[E91toG05]

Thanks to a fellow forum member, I now have a front license plate frame bracket (factory) that I need to install. There is a bracket, a ton of screws and 4 pieces of foam tape. instructions for how to do this? Thanks!

[eelnoraa]

Get dealer to do it if you buy from them. They have a jig to align up holes perfectly and consistently. Take 5 min.

[TurtleBoy]

Agree with the above, they shouldn't charge you anything. Out of curiosity, what happened to the original one? They are shipped with each vehicle.

[E91toG05]

I bought the car in Florida and it did not come with it…. No front plate required there. I now live in New York where it is required, unfortunately.

[TurtleBoy]

Originally Posted by E91toG05

I bought the car in Florida and it did not come with it…. No front plate required there. I now live in New York where it is required, unfortunately.

Gotcha, I think they may send one with each vehicle but the dealer probably takes it where not needed.

[Marty in NY]

Originally Posted by E91toG05

I bought the car in Florida and it did not come with it…. No front plate required there. I now live in New York where it is required, unfortunately.

Be sure to look in all the nooks and crannies of the cargo area, mine also did not require one where I bought it but the plate holder and screws were stuffed under the cargo cover because that is what the factory does.

Installing it is another story - you want to drill holes in your plastic bumper or go with a drill-less option?

[11001X101]

It's very easy to install. BMW is very smart. When I first saw it, I was wondering how to install it because unlike my previous cars, there's no marks on the bumper. Move the bracket along the bumper and it will "click" with at the bottom. You then just hand screw through the holes to install the bracket then put the plate on. If you don't want to screw the bumper, use the provided double sided tapes. They're brilliant. I personally don't want dealer to do this. They don't put care in doing it and at one point in the past I ended up with a slanted plate.
Found the video I used before. Here it is. Ours has alignment tabs.

[realdah]

I lived in a state that requires front license plate to be hooked, however, even my SA implied not to install the front license cause it doesn't look good for 2024 LCI.

I am thinking about using some kind of tow hook based license plate just in case when it is absolutely required (eg. when traveling to Canada) but will not mount it for the most of the time in local.

[Marty in NY]

Originally Posted by realdah

I lived in a state that requires front license plate to be hooked, however, even my SA implied not to install the front license cause it doesn't look good for 2024 LCI.

I am thinking about using some kind of tow hook based license plate just in case when it is absolutely required (eg. when traveling to Canada) but will not mount it for the most of the time in local.

There are several front plate holder options, using the tow hook is one of them but whatever you choose, just be sure you are not blocking any of the sensors in the front of your car. You can search the archives here, plenty of people have posted their "no hole drill" solutions. You can also do an internet search and you will find several.

[aaaaaaaaaz]

Not sure it's just me, but I feel LCI X5 (with msport and black paint) the front has something "missing" - the black panel under the grill just seems a bit empty and awkward.

IMO the car looks really great with EU style plate on the front - that is what the front end designed for. With North American plate shape it is not as good.

I am usually one of those who don't put on front tag on cars in CA, but this time I might consider actually install a front plate (the black and gold legacy to be exact)

[TurtleBoy]

Originally Posted by alanzyy

Not sure it's just me, but I feel LCI X5 (with msport and black paint) the front has something "missing" - the black panel under the grill just seems a bit empty and awkward.

IMO the car looks really great with EU style plate on the front - that is what the front end designed for. With North American plate shape it is not as good.

I am usually one of those who don't put on front tag on cars in CA, but this time I might consider actually install a front plate (the black and gold legacy to be exact)

You aren't alone, I think the design needs a plate there to break it up.

[tooloud10]

Just dealt with this on my '23 45e and actually bought a tow hook solution, but the threads for the tow hook are rather deep in the bumper and the kit did not work.

I ended up taking the advice from a couple others and simply velcroed the plate to the front of the car. I personally think it looks so much better than the other solutions, holds on just fine (up to 100mph so far), doesn't block any sensors, and doesn't situate the plate in a goofy off-center location.

Sometimes the simplest and cheapest option really is the best.

[aaaaaaaaaz]

Originally Posted by tooloud10

Just dealt with this on my '23 45e and actually bought a tow hook solution, but the threads for the tow hook are rather deep in the bumper and the kit did not work.

I ended up taking the advice from a couple others and simply velcroed the plate to the front of the car. I personally think it looks so much better than the other solutions, holds on just fine (up to 100mph so far), doesn't block any sensors, and doesn't situate the plate in a goofy off-center location.

Sometimes the simplest and cheapest option really is the best.

Interested in some details - what tape do you use? Any concern with rain water, and car wash?

[eelnoraa]

Originally Posted by alanzyy

Not sure it's just me, but I feel LCI X5 (with msport and black paint) the front has something "missing" - the black panel under the grill just seems a bit empty and awkward.

IMO the car looks really great with EU style plate on the front - that is what the front end designed for. With North American plate shape it is not as good.

I am usually one of those who don't put on front tag on cars in CA, but this time I might consider actually install a front plate (the black and gold legacy to be exact)

I am with you on this. On lighter color car, it kind of look weird. On darker color, the "mask" blend in better.

As to front plate, I don't have them in our family. Dealer will absolutely drill front bumper and put one on by law. We have to get written and signed consensus at the time of ordering to not get front bumper drilled for front plate installed

[MJBradley1967]

I'm in Illinois and bought a Sly bracket a year ago, but have "forgotten" to put it on. No issues so far, the cops may cite you if they get you for something else, but generally don't pull you over for just that.

My dealer offered to lag screw the standard front plate holder on, but I declined.

More US models of European vehicles really should have a different front bumper with a notch for a license plate so they don't have to ruin it with that mounting bracket.

[realdah]

Originally Posted by alanzyy

Not sure it's just me, but I feel LCI X5 (with msport and black paint) the front has something "missing" - the black panel under the grill just seems a bit empty and awkward.

IMO the car looks really great with EU style plate on the front - that is what the front end designed for. With North American plate shape it is not as good.

I am usually one of those who don't put on front tag on cars in CA, but this time I might consider actually install a front plate (the black and gold legacy to be exact)

Agree, i wouldn't be hesitating if we have EU style license plate.
As of now, all these LCI reviews in youtube, none of them has a US license plate hooked on, still have no idea how it looks like in real world.

[aaaaaaaaaz]

Originally Posted by realdah

Agree, i wouldn't be hesitating if we have EU style license plate.
As of now, all these LCI reviews in youtube, none of them has a US license plate hooked on, still have no idea how it looks like in real world.

Here is one example - white plate on black car w/m-sport. Honestly, not tooooo bad. Maybe a black or darker plate can look better?

https://youtube.com/shorts/s0avTk4pUHg?feature=share

[jad03060]

3M makes a bunch of different Velcro fasteners including DualLock which is available in clear so it doesn't show as much if you removed the plate https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/p/d/b40072057/

[tooloud10]

Originally Posted by alanzyy

Interested in some details - what tape do you use? Any concern with rain water, and car wash?

I literally just used some black 3M 1" Velcro that has tape on both sides. Three vertical strips of it did the trick. It's been on there for a few months with zero issues.

It does make it easy for someone to steal your license plate, but it's not obvious that it's so easy to remove and there's no registration sticker on the front plate, so I don't worry about someone taking it.

[jad03060]

Velcro works well, but if you use it a lot, it eventually wears out. The DualLock stuff should be a bit more robust.

FWIW, for the one time I picked up a new vehicle in Germany and drove it around, they used double-stick foam tape to hold the temporary German plates on. The formula wasn't a permanent adhesive, so it was fairly easy to remove from the vehicle once I got home to the states with it, but would require replacement each time you took it off. It held well at autobahn speeds, and through rain showers. I put it through a car wash before I turned it back in for shipment home, but I don't know how well it would have help up long term.

[azirafaelsish]

Installing a front license plate frame can seem daunting, but it's totally doable with the right guidance. Since you have the OEM bracket, it should come with instructions, but if not, there are plenty of tutorials online that can walk you through the process step by step. As for the foam tape, that's likely for cushioning and preventing scratches on your bumper. Just make sure to clean the area thoroughly before applying it. Also, if you ever need to navigate DMV requirements for different states, DMV List is a lifesaver. Here's the link: https://dmvlist.com/. It's helped me out a bunch in the past, so I hope it helps you too!Good luck with the installation!