Here’s a confession: I hate most vanity plates. They’re usually dumb, trite, or going for an all-too-obvious joke, like Corvette plates touting the superiority of V8s over forced induction. Yet, my most recent two cars have each had vanity plates: My FR-S was K4NSE1, as in kansei dorifto, and my NB Miata was L4TT3. (Because it looks like a bigger Suzuki Cappuccino? Get it? A latte is a larger drink? I’m a hit at parties.)
The key to a good vanity plate, in my mind, is that you have to be a little bit embarrassed to explain it to a stranger. With my F800GS, though, I’m truly stuck. Anything about adventure or Starbucks would be far too easy, and any more complicated riff on those concepts is tough to fit into a mere six characters. I need your help: What dumb vanity plate should I get?
I’ve considered going the Evo Ben route and just using my bike’s name — Sophie, after Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury’s most adorable little war criminal — as the plate. SOPH13 is available, but it’s also a little boring. My name’s not Sophie, the bike’s is, and eventually I’d get tired of explaining that.
Erin and Bradley chimed in with some ideas in Slack, primarily around the idea of an even-worse-than-Starbucks coffee brand, which fits with my 800GS sitting lower on the Motorrad totem pole than the vaunted boxer bikes. Is that too expected, though? Too easy a joke?
UWU and OWO, two prime candidates, are both tragically taken. J3NNY is available, but my old BMW is no new Kawasaki all yellow and black. I just can’t pick the best option, so I’m asking for your help. Give me your best license plate ideas, and maybe one of your suggestions will end up on my own motorcycle.