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Looking for front license plate bracket, 73 Olds 98
I bought another 73 98 so I am again looking for a very nice front license plate bracket or plate holder for a 1973 Olds 98. From the info i have been given so far this is a 73 only thing not sure if that's true, i know a 74 has it as part of the bumper. Any help or info would be appreciated.
Thanks Greg
Last edited by w31man; January 22nd, 2022 at 08:24 PM.
Greg, about 12 years ago I dismantled a 1973 Olds 98. My parts clutter is no where near organized. But if you can help with a photo what it looks like I can keep my eyes open to see if I still have the one from that car.
Greg, about 12 years ago I dismantled a 1973 Olds 98. My parts clutter is no where near organized. But if you can help with a photo what it looks like I can keep my eyes open to see if I still have the one from that car.
Well i don't have a picture of one the front is about the size of the plate and back is smaller attatches with 3 bolts in a triangle shape to the lower valance and i believe they were galvanized. I used to think these were just missing on the 73s i bought but there aren't even any holes drilled for them so i'm thinking they were a option?
Last edited by w31man; November 12th, 2022 at 04:12 PM.
72 is different due to front bumper and valance design. Pretty sure 73 is a one year only part.
The front plate mounting bracket came in the trunk. Dealer installed it on vehicles in states that required front plates.
My Hurst/Olds was sold new and lived most of its life in NC, which doesn't require a front plate. I was fortunate that after over 20 years the front plate bracket was still in the trunk. I sure did hate to drill holes in that bumper! 😫 but the Commonwealth said I had to.
72 is different due to front bumper and valance design. Pretty sure 73 is a one year only part.
The front plate mounting bracket came in the trunk. Dealer installed it on vehicles in states that required front plates.
My Hurst/Olds was sold new and lived most of its life in NC, which doesn't require a front plate. I was fortunate that after over 20 years the front plate bracket was still in the trunk. I sure did hate to drill holes in that bumper! 😫 but the Commonwealth said I had to.
Thats pretty interesting. my 98 has only 15,000 miles on it but i dont recall seeing it in the trunk? I will have to take a closer look, thanks for the info!
Greg, this is being parted out over on facebook. I don't know the year, but the way the license plate is mounted below the bumper made me think of you.
Greg, this is being parted out over on facebook. I don't know the year, but the way the license plate is mounted below the bumper made me think of you.
Hey thanks i appreciate the heads up! Front plate holder is wrong for my 98 but i will contact them for other things i could use.
You have been looking for one of these for a long time!
How about this?
I have a '73 Delta 88, which has the same front end as your car, and it has a front license plate bracket. I presume that it's original to the car as it fits snugly on the lower valance right where you would expect a license plate to be.
I live in a state that requires only a rear plate, so I don't need this, and I just put a vanity thing there to keep it covered. But I would not mind at all removing it, which I was probably going to do, anyway, as I think the car has a sleeker look without it.
Here's what it looks like with a plate attached.
Here's what it looks like without the plate attached. You can see that it is a bit rough along the bottom edge, but it holds a license plate just fine, and, with the plate attached, you'll never see the bottom edge of the holder.
Here's what it looks like off the car. The three bolts are not all the same, so who knows. But they held the bracket on. You can certainly use your own bolts.
Here's what the place where it mounts looks like with it removed. Yes, I'll have three holes left there, but I will fill those in and then touch it up with some red paint. As down low on the car as it is, the touch-up will never be noticed. And as I say, the car will have a cleaner look from the front end.
Now you might be saying, "but wait, but wait, don't you want to keep this in case you ever go to a state that requires two plates?" My answer is that that is very unlikely. Even if I do, most states allow year-of-manufacture plates on a car older than a certain age, my current state being one of them, and they usually require only one plate regardless of whether or not the state is normally a two-plate state, so I'm never likely to need a front plate.
Plus, you're a fellow '73 full-size Olds owner, and a '73 full-size Olds owner in need is a '73 full-size Olds owner indeed!
If you're interested, as far as cost, I can't possibly charge you for the item itself given how little it actually is and its condition. But I will ask $20 from you. $10 of that will go towards UPS shipping, and the other $10 will buy my wife and me an ice cream cone at Dairy Queen as we're coming back home from the shipping office.
If you're interested, PM me, and I can send you my mailing address.
Keep in mind that I can't promise with 100% certainty that this is a bona-fide, originally-provided-by-Oldsmobile front license plate bracket for a '73 Oldsmobile. I have no way of determining this. Maybe someone else here does know and/or has one that he knows for sure is original and can tell us. But it certainly LOOKS like it could be original, it fits nicely right where you want it (none of this aftermarket stuff that bolts to the grille or something), and I think it would do the job for you just fine. But it's your call.
You have been looking for one of these for a long time!
How about this?
I have a '73 Delta 88, which has the same front end as your car, and it has a front license plate bracket. I presume that it's original to the car as it fits snugly on the lower valance right where you would expect a license plate to be.
I live in a state that requires only a rear plate, so I don't need this, and I just put a vanity thing there to keep it covered. But I would not mind at all removing it, which I was probably going to do, anyway, as I think the car has a sleeker look without it.
Here's what it looks like with a plate attached.
Here's what it looks like without the plate attached. You can see that it is a bit rough along the bottom edge, but it holds a license plate just fine, and, with the plate attached, you'll never see the bottom edge of the holder.
Here's what it looks like off the car. The three bolts are not all the same, so who knows. But they held the bracket on. You can certainly use your own bolts.
Here's what the place where it mounts looks like with it removed. Yes, I'll have three holes left there, but I will fill those in and then touch it up with some red paint. As down low on the car as it is, the touch-up will never be noticed. And as I say, the car will have a cleaner look from the front end.
Now you might be saying, "but wait, but wait, don't you want to keep this in case you ever go to a state that requires two plates?" My answer is that that is very unlikely. Even if I do, most states allow year-of-manufacture plates on a car older than a certain age, my current state being one of them, and they usually require only one plate regardless of whether or not the state is normally a two-plate state, so I'm never likely to need a front plate.
Plus, you're a fellow '73 full-size Olds owner, and a '73 full-size Olds owner in need is a '73 full-size Olds owner indeed!
If you're interested, as far as cost, I can't possibly charge you for the item itself given how little it actually is and its condition. But I will ask $20 from you. $10 of that will go towards UPS shipping, and the other $10 will buy my wife and me an ice cream cone at Dairy Queen as we're coming back home from the shipping office.
If you're interested, PM me, and I can send you my mailing address.
Keep in mind that I can't promise with 100% certainty that this is a bona-fide, originally-provided-by-Oldsmobile front license plate bracket for a '73 Oldsmobile. I have no way of determining this. Maybe someone else here does know and/or has one that he knows for sure is original and can tell us. But it certainly LOOKS like it could be original, it fits nicely right where you want it (none of this aftermarket stuff that bolts to the grille or something), and I think it would do the job for you just fine. But it's your call.
Thanks so much for the offer i do appreciate it, recently i reupped all the things i have been looking for but its funny you should say how you like the look better cause the more i look at it next to my 76 i do like it not on there. I am in a state that requires front plates but i never get hassled even on my 76 i have one kind of like yours on and no one gives it second look. SO i may go with that till i get arrested lol
Thanks so much for the offer i do appreciate it, recently i reupped all the things i have been looking for but its funny you should say how you like the look better cause the more i look at it next to my 76 i do like it not on there. I am in a state that requires front plates but i never get hassled even on my 76 i have one kind of like yours on and no one gives it second look. SO i may go with that till i get arrested lol
Thanks!!
Greg
I drove my Indiana Y-O-M plated 72 into Chicago a couple years ago and used their toll roads. Supposedly, I was to pay by plate. I forgot. When I remembered, the site said, if you are late, wait for your letter of infraction, then pay using its infraction number. Have yet to get one mailed to me even though a nice lady in their office told me to keep waiting, they'll find me, guaranteed, and send me the letter for sure. Between no front plate and a 50 year old tag associated with the real historic plate (that stays with, and in, the car) only on the registration, the tag might as well read "F OFF" to the toll people, it seems.
I drove my Indiana Y-O-M plated 72 into Chicago a couple years ago and used their toll roads. Supposedly, I was to pay by plate. I forgot. When I remembered, the site said, if you are late, wait for your letter of infraction, then pay using its infraction number. Have yet to get one mailed to me even though a nice lady in their office told me to keep waiting, they'll find me, guaranteed, and send me the letter for sure. Between no front plate and a 50 year old tag associated with the real historic plate (that stays with, and in, the car) only on the registration, the tag might as well read "F OFF" to the toll people, it seems.
April 21st, 2020, 04:40 PM
