Ford Focus ST Front License Plate Bracket

thingiverse

When I purchased my 2017 Ford Focus ST the dealer had not mounted the front license plate bracket. After a quick Google search revealed my state of NJ required a front license plate, I snapped the stock front bracket into the appropriate holes but did not drill any holes or used any screws to secure the bracket to the body of the car. I stood back and cringed at how the center mounted plate diminished the aggressive look of my new car. Later that day I drove about 50 miles and when I got home the stock bracket along with my license plate was gone! After waiting in line at the DMV and paying $7 for new plates, and finding no alternative brackets online, I decided to try and design my own bracket that could be fully secured, WITHOUT drilling holes in the bumper and did not take away from the look of the car. This 3D printed design does exactly that and can be installed without removing the grill. UPDATE 10/30/17 Due to the lack of competenent parallel parkers in my community my mount has been broken three times. All three times were due to drivers hitting my car while they were parking theirs, the mount has never failed while driving or for any other reason other than a direct impact from another vehicle. All three times it was the connecting rod that snapped, no other parts were damaged and no marks were left on the car. With this in mind I HIGHLY suggest creating a zip tie anchor. Furthermore I now keep a pair of cutters I can use to clip the zip tie in my glove box so if I ever do find the plate dangling I can take the plate + holder off until I can repair the mount. You can even go a step furthur and keep spare connecting rods and an alan key in your car to do a field repair. I have thought about redesigning the mount to increase strength and rigidity, but I actually found these incidents enlightening as the connecting rod served as a 'break-away' part and by failing can actually prevent damage to the car. If the connecting rod was stronger, it is conceivable these impacts would have put more stress on the gril and increased the likelyhood of damaging the grill or body of the car.