License plate readers are being stalled on I-19 on the border in Souther Arizona by the DEA as a tool to “catch smugglers.”  We all know that Arizona is a major gateway for drug smugglers.  Some local residents are quoted as “being all for it” if it stops the smugglers.  While others like Peggy Cass feel differently.

“It’s one thing if you’re in violation of something and the police pull you over but it’s another thing to record your license plate,” said Peg Cass.

Tucson resident Peg Cass called the readers a violation of privacy.  She does not want her information recorded as she drives, “It’s just one more way of big brother looking at you, you know.   Your medical records aren’t private anymore, nothing’s private anymore.”

So platenuts, how do you feel about the DEA logging your license plate information on a daily basis?  You “all for it” or think this is a violation of our privacy?

Maybe we can get an insider at the DEA to send us all the personalized license plates passing through? Anyone DEA readers out there care to make this happen?

More on the license plate readers here.

Dodge Charger custom license plate reads "STOPH8N"

Custom license plates on Dodge Chargers have been gaining a bit more popularity lately. As for this purple Plum Limited Edition Dodge Charger, I can’t really say that I am a fan. Love the car, love the vanity license plate but hate the color. Simple as that.

The first thing that pops into my mind when this was personalized license plate was submitted happened to be ” The see me rollin’…they hatin…’”

This driver knew there would be many others “hatin’” on his choice of color. I feel some some cars shouldn’t be made in certain colors and this is a prime example. This colorseems  more appropriate for a VW Bug or a cute little Scion.

So Dodge Charger custom license plate owner, I’m hatin! Come at me bro!

350z personalized license plate

I’ve said it before and I will say it again, 350z personalized license plates are usually some of the most creative and unusual ones out there. We’ve seen the LL Old J vanity license plate and the H8TIKTZ custom license plate has always been one of my favorites. There is something missing from each of those that is not missing in this 350z personalized license plate. The Story.

So one of our readers submitted a picture of his 350 vanity license plates and I instantly had to know the story behind it. I thought “cool car but why in the HELL would anyone reference a potato in their custom license plate?”  It goes like this:

The full story is,

My name is Taylor and in 7th grade when Jennifer lopez started calling herself J-lo, I, joking around started saying well then call me taylo.  Anyways, it caught on between some friends and one day I was at a neighbors painting a bbq pit when he told me to make sure I do a good job.  So I replied back with, “I’ll do fine, im like Picasso.  Or, Pataylo.”  After that I started sticking with that nick name for awhile when my friends first heard saw it written they kept saying potato.  After numerous attempts to correct them they refused and called me potato.  So since then its always just stuck.

PO7A7O vanity license plate

Ron Dudley's Ford F-150 vanity license plate

Vanity license plates often give us a slight invitation to the inspiration and passions of the drivers who own them. Photographer Ron Dudley recent ordered his personalized license plate when he purchased his new Ford F-150 which appropriately reads “HARRIER.”

Ron Dudley's Ford F-150 vanity license plate "HARRIER"

Ron states

Whenever I’m forced to choose a favorite avian subject (a choice I don’t like to make) I typically choose this species.  They’re magnificent aerial athletes, beautiful, extremely challenging photographic subjects and they carry that “raptor mystique”.

Since its rare to get a good Northern Harrier shot outside of the winter, Ron humbly describes his first day taking pictures with his new Ford F-150 custom license plate and capturing a juvenile Norther Harrier as “fitting.” I call it divine!

Juvenile Norther Harrier taken by Ron Dudley

Check out Ron Dudley’s website and his wonderful work behind a camera. He also links us to another bird lover named Rich Ditch whose collection of bird related vanity license plates was featured in March 1988 issue of Audubon magazine titled “A license to Bird.”

"A License to bird" Rich Ditch

Vanity License Plate ARTGAL

Vanity license plates have been “taken to a new level”, according to a beautifully written post by Patricia Harris on Boston.com. She gave brief recap of her recent adventure in New Hampshire and the tales of the vanity license plates she spotted. She found some interesting ones to say the least. We just wish should could have take more pics of the vanity license plates !

The road to literacy  by Patricia Harris

Perhaps the cleverest plate we saw was the driver’s education car (NERVOUS), while the most climate-conscious were no doubt ECOCAR (on a blue Prius) and CUTCO2. Yet perhaps our personal favorites were the white Nissan Maxima (GR8GFT) and the smoking hot little red convertible (FUNFNFN).