Custom number plates now available for your special Japanese car

Sunday, 25 February 2024

The race is on to snap up custom Japanese-style numberplates, with the first of the plates available from today.

The highly sought after custom, set series and special edition plates will be launched at the annual All Japan Day in Glenelg on Sunday, 25 February 2024.

Custom plates allow owners to choose their own combination of up to six characters and are available in black, blue, green or maroon writing on a white background, for an annual fee of $235.

A once-off $259 fee will buy a set series plate, which will be issued in sequence starting from 00AAA. These will be available in the traditional green writing on white background to reflect the number plates issued in Japan.

Additionally, 100 special edition plates ranging from 00JDM-99JDM will be produced and available through a series of auctions.

The first of the special edition plates to be auctioned will be numbers 7, 11, 21, 33, 48, 54, 60, 74, 82 and 98, with some of the most sought-after numbers expected to fetch thousands of dollars.

The plates are shorter in length than traditional South Australian plates. 

Some imported Japanese cars feature bumpers designed for smaller number plates, so the Japanese-style numberplate is narrower and taller, eliminating the need for owners to modify their bumper or bend their plate to fit.

There are more than 800,000 registered Japanese-made vehicles in South Australia.

The addition of the Japanese-style plates expands the State Government’s selection of special number plates, which already includes the popular Euro, numeric and premium plates and last year’s release of Koala State plates – designed specially to support South Australian wildlife.

To buy a Japanese-style plate or register for the special edition plate auction visit ezyplates.sa.gov.au.