Parking permit on bumper?

I live in San Francisco and in order to park in a spot for more than a hour at a time in my neighborhood, I need to have a parking permit. The permit requires you to apply it to the "Left of rear bumper so that decal is visible from rear of vehicle". I hate the look of the permit on the bumper and will probably want to remove it as soon as I can (if I move out of the city or sell the car).

Has anyone put such a permit on their bumper? Is it easy to remove and most importantly, does it affect the paint/finish underneath when you remove it?

(my other option is to put it in the rear windscreen and risk getting a ticket for not placing it in the right place)


TIA

Originally Posted by hobbes77

I live in San Francisco and in order to park in a spot for more than a hour at a time in my neighborhood, I need to have a parking permit. The permit requires you to apply it to the "Left of rear bumper so that decal is visible from rear of vehicle". I hate the look of the permit on the bumper and will probably want to remove it as soon as I can (if I move out of the city or sell the car).

Has anyone put such a permit on their bumper? Is it easy to remove and most importantly, does it affect the paint/finish underneath when you remove it?

(my other option is to put it in the rear windscreen and risk getting a ticket for not placing it in the right place)


TIA

Go to a clear film bra install shop, and have them place a small square on the bumper where the sticker will go. Then, apply the sticker to the film. This will protect your paint.

I doubt they will even charge you more than a few dollars.

If it is for a short time, you should be OK with applying it directly to the bumper (although the clear shield idea cited above may be worth it). When it comes time to remove, wash the area, use a hair dryer or heat gun to gently heat the sticker to relax the adhesive and peel off. Sometimes, waxed dental floss may help in "sawing" the sticker from the adhesive. Clean the area with adhesive remover and protect with wax or equivalent.

However, over long periods, you may notice a difference as your car's clear or color coat oxidizes. On a vertical surface, it should be minimal. The clear shield will not help here.

I've heard people successfully petitioning local agencies to allow window stickers vice bumper stickers. However, it can be a lengthy endeavour. You may want to check to see if alternative permits exist.

Thanks for the advice guys.

I like the clear bra idea, and if I can find a shop in the bay area that will do it inexpensively, I will go for it. In the meantime, I have taped it to the rear windscreen and am keeping my fingers crossed.

Otherwise I will probably have to put it on the bumper itself and use the techniques recomended by Brian to remove it.

Whom looks for those stickers? The cops?

Unless you have a Neighborhood Nazi that watches everyone and their rule breaking, I wouldn't worry too much about the location of the sticker.

Its not the cops (SFPD in this case) that look for it. Not sure what they are called - but its the parking police ("Meter maids" is the old non-PC term I guess) who look for this parking permit.

The one who patrols my area is somewhat of a stickler. The last time around, I was ran up to my car when she was writing the ticket. I pleaded my case, but she said "too late", handed me the ticket and then wished me "Merry Christmas"