement plate".

[Miles_on]

I guess part na siya ng history ng kotse. "Peklat" in other words. Its not torn naman or falling apart, may mga 2+ inch scratch/gash lang dun sa dun sa laminating sticker. If clear acrylic plate protectors were legal lang sana it could have avoided its fate, pero bawal din.

You can go to LTO and request officially for replacement plate. that way, pag sinita ka because your plate is barely read-able, you can show the resibo and say, "i already requested for replacement plate".

And wait 2-3 years again for a new plate? Never mind na lang!

[dr. d]

I guess part na siya ng history ng kotse. "Peklat" in other words. Its not torn naman or falling apart, may mga 2+ inch scratch/gash lang dun sa dun sa laminating sticker. If clear acrylic plate protectors were legal lang sana it could have avoided its fate, pero bawal din.



And wait 2-3 years again for a new plate? Never mind na lang!

until the LTO decides to revise plates design again,
that disfigured plate of yours will be with you until the end of time.
but if you are willing to live with it, that's fine.
akala ko pa naman, you were so concerned about your plate's condition...
heh heh.

[Archerfish]

until the LTO decides to revise plates design again,
that disfigured plate of yours will be with you until the end of time.
but if you are willing to live with it, that's fine.
akala ko pa naman, you were so concerned about your plate's condition...
heh heh.

He was! Not until he realized that he shouldn't be.
[emoji3]

[Miles_on]

Ah, hindi naman. I'm not the type that obsesses over their cars, although we do maintain them properly para humaba naman ang useful life nila.

As I wrote earlier, the only reason why I asked about the possiblity of restoring the plate was because I had the bumpers repainted lang naman na (after almost 4 years of accumulated minor scrapes, rock chips etc.) It seemed a shame to not try to spruce up the plates as well (if possible) since nagabala ka na rin ako ipaayos. As per advice I'm leaving them as is.


Interestingly, the car doesn't even see much use (less than 20k on the odometer) yet it still had those nicks sa front and rear bumpers niya. My 2 cents on those people who fuss too much about their cars are probably influenced at seeing those spotless, super glossy shined cars in dealer showrooms, magazines and car shows (with mirrors underneath so you can appreciate even the undersides are also painted). They don't exist in real life, and even if they do, they won't stay long like that on our 3rd world roads.

It's part of the unrealistic media/marketing hype because they're selling you products (waxes, ceramic coats etc.) And then there are also those who put all sorts or ridiculous accessories/modifications on their cars too, but that's none of my business na... LOL.

[dr. d]

As I wrote earlier, the only reason why I asked about the possiblity of restoring the plate was because I had the bumpers repainted lang naman na (after almost 4 years of accumulated minor scrapes, rock chips etc.)


Interestingly, the car doesn't even see much use (less than 20k on the odometer) yet it still had those nicks sa front and rear bumpers niya.

1. might i inquire, what your car is? perhaps the plate location has something to do with its getting easily hit by passers-by. is the plate location stock? is it prominent?
2. where do you park? is the location very busy, i.e., maraming motorsiklo at pedestrian? one auto journalist wrote, that we best park our cars farther away from pedestrian traffic, i.e., 'wag dun na katabi lang ng mall entrance, at wag din dun na katabi lang ng motorcycle parking.
3. to paraphrase a storey our Parish Priest once said, "if you frequently ask yourself, 'why do others drive badly such that i frequently get nicked', perhaps you have to ask that question to the person staring back at you in the bathroom mirror" . no malice intended, po. it's a generic statement.

aside from when my car got bumped, none of our number plates have been significantly nicked or scratched, or damaged in the coarse of daily use and parking. of course, most of my parkings are in the home and in the workplace, where there are no passers-by, and in the malls, where parking spaces are not small.

btw,
i have a good collection of motorcycle nicks on my bumpers. red... black... white...
hindi ko na pina pinta. madadagdagan at madadagdagan lang naman, eh.
strangely, however, it is my not-so-much-driven altis that has these. my more commonly-driven innovae do not have these bumper nicks.

[Miles_on]

I probably got those nicks in the same way your Altis did sir. Inipon ko after a few years, and numg medyo madami-dami na, I had it painted para di naman maluma pumangit kaagad. And its not used that much din... baka na-mamagnetize yung hull/chassis when its not being used kaya nag-aatract ng malas?