As all good Michiganders know, our benevolent god has decreed that our old license plates were too hard to read, so she is squandering millions of dollars to update our plates to equally difficult to read different versions. So, I present to you the progression of the Michigan license plate.
2003
For quite some time, we in Michigan have enjoyed beautiful, plane jane white on blue license plates. They never hurt anyone, and look fine to me. I could be wrong, but they have always seemed relatively easy to read. Furthermore, if you didn’t like them, there were numerous different offerings.
2007
Apparently, this plate is easier to read, and has our state’s URL. Great, I’m sure that most people would NEVER think to put the state’s name in to pull up its website Oh well, the road commission did not need the money, right? I mean Michigan roads could not be in better condition.
2011
Our governor declared herself queen of Michigan in 2010 when there was no one left in the state to contest her. Her first order of business was to update the license plate to reflect the fact that all the other digits were no longer necessary to uniquely identify all the vehicles in the state.
23 Comments
I bet Devos would have gone with a “black on black” design.
I am quite certain that DeVos would not have wasted money changing the design.
i agree with fulljeff……the new design is dumb……a lot of wasted money. the reason the plates were difficult to read were because they tried to put too many numbers and digits on the plate…..i’ve seen newer plates where the gov adjusted the kerning in a feeble attempt to make the plates easier to read…….didn’t work and now you have new plates that are not at all easier to read….wasting money……not really sure what i’m getting out…….just feel the new plates are unnecessary……at the rate that people are leaving the great state of michigan, we’re not going to run out of number combinations to put on the plates……that way granholm my save some money on some license plates
I’m wondering if these are easier for photo-radar to read, they seem to be fairly high contrast, and quite shiny (maybe the better to bounce laser guns off of?)
That’s what I have been thinking myself. At night they look solid white when your headlights are reflected off of them. It might play into Granholm’s 16 tickets per day plan.
I have yet to see “evidence” of this 16 tickets per day plan
The mich. license plates were changed in order to distribute the new ones which (unknown to most) have metallic? band/seals hidden between layers holding personal/tracking? information to allow big brother easier axcess to our personal info and whereabouts. Pretty fishy right? A state wide mandatory switch just because they didnt like the color? I dont think so. DEMAND THE TRUTH
Michigan is hurting so badly financially, our schools have no money, the few businesses that are left are struggling, our roads are terrible, there are talks about MORE taxes for businesses (service tax), and yet we need these new license plates? That’s our tax money going to work for us-NOT! I agree 100% with Mike. If you check out the new plate under certain light, right down the middle where the squiggly line is, you will see some sort of opague circle with some sort of code in it. I noticed this about my new plate right away. Big brother is up to something. And, maybe it is all about getting more money from speeding Michigan residents. But, how much money did we have to put out there so that we each get a mandatory new plate this year? I don’t have access to the numbers, but it doesn’t seem to make much financial sense to me.
HI, Everyone and MICHIGAN, you did you change the color of our plates, all of the sudden? Huh? I think its dum. I think the money spent on that could help feed someone. Its cheaper. Are schools are hurting to, OH yeah the lottery pays that…..Hey suppose thats were that money went?????– On new license PLATES.—MICHIGAN PLATE DUM911HELP.
jenny, the jobs here a bad, people are losing there homes and we have to get NEW LICENSE PLATES> I THOUGHT ENGLER WAS A A^HOLE MRS. Granholm I think she’s getting there with him. Why is it when they get in office THEY LOSE TOUCH.??????? HELLO OURGOVERNMENT STOP WASTING MY DAM TAXES. I’M SICK OF IT.
Michigan is to the US what Michoacan is to Mexico. Try to keep up with the rest of the country and the residents whine. It costs no more to produce plates under the new design as it did under the old design.
Hey J-Do you have factual data on this “same cost” theory? Just wondering. I am more concerned about the new strange decal on my plate anyway. Does anybody know why it’s there?
The squiggly line is a DNA strand, which I suppose represents the biotech corridor from Holland to Ann Arbor (or is it Detroit?). I’ve heard that it’s other purpose is to prevent counterfeiting.
But I’m still going to be grumpy about giving up my blue plate.
not true…. All states from Utah to Rhode Island to Florida I’ve seen with the squiggly line (dna strand) down the middle. I am wondering what it’s for.
J said: “It costs no more to produce plates under the new design as it did under the old design.”
Not true, it’s costing MILLIONS -FACT. Every blue plate out there is being replaced whether you want it or not. It is not a simple “replace as needed” process. They are sending new plates with new numbers to everyone in Michigan. When your old tag expires, you are forced to replace your plate. So multiply the number of cars in Michigan by the cost of each plate, plus postage, and you have a multi-million dollar expense in just one year.
Personally I think it was a good, although not necessary, change. I hated the old White on Blue license plates but it was the last thing that needed to be changed in this poor economy that currently exists in Michigan. I think the Blue bar and white background is better than the old. I don’t care what tracking devices, speeder catcher qualities it has, etc. If you’re worried about the Government tracking you using license plates that’s the least of your worries when it comes to the Govt
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why don’t you mopes ride vintage and go back to the tag your car came from? if that’s not an option and you’re interested in money for schools by an abc license plate and donate a portion of proceeds… but you won’t hear me though. i don’t want the state tracking me or spotting my plate from a speed blimp or overpass either, but even this ego i’m draggin around doesn’t keep me from losing sight of the fact that i’m just not that important. if the state has tought me anything after living in it for the past few decades it’s that they just don’t care. run for your lives!!
This is my angry topic for a college paper final. I thought comments here were interesting, theories why the evil change had occurred. I HATE it. I am researching info on WHY and COST…. I renewed my personalized plate this year and they tried to give me a generic evil white one!! So even tho my blue (hockey)plate was fine, State made me a shiny new white one…. this is dumb.
I can’t believe you people. The plates were a mandatory switch because they are made with an RFID cip in them. It gives The State the ability to reliably identify any vehicle, anywhere, anytime, whether stationary or mobile, in all weather conditions. Whenever you drive past a sensor, or whenever a mobile sensor is present, you broadcast who you are, where you are, what time you were there, and if there are multiple sensors, how fast you were going. And yes, the are much MUCH more expensive to produce.
I have not heard anyone say they really like these new “creatively magnificent” plates. Simply put, we didn’t need to spend the money. If we HAD to change them, couldn’t we have come up with something less bland? What a great opportunity to promote some aspect of the state. Millions of little billboards promoting Michigan all over the country. This new design lets the whole world know there’s nothing going on in here.
OMG! WHEN WILL ANYONE WAKEUP? THE GOVERNMENT ISN’T JUST TRACKING US THROUGH OUR LICENSE PLATES, ITS ALSO THROUGH YOUR DRIVER’S LICENSE AS WELL. WHY DO YOU THINK THE BARCODE IS THERE? THEY HAVE EVERYONE’S DATA STORED IN GLOBAL DATABANKS…AND YOU WILL BE SCANNING THEM IN PLACE OF MONEY, FOR YOUR AGE (IF BUYING ALCOHOL), USING IT LIKE A CREDIT CARD…JUST WAIT UNTIL THE GOVERNMENT TAKES AWAY OUR PAPER MONEY LIKE THEY WANT TO? THEN WHAT WILL YOU ALL BE CRYING? OPEN YOUR EYES, THE 1-WORLD GOVERNMENT IS AROUND THE CORNER…REMEMBER HITLER? THERE ALREADY PRACTICING MARTIAL LAW IN INDIANA, WHAT IS THIS TELLING YOU? WAKE UP, THERE TAKING OUR RIGHTS AWAYS, NOW IT’S THE GUNS AT THE MOMENT. IT’S PRETTY SAD WHEN 5 BIG BURLY COPS CAN TAKE DOWN AN 80 YR. OLD LADY TO THE GROUND BECAUSE THEY ASKED HER FOR HER GUN.
THIS COUNTRY IS GETTING SICKENING!!!
question; why do some Michigan license plates have a squiggly line down the middle, and others do not? I have just noticed this recently and none of my friends or relatives have it on their license plates and were just as mystified as I was to notice that there were, indeed, squiggly lines down the middle of some Michigan license plates. I was just curious.
I know the squiggly is Federal… because its on ALL new state license plates, I have it on my Utah plates too and my sister has it on her Rhode Island plates and my Aunt has it on her Florida plates and I’ve noticed it on other states’ plates as well..
Some have said its some tracking thing, I personally think it’s for anti-counterfitting, maybe similar to the Federal REAL-ID act, where all new state licenses are similar and have a bar code on the back. You might say… but I thought these are state issues???
Well they are, but the Federal Government always gets its way because while State budgets are exhausted and broke, the federal gov’t just prints more money (notes) and increases the national debt. The states are so broke that all 50 heavily depend on the federal government for “highway funds, federal grants, etc” and the Federal Government freely gives it out with one catch… every now and then they say “If your state wants to be eligable for these funds you must: and then they give a laundry list of stipulations. Here’s an example that I know of first hand.
RI use to not have a .08 alcohol limit, The Federal Government refused to grant Rhode Island any Federal Highway administration funds for our highways and roads until we made the law .08 -Rhode Island quickly changed the law and soon after the funds were released.