Latest Steve Jobs Mystery Revealed: How He Drove Without License Plates

Yahoo! Autos ^ | Oct 27, 2011 | Justin Hyde

[Daffynition]

The multitude of mysteries revealed following the death of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs' death now includes one that puzzled car enthusiasts for years: How did Jobs get away with driving without a license plate? It was common knowledge that Jobs would park his Mercedes SL55 AMG in a handicapped spot at Apple's Cupertino, Calif., headquarters, with nothing to identify his vehicle other than the tiny barcode that usually rests behind the rear license plate. According to Walter Isaacson's new biography, Jobs wanted to avoid having a plate for privacy reasons; and yet when having a license-less silver Mercedes became a kind of trademark, Jobs kept motoring without one "because I don't." [snip] You'll have to read at the link to find the answer. ;)

[Daffynition]

Here in New England, I think the only state that doesn’t have sales tax on a car is NH ...sounds like a good deal, eh? But their property taxes are outrageous....they getcha one way or another.

Jobs’ behavior [skirting license plates, parking in handicap spaces,] seems childish to me.

Hasn’t it been reported that SJ embraced Buddhism? Didn’t he learn anything about Karma?

[Rodney Dangerfield]

Yearly reg fee depends on the age of the car.

The older the car, the less the annual reg fee.

CA is trying to get older cars off the road by making the smog requirements more stringent, and are offering up to $1,000 for cars built before 1989 or so.

No way they are getting my pristine, one previous owner, Silver 1988 BMW 325i w/Black Leather Convertible with just a few miles over 100k on it.

Best car I’ve ever owned, and I’ve owned a lot of cars.

Dependable as the Sun rising, easy to work on, parts are inexpensive and plentiful and while it’s not the fastest car on the road, it’s a real Canyon Carver and a blast to drive on Highway 1 to the Beach or to the Mountain.

[Daffynition]

I see. Here you can tell a car that is parked in the *hood.* The owner stands the plate in the back window and never ever has one mounted on the front bumper. Apparently, stealing front plates is quite common in urban cities.

I’ve seen and heard about people with *cute* front plates being pulled over....just one more reason for the cops here to harass the serfs.

[Rodney Dangerfield]

In California, they also have “Red Light” cameras, which photograph your car/front plate if you run the light.

Another $300.00 or so dollars, which is another reason the state requires a front plate.

[Sprite518]

That’s what Sam Walton did along with Riffle racks and dogs in the back of the Pick up Truck. He would even wear jean suspenders and most people did not recognize that he was the wealthiest guy in America.

Funny to think about. Guess he just did not care and did what he wanted.

[Vendome]

PL8 H8TR

LOL

[nutmeg]

I bought a new car in California last April, and the dealer applied for the tags. It took the state of CA at least 4 months to mail me the license plates. In the meantime I drove the car without license plates. After receiving the plates I didn’t put them on for another month or so. Bottom line: Nobody cares if you drive a car in CA with no license plates.

We live in CT, but my husband is from CA. We spent a lot of time in CA (mostly in the Bay Area) during the 1990s. It seemed to me that nearly every other car I saw had no license plate, or some temporary plate. I always thought it was so strange to see thousands of plate-less cars like that on the roads...

[az_gila]

In California, they also have “Red Light” cameras, which photograph your car/front plate if you run the light.

Another $300.00 or so dollars, which is another reason the state requires a front plate.

---

Arizona does that too... but needs an extra camera to take a picture of the rear of your car at the same time.

We have no front license plates...

[newzjunkey]

I don’t know Cali laws.

And yet you started this thread saying he wasn't paying property tax and was thus a cheap bastard.

[Daffynition]

It was in response to the comment: >>The leasing company would have paid the taxes....<<

*That* was why I posted ** I don’t know Cali laws. In my state that is not the case.** In my state, the taxes are due at signing.

Do try to keep up. ;)

FWIW, Dan Cochran, who worked at Apple, noted that one day someone converted the handicapped “wheelchair” graphic into the Mercedes logo.

“I thought it was hilarious but as I recall Steve didn’t find it particularly funny at all,” he notes.

Quipped former Apple executive, Jean-Louis Gassee, when he saw Jobs park in a restricted spot: “I never realized those spaces were for the morally handicapped…”

[Fresh Wind]

I’m surprised the Inventor Of The Internet and Apple board memeber iGore didn’t convince Jobs to drive an electric microcar.

[Daffynition]

Remember when iGore Was Trapped in His Limo a Blizzard En Route to Climate Fundraiser?

[sbMKE]

Bingo - Jobs didn’t want an ugly “logo” on the car, so he left the plates off. It’s the most logical explanation.

A little bit of OCD can go a long way.

[DeFault User]

I recall after the stock market crashed in ‘87 and WalMart stock lost 100s of millions in value, one financial reporter asked Sam Walton about how upset he was with the turn of events. His reply was to the effect, “Well, I didn’t lose any stores, any inventory or any employees. It’s all here. It doesn’t make any difference to me. It doesn’t really matter.” Of course a few months later, it didn’t matter to the shareholders either, at least to the ones who didn’t sell.