Vanity Plates: What State Has The Vainest Drivers?

A state-by-state survey of the popularity of vanity license plates has found that car and truck owners in Virginia are the vainest of them all.

Not far behind are New Hampshire, Illinois, Nevada and Montana.

Out of the 9.3 million personalized plates on the roads of America, about one in 10 are in Virginia, according to rankings provided to The Associated Press by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators.

That's 16 percent of the plates issued by Virginia. New Hampshire came in second with nearly 14 percent. Illinois had about 13.4 percent, but that amounted to nearly 1.3 million plates, the most of any state.

"If you've got 9.3 million people across the U.S. sporting vanity plates, you've got a cultural phenomenon," AAMVA spokesman Jason King said.

Texas had the fewest, with only about a half percent of drivers personalizing their plates.

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Whelan - 11/13/2007 2:32:38 PM

+1 Boost

One of the reasons VA is a hotspot for vanities is the cost. It is like only an additional $15 to get a personalized plate in that state. Not to mention that the state pays like 8% of your car tax.

My fiance had a 2000 VW Cabrio GLX there and paid a total of $50 for the year in car tax!!! She moved back to CT and it suddenly became $300.

But back to the plates, in CT the cost for a vanity plate is somewhere in the neighborhood of almost $200 I think. So most people pass. I'm sure if the cost was equivalent to VA, more people would have them, heck I know I would.

And on a side note, people from VA must drive the way they do so everyone can read their plates. Sitting 5 minutes at a stop light is ridiculous, and the left lane is for passing, not doing the same speed as everyone else. One of the worst states I've ever driven in, "Don't Block the Box", that's the dumbest rule I've ever heard of.

rok_altima - 11/13/2007 4:16:35 PM

0 Boost

Most things in CT are designed with the idea of building revenue, not administrative costs. I think on top of that the state requires an extra yearly fee to keep the vanity plate. And yes, car taxes can be outrageous if you live in a town with a high tax rate.

gsh23 - 11/13/2007 2:55:07 PM

-1 Boost

50 mph speed limit on highways in VA too.

Agent009 - 11/13/2007 4:25:25 PM

0 Boost

Geez stuck in the stone age? 80 mph in some parts of the Lone Star State...

Audiphile - 11/13/2007 5:20:57 PM

+2 Boost

As a native Virginian, I beg to differ. We have a 65-mph speed limit on the Interstate Highways in rural and outlying-suburban areas.

S4cabriofoxone - 11/13/2007 6:46:56 PM

0 Boost

Illinois, represent...

S4cabriofoxone - 11/13/2007 6:47:17 PM

+1 Boost

^Although I'm happy to say that I DON'T have a vanity plate.