Any specific instructions on how to drill the holes in my 2010 Prius for the front plate? The only thing I wanna know is what's under the bumper so I don't mess it up. I am also going to a toyota dealer tomorrow for safety inspection so I guess I can ask them to do it for me. What do you guys think?
The dealer could do it for you, but you'd likely take better care in getting it perfectly straight. There's mostly styrofoam behind the 'bumper', so don't worry about drilling into it. The plastic is soft enough that you can drive the screws without drilling a pilot hole, but it's easier to find the right spot if you do. The plate holder might be in the trunk, if you haven't already found it. If not, the dealer should give you one.
I bet the plate holder is in the bottom trunk, near the compact spare tire. Has the screws, the plate holder enclosed in a clear plastic cover. Mine was over to the side in one of the cubby holes.
Get a couple of # 8 or #10 - 3/4 inch or so Stainless Steel Panhead screws, if they are not all ready incuded with the plate mount, chuck up a 1/8 inch bit, drill a pilot hole into the plastic until it just pops thru, screw it in. That's all the dealer did for me. Hopefully you can mount yours straighter than my dealer, or whoever, did to my car!!! I wish they would have just let me do it, instead of me redoing it!!!
Thanks everyone. Yeah i have the whole set with screws and the car came with markers which indicate where to drill so it shouldnt be too complicated
if you dont want to drill holes in your bumper I make a Lic plate bracket that will prob work.. Its for the Scion but the Prius has the same type of grill. www.eight08customs.com
my problem is the opposite of yours: plugging the existing holes; relocated my plate using a tilting bracket from autozone for $9 and some zip ties... seen your work on the scion forums... would be interesting to have other stuff like grille garnishments for the prius as well
Is it really necessary to drill the two holes in the bumper cover? As i see it, the mounting bracket fits is screwed onto the dimples in the bumper using the tapping screws provided by Toyota. And it appears the license plate can be screwed onto the mounting bracket in the threaded slots. So, in essence the plate is attached to the bracket, which is attached to the bumper. Besides a more snug and tight fit, cannot see why the license plate needs to be screwed all the way into the bumper. any thoughts would help as it's time for me to fit my plates.
