the frame cost $4.95 not the die grinder LOL. I broke two frames since they get thin when making the modification. So it really took 3 frames. I have to admit it looked fantastic when I was done, Thank God i taped the trunk with blue tape, i did use a dremel tool to cut the bolts so the cap would snap over. The dremel tool bit the stud and wrapped around and skidded across my tape, i put blue tape down first and then duct tape on top of the blue tape. If not my trunk paint would have been shot. Since I had no threads sticking out of the nut, i put a drop of locktight on the nut so it would not back off and allow the screw head to scracth the paint. I hope the person I sold it too never has to change licence plates!!

Actually they would just have to remove the whole assemlby with the licence plate light and take it FAR AWAY from the car and disassemlbe.

gosh, It seems you'll are makling a mountain out of a mole hill. I just notched my plate at the top with a pair of tin snips and redrilled the holes. The whole project could have not taken as long as it took to type this thread. I used a short bolt inserted from the back side and an acorn nut on the plate side to dress it up.

David

hey roushac, why defend backdraft so much? Come on.... I read about all of these nitpick b/s problems and my point is they should'nt be there. You would not expect these type of problems on your BMW, Porche, Ford, Dodge...and if they did occur, you wouldn't be "fixin em yerself!". My standards of quality are quite reasonable, but when I spend alot of $$, I expect a little more and these are b/s problems. (Mass produced car or Hand built...doesn't matter). Backdraft should hear that some people are disappointed. and they still have not corrected this problem! what a joke! need the dimensions of a US license plate? LOL LOL!! great excuse! You have been breathing too many fumes!!
Tell it like it is....

thanks for all the good ideas, i didn't mean to make everyone mad. after reading all the posts i think backdraft should step up and correct the problem. like was said earlier any other car would be back at the dealer for the fix and the customer would be pretty angry for the bad engineering of the part

cbreez,

Lighten up!

It's not like we have invested a HUGE amount of money in these things. They're just toys after all.

Cheers!
Dave

$40K is huge to me!!!! I must be one of the poor guys!!!
can ya give me a loan?? Please?????

Do you have a photo of a trunk/plate setup that you would consider perfect? I'm hearing 2 things here... 1) make it flush 2) clear the handle completely (remember it essentially spins). Show me what you want and we will go from there.

I know for a fact that a mold was made for a decklid that had the space you were after, it was abandoned because it "looked funny".

Willing to work something up, but in all honesty it has not been a real issue with our (Vintage) customer base.

if i spent 40k+ for a toy and it was poorly designed I would be in the return line at toys-r-us

If you don't want to run a "chunky" license plate frame, then the fix is quite easy.
Remove the light fixture and plate hanger, elongate the mounting holes in the boot/trunk lid by about 3mm (to move the mounting up, so it’s flush with the lines of the trunk). Looks far better that way anyway.
Elongate the holes in the plate hanger so the license plate touches the light.
Put it all back together, and the bottom of the place now sits on the outer ring of the trunk handle (the part that doesn’t twist)

On mine I was worried about the plate touching the paint at the bottom, so I used 2 bolts with rubber nuts to hold the plate from the bodywork. Then used simple black piping for the frame.

Crap pic but you get the idea.
http://feakes.homeip.net/house/Cobra...s/IMG_0697.JPG

Sorry.

NO!!!

Cheers!
Dave

I "defend" them because they produce a good product at a reasonable price. If they were "perfect", they would cost a lot more, don't you think?

I wish that the world were a perfect place, but it is unfortuately not. To get by in life, one has to learn to deal with those imperfections, not just P&M about them.

Cheers!
Dave

Interesting how we can get off the subject of buying/making a real nice license plate bracket!

You should perhaps ask "cbreez" about that.

Sorry, if I offended anyone, except for him.

Cheers!
Dave

Can you imagine how long the thread would be on a serious problem? This is amazing.

SkipB

Finishline also has an offset bracket for the license plate. On top of the already stated solutions and others out there.

These cars are not production cars. They are largely hand built custom cars. To expect the BMW or any other mass production levels for the same price is nuts. If any one expects a Cobra replica to replicate a BMW warranty, fit and finish, dealer network, or for that matter any thing else... then buy a BMW:)

Best way to look at these cars is more a work of art. You can go down to the 'nothing over $79.99 sofa size' sale and get a large print or for the same amount of money, you can get a one off peice of art in the form of a 3x5 picture (at a fire sale and if you are really lucky!). :LOL:

They are:
- dangerious
- require care
- require a large wallet if you don't know how to give them care
- can be expensive in many ways
- can be cheap in a very few ways
- easy to work on
- impossible to get parts
- easy to get a few parts
- can be tough to insure, get some on to work on and top dollar often when you do

Don't be fooled by some of the prices and say "Well heck! I can afford that!" There is so much more. $40K for a complete car is either a build it yourself model or a fixer-upper. Doesn't mean it can't be a good car (mine cost less), just means you have to accept things that you will change/fix/modify/repair.

Gee Dave, Thank you for your great philosophy about how to live life!!! I sure don't know how I have made it this far. You are quite the philosophical guru...You crack me up! Also thanks for the non-apology, you are a great guy and I am sure you feel good. Hope your face is red.

I am done with this post, but you guys can sugar coat this mis-engineered license plate frame all you want...it is still unacceptable....my standards are different. It should have been corrected by BD a long time ago. The original posts on this are very old.

This forum, I see, is not for "telling it like it is" sometimes, but cheerleading only. I am surprized at how defensive some of you guys are.

Talk to ya'll soon!

cbreez,

I know you are done with this post, but hopefully you will read this.

How many people contributed an easy fix here for a minor problem, and how many ONLY P&M'ed in this thread? People who P&M, but have fixes for things in life are OK with me. It's just the ones who ONLY P&M that really P me off.

From your last post, I see you are still the same. Enjoy spreading joy wherever you go.

My face is not red. No apology to you will be forthcoming from me.

Telling it like it is.

Cheers!
Dave

...a 2+ year-old thread, that seems to have covered all the aspects...and more. :rolleyes:

If the topic needs updating, start a new one.

thanks
ron
ClubCobra Moderator