W. Yoder Auction
Dealer license plates were first issued in 1905, the same time that passenger license plates were issued.
Dealer license plates had the same colors as passenger plates until 1943. They had a solid star at the left to tell that it was a dealer plate.
It is IMPORTANT to note that the tables are the lows and highs of each dealer series, not how many of each variation there is. It is meant to say the highest/lowest suffixes and the highest/lowest dealers. If my observations are correct each dealer gets a unique dealer number and is reissued the same number as long as the dealership is in business; after that, I'm not sure what happens to the number. There are two likely things: the number gets recycled when a new dealer comes up, or the number just isn't used.
Three bases had variations: 1987 (border/no border), 1991 (narrow/wide dies), and 1997 (narrow/wide prefix). Since the numbers are not issued in order, the variations are not listed.
| 1905 | 372-W |
|---|---|
| 1911 | |
| 1912 | 426W |
| 1913 | 873W |
| 1914 | 502W |
| 15 | 79 |
| 16 | 79 |
| 17 | 1914 |
| 18 | 79 |
| 19 | 79 |
In 1920, dealer plates gained letter codes.
| Number of dealers |
Highest letter |
|
|---|---|---|
| 20 | 1 79 |
A |
| 21 | 1 79 |
A |
| 22 | 1 79 |
A |
| 23 | 1 79 |
A |
| 24 | 1 79 |
A W |
| 25 | 1 79 |
A W |
| 26 | 1 79 |
A W |
| 27 | 1 192 |
A W |
| 28 | 1 192 |
A W |
| 29 | 1 2290 |
A W |
| 30 | 1 192 |
A |
| 31 | 1 192 |
A |
In 1932, dealer license plates were made larger, just like passenger plates. This was also the first year that double-letter plates were confirmed to exist, and dealer plates shared the same color cycles as passenger plates until 1943.
| Number of dealers |
Highest letter |
|
|---|---|---|
| 32 | 1 79 |
A AE |
| 33 | 1 79 |
A |
| 34 | 1 79 |
A |
| 35 | 1 79 |
A |
| 36 | 1 79 |
A |
| 37 | 1 79 |
A |
| 38 | 1 79 |
A |
| 39 | 1 79 |
A |
| 40 | 1 79 |
A C |
| 41 | 1 79 |
A C |
| 42 | 1 79 |
A C |
In 1943, dealer license plate color cycles changed from passenger license plate color cycles. At first, they just had diffrent colored tabs. After that, though, dealer plates never resembled passenger plates again.
| 1944 | 1 79 |
A |
|---|---|---|
| 1946 | 1 79 |
A |
| 1947 | 1 79 |
A |
| 1948 | 1 79 |
A |
| 1949 | 1 79 |
A |
| 1950 | 1 79 |
A |
| 1951 | 1 79 |
A |
| 1952 | 1 79 |
A |
| 53 | 1 79 |
A |
| 54 | 1 79 |
A |
| 55 | ||
| 56 | ||
| 57 | ||
| 58 | ||
| 59 | ||
| 60 | ||
| 61 | ||
| 62 | ||
| 63 | ||
| 64 | ||
| 65 | ||
| 66 | ||
| 67 | ||
| 68 | ||
| 69 | ||
| 70 | ||
| 71 | ||
| 72 | ||
| 73 | ||
| 74 | ||
| 75 | ||
| 76 | ||
| 77 | ||
| 78 |
In 1979, the first multiyear base was issued. Through 1988, bases were replaced every other year. From 1985 to 1991, Apportioned license plates followed Dealer plate colors, but not sticker colors.
A few bases' blanks were used for passenger plates, such as 1987 bases and 1989 bases.
| Base | Confirmed Numbers |
Confirmed Suffixes |
Expected Numbers |
Expected Suffixes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 79 | 1 3000 |
A Z |
||
| 81 | 1 3000 |
A Z |
||
| 83 | 1 3000 |
A Z |
||
| 85 | 1 3000 |
A Z |
||
| 87 | 1 3000 |
A Z |
||
| 89 | 1 3000 |
A Z |
In 1991, a new base was introduced, and it was the first base to stagger registrations. It was used until 1996. As far as I'm concerned (based on 1993 sticker styles and bi-yearly sticker stacks), a plate would be revalidated every 2 years; 1996 plates would have been issued in 1994, for example. No narrow die plates have been confirmed (yet), but Distributor AND Transporter plates both have had narrow dies on them, so as far as I'm concerned, they likely exist.
Leftover bases went to about 26,000 passenger plates, ranging from at least MHZ-318 to MJP-101. What doesn't make sense, though, is why there are narrow die plates for other types used the same range of time, yet the leftover blanks are used on wide die plates. Some things are mysteries...
| Base | Confirmed Numbers |
Confirmed Suffixes |
Expected Numbers |
Expected Suffixes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 91 | 207 3283 |
B AE |
1 3500 |
A CZ |
In 1997, new plates were issued. They were the first (and only) reflective dealer plates. Plates were revalidated until 2013. These plates were the first to use the MV prefix, standing for "Motor Vehicle Dealer". The prefix is still used to this day.
| Base | Confirmed Numbers |
Confirmed Suffixes |
Expected Numbers |
Expected Suffixes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 97 | 14 3785 |
A BF |
1 4000 |
A CZ |
In 2011, bare metal plates were issued. Since then, Dealer plates haven't had validation stickers. They didn't use suffix letters most of the time, so there is probably about 50 plates with the same number floating around some dealership. Until 2018, some plates would have suffix stickers, but most would have no suffix.
| Base | Confirmed Numbers |
Confirmed Suffixes |
Expected Numbers |
Expected Suffixes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 8 363 |
DB |
1 1000 |
A GZ |
| 2018 | 1001 1500 |
A AZ |
Mobile Home Dealer plates are identical to Dealer plates, except for the constant "MH" prefix before the suffix.
| Base | Confirmed Numbers |
Confirmed Suffixes |
Expected Numbers |
Expected Suffixes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 58 | 44 |
MHB |
1 99 |
MHA MHG |
| 59 | ||||
| 60 | ||||
| 61 | ||||
| 62 | ||||
| 63 | ||||
| 64 | ||||
| 65 | ||||
| 66 | ||||
| 67 | ||||
| 68 | ||||
| 69 | ||||
| 70 | ||||
| 71 | ||||
| 72 | ||||
| 73 | ||||
| 74 | ||||
| 75 | ||||
| 76 | ||||
| 77 | ||||
| 78 | ||||
| 79 | ||||
| 81 | ||||
| 83 | ||||
| 85 |
Motorcycle Dealer license plates have been issued since at least 1948. They follow Dealer license plate colors and replacement cycles.
| 48 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
"" by Ross Day, From Flickr,
CC BY-NC-SA 2.0(original)
Distributor plates are issued to entities that transport vehicles between manufacturers and dealers. Newer plates use numbers in the 7000 series.
Motorcycle Distrubutor is probably the rarest motorcycle dealer plate type.
Finance Company plates are used for finance companies moving/demonstrating repossessed vehicles. Numbers as far back as 1968 have used numbers in the 5000 series.
Manufacturer plates are used for manufacturers demonstrating and testing vehicles. For a little while, plates used numbers in the 6000 series, but they now use just numbers.
Wisconsin is the only state that currently issues Motorcycle Manufacturer license plates... such as Harley-Davidson.
Originally captioned as In Transit plates, Transporter plates are used for vehicles transported between dealers, distributors, and manufacturers. According to the DOT guide, transporter plates are for vehicles transported "under their own power" or "in tow on their own wheels."
