Removing the rear licence plate holder

Hi guys,
some days ago I decided that, like at the front, the back also needed to have the license plate holder removed. As many of us, I don't like too much stuff messing with the license plate - I actually would like to remove the plate itself but I can't :(

This is how it looks now. It's really bulky and unnecessary.



So I unscrewed the plate and now have access to the holder screws. These are very huge screws and who installed these (the techs at dealerstore) simply put them in without first drilling a hole - this caused the plastic of the bumper to 'rise', luckily those huge screws didn't cracked the bumper!







Now to screw the license plate back I need to remove these bulges created by the screws: At first I thought that using a cutter\knife could work, but the risk of scratching the bumper was too high.



So I figured that I can use a countersink drill bit mounted on a screwdriver, and it worked! Using it manually instead of using an electric drill gave me the control on how much I want it to be removed.









After that with a center punch I marked where the screws go and drilled a hole slightly smaller than the screws, so installing them will not break the plastic.







Job done! And now I have front and rear license plate holder to sell





:cheers:

Pretty good. Looks nicer like this

I spotted 7 new arrivals at my dealer this week, all of them had already front and back holders mounted on them. All with those nasty fat screws, I only agreed with the back one on mine. The worst part I saw at my dealer and others is that they even mount the dealers promo plate holder on top of the stock ones, making it even thicker and uglier!

Would dare to dril like you did though

Mine arrived without plate holders mounted - they were in trunk

What did you to the two nubbins at the top (the ones that are used for mounting a US plate? Is your licence plate covering them or sitting right below them?

Also why use screws to mount it and not 3M tape? Or do Italian plates come with predrilled holes perhaps?

papinist said:

Mine arrived without plate holders mounted - they were in trunk

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The car arrives like this indeed, but if you don't tell your dealer not to drill it's one of the first things they do.

Ericc B said:

What did you to the two nubbins at the top (the ones that are used for mounting a US plate? Is your licence plate covering them or sitting right below them?

Also why use screws to mount it and not 3M tape? Or do Italian plates come with predrilled holes perhaps?

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I installed the plate below them because mounting on top would not let the plate sit flush. Also because the screws holding the plate on the plate holder did small dents on the bumper, so I need to cover them too (you can see one in the third pic, bottom right).



Plate comes with predrilled holes, and rear bumper had already some holes. For front bumper instead, since it's intact, I used 3M VHB tape.

Notes said:

The car arrives like this indeed, but if you don't tell your dealer not to drill it's one of the first things they do.

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True.. I told to my dealer many time in the seven months wait He was so scared that he doesn't even touch the car :lol:

Another strange decision by Ford -- why do we have this holder anyway? Baffling.

JB said:

Another strange decision by Ford -- why do we have this holder anyway? Baffling.

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Probably because certain countries have a maximum tilt angle for the rear plate which is crossed by the OEM bumper design.

Car manufacturers usually do not add such parts unless they legally have to.

That could be true, but if you compare pictures with and without plate holder the tilt angle is very similar! Probably 1° difference only

papinist said:

That could be true, but if you compare pictures with and without plate holder the tilt angle is very similar! Probably 1° difference only

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Could be the difference between passing a regulation or failing ;)

How is the lighting of the plate affected by installing it this way?

I have to check, but I believe it's identical

When are the holes in the front bumper created? At the dealer Shop or in the factory

YLA G said:

When are the holes in the front bumper created? At the dealer Shop or in the factory

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At the dealer, in case you don't want them to do it make sure you tell them in advance.

YLA G said:

When are the holes in the front bumper created? At the dealer Shop or in the factory

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I saw a new demo car at the dealer the other day.

I noticed that there are two tiny small marks (NOT HOLES) at the front bumper in order to drill for the plate.
Actually there are so tiny you have to look at some specific angle to notice them.