Good Info Badali on the 123 part. I'm a purist at heart, but when I know the part will not be seen, I enjoy saving some $$$$ and the challenge of making a part work, sometimes better than the correct factory part. This was the case here. I did a little more research on this project today since I can not take any pictures of the bracket I modified to work......and I'm glad I did. Apparently the junkyard I got the donor plate from, had the model year marked incorrectly. Take a look at the attached picture of a 1997 Saab. The front license plate bracket on this car is the same one I used. A little research on the web revealed that this bracket was used on the 1994-1998 Saabs.
If you look closely, you will see an indented area towards the bottom of the plate. I used some masking tape to mark a line that allowed me to cut off the area below the indented section. I ended up with a plate that was Apprx. 15.5" long X 3.5" high if I remember correctly. This is a very hefty solid plate. The beauty of this particular plate is how easy it was to modify. There is a raised boss on each side that has 2 vertical holes drilled into it. A new hole drilled between the existing holes lines up perfectly with the horizontal slots already on our Pagoda bumpers.
Next step was to mount the bracket to the bumper. I used 2- 1/4" Dia. Stainless steel screws, ( apprx. 1.5" long) 2 Stainless steel washers, 2 rubber spacers, and 2 stainless steel nylon locking nuts to secure this bracket to the bumper. Last step was to drill this plate to match the mounting holes on the German License plate. 2 Nylon screws with nuts were used to attach the License plate to the bracket. I did a few trial fitings off of the car to avoid any damage.
Total cost for eveything was less than $10.00. Plus I had some fun doing it!
Merry Christmas everyone, If I can assist further in any way, do not hesitate to ask.
RB6667
