# What car license plates banned in CA? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 17, 2003, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734 "2003-08-17T06:19:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![djbdjb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@djbdjb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/djbdjb)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/1 "2003-08-17T06:19:24Z")
California is currently using a format (for cars) that is 4XYZ123 or maybe they are up to 5,6 as first digit. I seem to remember a news story a few years ago about the use of the letters “GAY” in place of the XYZ. I believe they are not used in CA. I also bet these combinations are not used ASS, CUM, FAG, POO, etc. I’ve checked the CA DMV site a little, and they have a disclaimer about reserving the right to ban personalized plates deemed not in good taste, but don’t describe which of the 17576 3-letter combinations they don’t use. Can we put together a list for CA or some other state? ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/2 "2003-08-17T07:42:47Z")
Always a favorite: > **[The ASSORGY Story](http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/florida/assorgy-story)** > > Over the last year, TSG has spent a significant amount of time examining the kooky, quirky, and often salacious number and letter combinations that appear on automobile license plates nationwide. We'v ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/3 "2003-08-17T10:40:28Z")
IIRC, there’s a very small State agency which reviews all applications for “vanity” plates and then approves or disapproves the application. AFAIK, there’s no ban on the random 3-letter words which may appear in the regular license plates. FTR: vanity plates are called personalized plates & the regular plates are referred to as sequential plates. [Application for personalized plates](http://www.dmv.ca.gov/forms/reg/reg17.pdf) (a freaking pdf file) presumably has the name and address of the agency concerned. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/4 "2003-08-17T17:56:22Z")
I applied for the plate TIHZTA3 once (look at it in the mirror.) It was denied, but I don’t know if it was specifically banned, or if somebody else already owned it. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/5 "2003-08-17T19:47:13Z")
Your local registration agency has already heard about the “Dude, look at it in the mirror!” trick. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/6 "2003-08-17T19:58:12Z")
The CA DMV used to have a nifty site where you could enter the desired letter/number sequence and see if it’s available. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/7 "2003-08-17T22:12:24Z")
“17576 3-letter combinations they don’t use” I have an idea. Why don’t you go through all 17,576 combos with them on the phone & ask which ones are nono? I remember that site Monty. Might still be around. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/8 "2003-08-17T22:23:23Z")
I’m almost positive it’s gone, handy, because I couldn’t fine it. When it was up & running, I remember that a few friends and I killed off a good two hours or so looking up combinations we wanted to use. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2003, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/9 "2003-08-17T22:25:48Z")
er…find it. ---
**Author:** ![BobbySuezQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@BobbySuezQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobbySuezQ)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/10 "2003-08-18T01:16:22Z")
verification of a combination is now part of the online application process. I don’t recall a ban on letter combinations in the sequential plates. Though I did get rejected on a personalized plate application for a combination that was “deemed vulgar.” ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/11 "2003-08-18T14:26:28Z")
You can try: [https://vrir.dmv.ca.gov/ipp/ippMain.jsp](https://vrir.dmv.ca.gov/ipp/ippMain.jsp) They have info on pretty much what you can use & you can make your own plate online & see how it looks. ---
**Author:** ![djbdjb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@djbdjb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/djbdjb)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/12 "2003-08-18T22:26:14Z")
No, this won’t work. If I want to confirm as I remember from a long-ago tv news story, that the 3 letter combo GAY is not used, I cant ask for 5GAY123, because if it is not allowed, I do not know if it is for the reason that it is an illegal combination, or already used. I suspect writing the DMV is the way to proceed, but it will have to wait, for me. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/13 "2003-08-18T22:54:29Z")
There have been some controversies over plates in the past. The earliest I remember was a swimmer who wanted “stroker” on his plate but was turned down because of the sexual connotation. Just recently, a couple were forced to give up their plates “rapnjap” because it might offend Asian karaoke enthusiasts (his initials were RAP, hers were JAP). When I got my personalized plates, I had to explain what I meant to the minimum-wage DMV clerk before she would even submit the request. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/14 "2003-08-18T23:19:09Z")
A guy who used to work at my company had a slammed minitruck with the Arizona plate “FQN LOW” which made me wonder who was asleep at the switch when that one got approved. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/15 "2003-08-18T23:36:18Z")
In New York, PRO NRA was initially refused because it was “Obscene, Lewd, Lascivious, and Derogatory to a particular ethnic group or patently offensive.” [http://volokh.com/2003\_08\_17\_volokh\_archive.html#106099196178406020](http://volokh.com/2003_08_17_volokh_archive.html#106099196178406020) ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2003, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/16 "2003-08-18T23:37:39Z")
If you follow the links through the smoking gun, you eventually get to a page listing [all of Florida’s banned plates](http://www.thesmokinggun.com/blueplate/fladmv1.html). A lot of the list is ham radio callsigns starting with AA and KC . Anyone know **why** they would be prohibited? ---
**Author:** ![Extraneous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/0ea827/32.png) [@Extraneous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Extraneous)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2003, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-car-license-plates-banned-in-ca/195734/17 "2003-08-19T00:43:46Z")
According to local legend, one fellow (who, at the time was driving a Bentley) had plates reading RCHPHKR. Following a reversal of fortune, he then applied for PORPHKR - that time, DMV caught it. Source: Herb Caen, SF Chronicle, sometime before he died.