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andy rooney
Andy Rooney Bitches, Moans About State Slogans On License Plates, Being Old
Last night's bitch-fest by Andy Rooney on 60 Minutes' starts with his inability to discern the difference between cars and then as usual, inexplicably moves towards something only quasi-tangentially related. In this case, license plates and state slogans. Although there's no real point he's driving at, it's funny in that "Oh, Grandpa, you're so old" kind of way. Especially when he explains he's unable to figure out what one of the "cars he's seen on the road" is — and up goes a picture of a Fiat Bravo, which, as you well know, is a car not found on U.S. roads. Oh, Grandpa...you're so old. Isn't it about time you retired to the back porch already? [60 Minutes]
accessories
Buy Your Own Authentic European Vanity Tag
A young chap is selling completely authentic European customized license plates. You can get any combination you like pressed into the plate of your country of choice — and even add authentic registration stickers. We'd probably avoid purchasing one if you do actually live in a European country, since it's completely illegal. Even the product description seems a bit shady, involving the store owner "knowing a guy." More »
offbeat news
North Carolina DMV Discovers Internet, Is Not Amused
Acronyms and turns-of-phrase penned for expediency on the World Wide Web are so commonplace now they're practically real words on their own. With usage so ubiquitous, it's hard to believe it took until now for the North Carolina DMV to be alerted to the fact the acronym "WTF" actually meant something — and that something is plastered across up to 10,000 automobiles in the tar heel state. More »
racing news
Lewis Hamilton Buys "LEW 1S" License Plate For $392,000
Doing his best impersonation of a UAE oil sheik, Mercedes-Benz F1 racer Lewis Hamilton has picked up the very vain "LEW 1S" vanity plate for a smooth £200,000, or about $392,000. This, of course, leads us to believe Hamilton is 11 years old and still likes to write his name on desks, in bathroom stalls, and onto tree trunks. Then again, we don't drive F1 cars for a living and get paid $27.8 million a year to do it, so what do we know? Considering Hamilton is living every 11-year-old boy's dream anyway, why not buy ridiculous things with your piles of loot? More importantly, what car is it going on? More »
license plate
Whatcha Pullin' Me Over For, Mr. Officer?
One-time might have no case when he pulls over Sir Mix-A-Lot, but you gotta figure a Town Car stretch limo with the plate 420LIMO might find its passengers' red eyes blinking confusedly in the harsh light of Mag-Lite beams, as members of the law enforcement community take a shot at an easy, low-paperwork bust. Say, is that a hookah on the back seat?
novelties
Map Of USA Made of States' License Plates
Here's some art which brings up a "why haven't I seen that before" thought. License plates, cut into the shapes of each state, arranged into the shape of the United States. Neat. Is it cool enough to fork over prices starting at $1,895, depends on if you've got spare scratch laying around. Of course if you've got a set of fifty plates, a template of the US (a map comes to mind) and a plasma cutter laying around, you can make your own for probably a lot less. Still a clever idea we wouldn't mind having on the wall of our garage. [License Plate Art]
offbeat news
Delaware License Plate Goes for $675K, All Of Middle East Giggles
Oh, how they must be laughing at us in the United Arab Emirates, where high-rollers bid in the multi-millions for low-digit license plates. Our big counter-news from the land of liberty is that a collector from Delaware just coughed up a measly $675,000 at auction for that state's plate number "6." More »
offbeat news
$14.3M Vanity Plate Shatters Record, Makes Orphan Babies Cry
Remember the guy from the United Arab Emirates that paid $6.8M for a vanity plate? His bid for a plate reading "5" set the world record. But that's kid's stuff. A new record has been set by UAE businessman Saeed Abdul Ghafour Khouri, who made a bid of $14,300,000 for Abu Dhabi license plate "1." If it were our money, we'd go for a fleet of a dozen Bugatti Veyrons and still have some scratch leftover to gold-plate all our drinking straws. However, in the UAE a low number plate is a serious status symbol. Apparently, if you have a number low enough, you've basically got immunity to do whatever you want. Besides, who doesn't want to be No. 1? More »
novelties
Ten Page Gallery of Internet-Themed Vanity Plates
We can't tell which is more sad, the ten pages of vanity plates all referencing some form of geekdom and Internet speak; or the fact that we could interpret almost all of them right away. For reasons unknowable, the Internet License Plate Gallery offers a compendium of the what the world's nerds consider appropriate for their tags and worth the additional cost or registration. If you fall into this variety of the w3bz0r35 133t, you can submit your very own version of automotive-brand girl repellent for all the world to enjoy. Some of our favorites are... More »
found on craigslist
Car Shopping? A Slow P.O.S. Might Be Right For You!
Truth in advertising is a wonderful thing, although we like the Datsun B210 too much to believe that "POS" is the right way to refer to one. The seller of this '78 Datsun B210 will let you have the car for $750, or the car with its SLO POS license plate for $1250. Thanks- yet again- to LTDScott for the tip! Note: the ad got taken down a little while back, so the link now goes to our screen capture. [Screenshot From Craigslist San Diego]
offbeat news
Man Buys $6,750,000 Vanity Plate, We Lose Faith In Humanity
You know how when you go to a fast food place and you're standing in line, debating whether you should splurge and get the DeLuxe super meal or if you should just purchase an item off the dollar menu and supplement it with a cup of water, obtained from the bathroom spigot? I think it's safe to assume that Talal Khouri of the United Arab Emirates has never endured that debate. He's the man who owns the world's most expensive license plate, which he paid about $6,750,000 for in an auction run by the oil-rich country's government. So, what kind of solid-platinum, diamond-encrusted opulence did he get for his millions? Well... actually, it's just a regular ol' number tag. Yep, just a normal plate that simply reads "5." More »
government
REAL ID, Really: Secure Driver's License Rule Changes Proposed
It's called the REAL ID Act, and supporters claim it's a law designed to make it harder and more frustrating for terrorists and con artists to get government-issued ID. The Feds have spent the past couple of years working on all the deets, and now they've got 'em some rules which apparently they'll be looking to unveil today. As we'd expect, the ACLU's got some issues with it, declaring "REAL ID amounts to the "first-ever national identity card system," which "would irreparably damage the fabric of American life..." But yesterday DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff strangely responded to reporters:"We worked very closely with the states in terms of developing a plan that I think will be inexpensive, reasonable to implement and produce the results," he said. "This is a win-win. As long as people use driver's licenses to identify themselves for whatever reason there's no reason for those licenses to be easily counterfeited or tampered with."Yeah, well some people don't use driver's licenses to just identify themselves — sometimes they use them to identify themselves as other people for nefarious purposes — isn't that why the Feds were proposing a new ID system? We're big fans of civil liberties and state's rights 'round these here parts in case you haven't noticed — and a couple of the provisions stick in our craw a bit. The details of how DHS wants to stop pretending and start getting REAL are below the jump. More »
novelties
Personalized Plate Slips by North Carolina DMV
Apparently the North Carolina DMV is unfamiliar with the darker corners of the internet because they've let a whopper of a plate slip through the screening process. If you've ever seen what this plate is referring to, may God have mercy on your soul. There are just some things you can't unsee. We're sure the proud new owner of this plate will have a lot of splainin' to do when the first net savvy cop pulls him over for some form of public indecency.
news
![[Screenshot From Craigslist San Diego]](http://jalopnik.com/assets/resources/2008/02/SloPOS-SS.jpg){kind=link}