# Blue license plate lights - To run, or not to run?



## Austin9991 (Oct 7, 2013)

What is everybody's opinions on blue license plate led's? I've seen opinions ranging from "rice" to asking for a ticket.

1st, does anybody have first hand experience being pulled over for having blue license plate lights? I would prefer to stay out of trouble if possible lol.

2nd, how do you all think they look?


----------



## 2013Cruze (Aug 4, 2012)

I would pass.


----------



## McNeo (Dec 17, 2013)

There are some things you can do that you will only get ticketed for if they pull you over for something else. I.E. Pulled over for speeding, and they also give you a ticket for HIDs in reflector housings - whereas they usually wouldn't pull you over for the HIDs alone.

This is not one of the cases.

Blue or green on your car on a public road is instant ticket - though usually just a fix it ticket - but you need to take time out of your day to go to the DPS and show them you fixed it.


----------



## spacedout (Dec 7, 2010)

There was a user on here(now banned) that was pulled over and ticketed for this. I see no reason at all to draw negative attention to yourself without the fun of actually doing something wrong.


----------



## Austin9991 (Oct 7, 2013)

Well, hyper-white led's here I come! Lol

I figured it wouldn't be worth the hassle, but it's always nice to get an opinion from my fellow cruzers!


----------



## Austin9991 (Oct 7, 2013)

Also does anyone know the part number for our lights? I thought I remembered seeing a thread with the led part numbers for interior, tail lights, reverse, license, etc. But can't seem to find it


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Green would probably be safe but I'd stay away from blue just to keep the cop in a bad mood off your ass.


----------



## McNeo (Dec 17, 2013)

Austin9991 said:


> Also does anyone know the part number for our lights? I thought I remembered seeing a thread with the led part numbers for interior, tail lights, reverse, license, etc. But can't seem to find it


I use Sylvania's site jsut to get the bulb numbers.

Lamp Replacement Guide View All Bulbs

2011-2014 bulbs are all the same


----------



## McNeo (Dec 17, 2013)

obermd said:


> Green would probably be safe but I'd stay away from blue just to keep the cop in a bad mood off your ass.


In MN green is reserved for snow plows, construction trucks, tow trucks, etc. You'll get in the same amount of trouble.


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

McNeo said:


> In MN green is reserved for snow plows, construction trucks, tow trucks, etc. You'll get in the same amount of trouble.


Thank you. I hadn't seen green used before.


----------



## Viridian (May 6, 2014)

In the state of Florida it's illegal to have blue or red lights _under_ your car. I'm not sure about above the license plate but depends on your locale. Lol


----------



## McNeo (Dec 17, 2013)

Viridian said:


> In the state of Florida it's illegal to have blue or red lights _under_ your car. I'm not sure about above the license plate but depends on your locale. Lol


It's almost definitely illegal just about everywhere.

In MN you can only project white and amber to the front, red and amber to the rear (plus white for reverse), and amber to the sides.

I know of two people that have gotten off the hook for driving with yellow and orange underbody lights because they're "projecting amber from the bottom side."


----------



## revjpeterson (Oct 2, 2013)

obermd said:


> Thank you. I hadn't seen green used before.


My Cruze has green, because I thought the orange sidemarkers looked terrible on my Rainforest Green Cruze. I had Klearz make me some custom Rainforest Green (Green + Smoke + Pearl) sidemarker lights to replace them. Right now I still have the white bulbs in them, resulting in a green light output, but I picked up a couple of Amber LEDs to throw in there in the event there was any trouble about it. . 



McNeo said:


> In MN green is reserved for snow plows, construction trucks, tow trucks, etc. You'll get in the same amount of trouble.


I guess it's a good thing I have Iowa plates in case the Minnesota troopers decide to bother me about it.


----------



## revjpeterson (Oct 2, 2013)

My brother used to run blue License plate lights on his Camaro in Michigan back in the day when they still had blue plates with white letters. If I remember correctly, he did get a talking to from the police on a couple of occasions, but I'm not sure whether it was for projecting blue or for rendering his license plate illegible.


----------



## Austin9991 (Oct 7, 2013)

Thank you McNeo for the site for the bulbs!


----------



## McNeo (Dec 17, 2013)

MN law states white only to illuminate the plate.

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=169.50

Just Google "[your state] law license plate light" should get you what you're looking for. But, as with anything, all depends who pulls you over, when, why, and if they've had enough coffee that day.


----------



## McNeo (Dec 17, 2013)

revjpeterson said:


> I guess it's a good thing I have Iowa plates in case the Minnesota troopers decide to bother me about it.


Being from out of state makes you a target as it is. Plus, ignorance is not an excuse. Just because you "didn't know" the speed limit was 50 doesn't make it okay to go 90.


----------



## Jukebox Juliet (Apr 4, 2014)

McNeo said:


> Being from out of state makes you a target as it is. Plus, ignorance is not an excuse. Just because you "didn't know" the speed limit was 50 doesn't make it okay to go 90.


Yeah, was going to say I think MN troopers specifically seek out Iowa plates to pull over lol!


----------



## iTz SADISTIK (Apr 6, 2014)

I'm running blue but then again I'm friends with all the cops in this town too..... You can see my plate clearly. I'm probably going to go back to white though or figure out a way to do a switched setup so I can have blue when I'm at car shows and white while driving. Anyone have experience with a switched light?


----------



## McNeo (Dec 17, 2013)

iTz SADISTIK said:


> I'm running blue but then again I'm friends with all the cops in this town too..... You can see my plate clearly. I'm probably going to go back to white though or figure out a way to do a switched setup so I can have blue when I'm at car shows and white while driving. Anyone have experience with a switched light?


I have switchbacks for my front signals, but those are already wired for a dual filament.

A 194/T10 socket is going to be wired for single filament, and you likely won't be able to find a dual-filament T10 socket.

I tried searching for a 194/T10 switchback LED, and even that search came up dry.

Sounds like an interesting idea. But you'd either have to:
- Find a dual-filament T10 socket and 194/T10 switchback LEDs. Then, you'd need to wire your own power for the second filament (in this case, the blue LED half).
Or
- Get creative, run a blue light and a white light. Duct tape may come in handy.


----------



## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

spacedout said:


> There was a user on here(now banned) that was pulled over and ticketed for this. I see no reason at all to draw negative attention to yourself without the fun of actually doing something wrong.


This was blue on a blue car just to keep that in mind for a white car. I also had blue plate bulbs on a blue car but my car was a darker blue than his.



McNeo said:


> Being from out of state makes you a target as it is. Plus, ignorance is not an excuse. Just because you "didn't know" the speed limit was 50 doesn't make it okay to go 90.


 Yes and no. it depends on the state, what law it that you are breaking, and if the states have reciprocity. Ohio doesn't enforce front plate law on a Texas or VA plated car w/o a front plate. Same for tint % and whatnot. A military base would slightly differ from even the state it's in.


----------



## iTz SADISTIK (Apr 6, 2014)

Military only gets more strict than the state it's in, never looser on regs. With that said they tend to observe the rule of the law the plate is registered in. The only thing that I can think of being more strict than any state, with the exception of Illinois, is hands free is required.


----------



## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

Yes, more strict is what I meant. A person who lives in MD and gets a DUI in Florida wouldn't be allowed to drive on base in MD. There is all kinds of weird things a DFC and ops will stick out there as well. In D.C. we had about 38 ID's that could be accepted to gain entry and about 14 would rotate on and off the list all the time. You also won't get pulled over for driving at 1700 hrs off base. We never enforced plates besides the guys with tailgates down to hide the expired plates or no plates at all.


----------



## revjpeterson (Oct 2, 2013)

McNeo said:


> Being from out of state makes you a target as it is. Plus, ignorance is not an excuse. Just because you "didn't know" the speed limit was 50 doesn't make it okay to go 90.


I was thinking along the lines of being able to make a ticket stick for the green sidemarkers, not in terms of claiming ignorance of the law or moving violations. Based on the full faith and credit clause of the U.S. constitution, as well as plain common sense, permanently-installed equipment is typically understood as governed by the state where the car is licensed and not the state where it is driven. Something like a radar detector is removable, off-road lights could be covered, and under-body lights can be switched off in a state where it is necessary to comply with the law, but things like body modifications and lighting can't just be changed as one crosses the state line. So, if my relatives come to Iowa from Michigan, they can't be ticketed for failure to display a front plate, or if someone from a state with no fender law drives into Michigan, they can't be fined for failing to have a fender that extends to the widest point of their tire, to name a couple of examples. Reasonable law enforcement officers will allow for this, and even if they didn't, would have a hard time making the ticket stick in an honest court, since the only alternative would be not to drive your car across state lines.


----------



## phpsteve (Jul 15, 2014)

Austin9991 said:


> What is everybody's opinions on blue license plate led's? I've seen opinions ranging from "rice" to asking for a ticket.
> 
> 1st, does anybody have first hand experience being pulled over for having blue license plate lights? I would prefer to stay out of trouble if possible lol.
> 
> 2nd, how do you all think they look?



I did it with my GSXR and most of the time I was left alone but I did eventually get stopped and warned about the blue LED.. it is not legal as it does not make the license place lettering easily visible. I would pass. Just having them alone might not get you pulled over but it is just something else for them to nail you with if they do decide to or pull you over for something else. If I'm going to get pulled over and ticketed for it.. it is going to be something I can see and isn't hidden behind me.. hehe


----------



## cdb09007 (Aug 7, 2013)

I made mine a nice red and havn't had an issue in the 6 months having them (knock on wood). It does make the plate a bit harder to read (blue would be easier than red). It makes it look real good with my CRT and blue would go good with your white IMO.


----------



## lscruze12 (Jul 8, 2014)

this should help


----------



## hificruzer226 (Mar 27, 2013)

I would advise against it, as it is going to be annying to buy something that will get you pulled over in less than 30 days and make you remove the items you paid for.


----------



## MilTownSHO (Oct 9, 2013)

Rule #1 don't draw any unnecessary attention to your car, in other words illegal modifications.

Speaking from my experience in Law Enforcement, even hyper white LEDs may catch my eye more than stock lamps. Illegal or not, it draws attention.

I have LEDS in my own car, but only on the inside

Just my 2 cents.


----------



## rudeboybelize (Aug 5, 2012)

i've had blue led in for 2 years in cali never have been stop (knock on wood ) then again im the only cruze around here i;ve seen that looks like mine and i do drive alot 2 years 60 miles 2012 chevy cruze 1.8 ...ill start another thread but any ideas of how to make this car drag mode???


MilTownSHO said:


> Rule #1 don't draw any unnecessary attention to your car, in other words illegal modifications.
> 
> Speaking from my experience in Law Enforcement, even hyper white LEDs may catch my eye more than stock lamps. Illegal or not, it draws attention.
> 
> ...


----------



## Austin9991 (Oct 7, 2013)

Want to say thank you to everyone for the useful info, and earlier today I swapped in some cool white led's. They look awesome! 
Got a 10 pack for 7 bucks on Amazon with prime two-day shipping.


----------



## 2014RS (Jul 5, 2014)

Is there a thread that lists all the bulb numbers? For converting to led?


2014 LT2 RS, 1999 F150 Longhorn
My build thread - http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/14-media/81273-2014rs-build-thread.html


----------



## Austin9991 (Oct 7, 2013)

Not that I know of. I will compile a list of part numbers and post a thread with them later tonight


----------



## 2014RS (Jul 5, 2014)

Sounds good! Post a link here!


2014 LT2 RS, 1999 F150 Longhorn
My build thread - http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/14-media/81273-2014rs-build-thread.html


----------



## Austin9991 (Oct 7, 2013)

2014RS said:


> Sounds good! Post a link here!
> 
> 
> 2014 LT2 RS, 1999 F150 Longhorn
> My build thread - http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/14-media/81273-2014rs-build-thread.html


Here is the link to the thread I made regarding bulb sizes 

http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/11-a.../82122-led-bulb-part-numbers.html#post1269298


----------

