If you own a car, you need a license plate—no exceptions. Most plates are nothing more than random combinations of numbers and letters. But for those willing to spend extra, vanity plates offer the chance to add a personal touch. Of course, every state has its own rules, with two big ones being: no duplicates and no offensive language. Naturally, this only encourages some drivers to get a little… creative.
Back in 2016, one California vanity plate went viral for its clever design. At first glance, it looked ordinary: “3JOH22A.” But in a rearview mirror, the letters spelled out something very different: “AHOLE.”** People online praised the cheeky ingenuity, joking about how awkward it must’ve been for cops to radio it in: “Dispatch, I’ve got a Toyota Tacoma, plate reads ‘a**hole’ backward… can you run that for me?”
And that wasn’t the only time vanity plates stirred up laughs. A Twitter bot once resurfaced hundreds of rejected DMV applications from 2015–2016, and the reasons for denial were sometimes funnier than the plates themselves.
One Californian applied for “2 DEEZ,” which the DMV rejected for being “AS IN THE NUTS.” Another request was an acronym: “Information Technologist for the Sacramento Chapter of the California Automatic Collectors Association”—shortened to ITSCACA. The DMV’s ruling? “ITS CACA… POOP.”
Not every edgy request was denied, though. One driver applied for “BLOWN” to describe his rebuilt ’54 Ford with a supercharged motor. While the DMV admitted it might carry sexual connotations, they ultimately approved it—since the car did have a blower.