Letter to the DMV
Cory James Shipley-Brown
Department of Motor Vehicles
P.O. Box 942869
Sacramento, CA 94269
Dear Mr. Shipley-Brown,
I recently requested a California Environmental License Plate with the configuration HY4LIFE. The configuration was rejected on the grounds that it may be considered offensive. I am writing to appeal this decision and ask that you grant this configuration.
The license plate in question is for a 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid car. The back of the car, shown in the enclosed photo, clearly displays the “Hybrid” logo. Most drivers will see the license plate from behind, where this logo is displayed; it is unlikely that anyone could miss the connection between “HY” and “Hybrid.”
“HY4LIFE” is an indicator of my intention to drive hybrid or similarly low-emissions, alternate-fuel vehicles for the rest of my life. These cars are better for the environment and reduce the U.S. dependence on foreign oil sources. What better car to put a California environmental plate on?
I realize that on another car, this plate could be considered questionable, which is why I felt I should describe the car it is to be used on. Just as a license plate with “69” can only be assigned to a car made in 1969, I felt the context for this configuration was important in deciding whether it is appropriate or not.
Please reconsider your decision to turn down this license plate configuration.
Sincerely,
Stephanie Cottrell Bryant
welshmaidn wrote:
You’ve stated your case quite clearly, hope you get the plate.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 3:18 am | Permalink
moonfire77 wrote:
Okay I forgot it was a hybrid car…that’s really a neat idea. i think you communicated it well here.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 3:27 am | Permalink
mortaine wrote:
Thanks. I hope Mr. Shipley-Brown just forgot, too.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 3:34 am | Permalink
aajwind wrote:
Just as a license plate with “69” can only be assigned to a car made in 1969 [...]
Ha! I didn’t know that.
I think you stated your case nicely; well done
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 3:53 am | Permalink
ciannait wrote:
It’s a good letter - I hope it doesn’t get round-filed.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 4:41 am | Permalink
chipb0i wrote:
I think you state your point in a nice, professional manner, and he would be an idiot if he refuses to give you that plate.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 5:57 am | Permalink
layer wrote:
well put. i was totally expecting to have my liscence plate refused. luckily they read my explanation and let it slip through.
hope they reconsider.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 6:18 am | Permalink
darkknightradic wrote:
Definitly a sender, although I don’t think I could have wrote something so level headed. I really don’t see how HY4LIFE could be seen as offensive (unless you are some kind of jack arse conservative who see’s everything as a “secret drug message to our youths!”/sarcasm).
I actually saw a bus today with the following phrase painted on it’s side (I won’t bother describing the bus as I think everyone would laugh their arses off):
“We’re in a hurry to save you from hell!”
I did not embellish at all. I wish I had a camera. I would have clicked a shot of the bus.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 8:53 am | Permalink
jnala wrote:
I’m not too optimistic about your chances of success, but I think you stated your argument very well, and maximized what chance you do have.
Maybe I’m just slow on the uptake, but my only reaction to that plate has been “huh?”, even knowing you just got a hybrid, until I read this post which explained it. “HY” = “high” is an obvious and immediate association, while “HY” = “hybrid” is an abbreviation I’ve never seen before. If I saw it on someone’s car on the road, I would have assumed the intended meaning was either that the driver is high on life (in the cheesy anti-drug-slogan sense) or intends to get high for the rest of their life (in the stoner sense). Not that I think either is *offensive*, of course…
My next car will be a hybrid, but I sincerely hope I’ll be driving something with zero emissions within fifteen years, or at least well before the end of my life.
Driving almost entirely short distances within a densely populated tech-savvy well-to-do area, I ought to be an ideal candidate for relatively early adoption of pure-electric or other ZEV technology.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 9:18 am | Permalink
mortaine wrote:
Yeah– I was actually hoping for a blend of “high on life” (since I’ve never taken an illegal drug in my life), and the hybrid link, which is much more obvious when you see the plate on the back of the car, with the “Hybrid” logo next to it. It’d be pretty hard to miss– kind of like the ones that say “50MPG” or “LOW GAS” or whatever– they make more sense in context.
I’m hoping that Mr. Shipley-Brown will understand, at any rate.
Need to take a picture of the back of the car now, though, so I can make a printout to send with the letter.
Posted on 29-Aug-03 at 10:01 am | Permalink
shaddai wrote:
How funny… I didn’t understand why they could have rejected your plate until I read the above comments… HY != high. And besides, what kind of a drug dealer would drive around in a hybrid car?
Seriously, you’ve stated your case grand.
Stupid DMV. Don’t Decapitate My Vehicle.
Posted on 30-Aug-03 at 11:15 am | Permalink