Re: [MV] Insurance/plates in Indiana

Ken (kweiss@wans.net)
Fri, 4 Dec 1998 11:53:20 -0600

Jerry, List,

That code is from the Antique License Plate laws. The new Military Vehicle
license law is totally different. Although license plates have been made,
they are only issued if you choose not to use a hood number or other
registration number. Everyone I know, who has the Military Vehicle license,
uses some sort of registration number, therefore, they do not get issued a
metal license plate. Only TX.D.O.T. knows how much money was spent on
producing another useless license plate. (by the way, there are way more
license plates available than listed on the list on TX.D.O.T.'s web page.
Those are the most common ones.) When the military vehicle clubs of
Texas(this is just a generic term for all the active clubs in Texas that
have members who have military vehicles.) talked to the Legislature they
said "If your new Law doesn't cost the tax payer any money, the better
chance you'll have of getting your Law to pass." Military vehicles used to
be lumped in with antiques vehicle plates, but there were limitations on
vehicle year of make, weight, size, and wheel configuration. Before the
military license law, you had to register your half-track as a motorcycle.
This is because of the wheel configuration. The law said any vehicle with
two wheels was considered a motorcycle. At roughly 16,000+ pounds, that's
one heavy motorcycle!!! And if you have a tank, your choices might have been
Farm Machinery or Construction Machinery. These are the only two plates that
have any provisions for tracked vehicles. So, lots of things have change in
just a few short years. Now you can have your vehicle street legal, but you
still have to follow the same usage laws as antiques. As for the $8.00 fee
if the vehicle was made before 1921, well that too is from the antique law.

The main reason for the Military Vehicle license plates was pushed into law
was so that military vehicle owners didn't have to display a big, bright,
shiny, white, metal license plate where one didn't belong. Also, the fact
that the weight limit on the Antique vehicle plates is 2 1/2 tons, and again
there is no provisions for half-tracked or tracked vehicles. By the way, if
you have a half-tracked or tracked vehicle you MUST have rubber or other
non-asphalt damaging pads on it to be allowed on the streets.

In fact, the law is still so new that a lot of the people who work with
license plates everyday don't even know about it yet. You still have to know
who to talk with. I have the 1997 - 1998 vehicular Law book and if any ones
interested, I can scan in the applicable codes and email them off list.

Ken
Lone Star - MVPA
Austin, Texas
1953 XM211
1954 XM105E3
-----Original Message-----
From: WC544x4@aol.com <WC544x4@aol.com>
To: kweiss@wans.net <kweiss@wans.net>; mil-veh@skylee.com
<mil-veh@skylee.com>
Date: Friday, December 04, 1998 2:39 AM
Subject: Re: [MV] Insurance/plates in Indiana

>I found the Texas Former Military Vehicle Plate listed on the Texas DOT
site.
>It shows an actual license plate though. Do you get the plate in addition
to
>using the hood number, as it does not mention the hood number being used?
It
>says what had been mentioned on the list about the $50.00 for 5 years and
that
>the former military vehicle needed to be 25 years or older. The price
goes
>down to $8.00 a year if your MV is was manufactured prior to 1921.
>
>Texas has alot of speciality plates, should anyone else like to check out
the
>MV plate here's the web address I found to it.
>
>www.dot.state.tx.us/insdtdot/orgchart/vtr/reginfo/spplates/military.htm
>
>Jerry
>WC-54 Ambulance
>

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