Hi all,
Can anyone with an OEM front bracket tell me if they area molded (contoured) to the front fascia, or are they simply a flat steel bracket like one I could buy at the local parts store? I need to get one to cover up holes left by the previous owner. I'd like to get a stock bracket if they fit the contours of the fascia...
I ended up buying an oem bracket online. It's really nothing special, basically just a flat metal plate. I was disappointed so I sent it back. I was hoping for a molded bracket to the profile of the bumper... I think I'm going to get one of those delete plates I've seen the WRX guys use to cover up the holes...
My baja came with 2 holes that the previous owner (or the dealership) used to install a license plate without a frame. Yea. My guess, bajas weren't meant to have front license plates.
Where we're going, we won't need license plates...
Yeah, the OEM plate that I picked up when I moved to VA was a flat plate with some rubber bumpers on the back side of it so that it stands just off the bumper.
My top two screws had always gone directly into the plastic fascia of the bumper. I didn't want to make that worse, but I wanted some more stability (and I wanted my plate to stop getting bent under from the car wash).
I found an adjustable bracket from AutoZone (part # 46230-8 or similar) which I attached to the bottom two screw holes of the license plate. The short edges of this bracket have allen-wrench bolts which loosen the connections to the longer edges - allowing the longer edges to pivot. (The allen wrench is included in the kit.) I don't remember the cost, but it was pretty short money. It had to be, cause I'm pretty cheap.
This worked perfectly for me. Simple to attach, too. With the plate attached to the bumper, I attached the new bracket to the bottom of the plate, then I pivoted the bracket to the underside of the bumper fascia, screwed into the bumper then tightened the pivot points of the bracket to stiffen it all up.
From there you can add covers and borders and so on, or a backplate - whatever. But this gives you the additional 2 mounting points.
Good luck.
- K
Baja '03 Blk, non-turbo, M/T, OzzBros, Bed Extender, JVC, ScanGaugeII, Garmin
"Well, ya see, son, when a dune buggy, a jeep and a sedan really love each other..."
My '06 did not come with a bracket.. and after 5 years, never really needed it. Only once have I had to take the plate off, and gently reshape it to say... flat... =)
Mine '03 has two dimples in the front bumper where the screws are supposed to go. Since my state does not issue front licence plates, I've never got the courage to mount a plate on it.
A better solution I would think would be to find some sort of bracket that bolts to the underside of the bumper. Like a set of L brackets. That way if you decide to do away with the front plate, or your state gets cheap and starts doing away with front plates you can remove it.
Tennessee is getting really cheap on licence plates. I don't mean they have reduced the cost of registering the car, I mean they have went from two plates to one in the early 1970s, then from issuing stamped plates with embosed letters to more less a flat piece of metal with decals. A few years ago they did away with the county wheel tax sticker which makes sense because in order to get a new state yearly sticker you have pay for the wheel tax anyway. Now they have done away with the county sticker!
I figured it was about time to issue new plates which happens about every five years but instead I just got a new yearly sticker the other day.
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I think I'm going to get one of those delete plates I've seen the WRX guys use to cover up the holes...
