Nevada

Nevada 1969 passenger issue. These plates were first issued in 1969 and are still valid today. The 1969 issue marked the last general plate reissue in Nevada before 2001. The first one-to-three alpha of a Nevada plate of this era indicates the county of issue. "CA" would indicate Clark county. All white-on-blue series Nevada plates are debossed rather than embossed.

Nevada 1970 passenger issue (1969 base). Continuation of the 1969 baseplate. Staggered monthly registration was introduced in Nevada starting in 1969. Existing registrations were not staggered, so most registrants received DEC 70 stickers for their '69 plates. New registrants between July and December, 1969, however, received stickers expiring 12 months later. This was such a plate, issued in November, 1969. These stickers were a little too wide for the available space on the plate and ended up overlapping the state name in some cases. This plate was also issued in Clark county, indicated by the "CF" prefix.

Nevada 1974 passenger issue. This undated "NEV" baseplate was introduced in 1970 and was the first issue since 1916 to carry an abbreviated state name. This is a passenger issue from Washoe county, which was allocated plates in the Wxx series.

Nevada 1976 passenger issue. Around 1975, the state name on the plates was lengthened back out to "Nevada". This plate was another Clark county plate, as were all plates starting with "C" during this era.

Nevada 1984 passenger issue. Around 1982, Nevada began issuing these plates with a more centered state name and reversed serial (starting at 100ABA). These plates were issued in order and carried no county coding. Some plates of this type carried county stickers (see next).

Nevada 1984 passenger issue. Same series as above. See, I told you some of them have county stickers. Of course, this one is from Clark county as well.

Nevada 1984 passenger issue. This is a rare variety issued near the end of the blue Nevada bases. This variety had a centered state name at the top and no sticker navel at all. These were issued in the AAx series of plates, which was issued out of sequence at the end of the plate's run in 1984. Not all the AAx plates were issued in this format, however (Jeff Ellis reports known plates like this in the AAA, AAB and AAN series, but also a known AAF plate in the previous format with the offset state name and sticker naval). This makes it difficult to narrow down exactly how many of these were made/issued.

Nevada 1985 passenger issue. This Mountain Goat graphic plate was first issued in 1984, picking up at where the previous series had left off number-wise (at 001-BAA, appropriately enough). The first issue of this plate had the state name and slogan in a lighter shade of blue and had the Ram standing to the right of the bolt hole and immediately left of "Nevada". This plate shared ALPCA's Plate of the Year award in 1985 with North Dakota.

Nevada 1986 passenger issue. A slight revision to this baseplate, in the early BGx series the serial was spaced wider on the plate and painted with a lighter blue paint. These plates otherwise used the same background sheeting as the earlier ones, with the light blue state name/slogan and the ram to the right of the bolthole.

Nevada 1986 passenger issue. Starting in the BKU series of plates, the plate was tweaked again, retaining the lighter blue paint and wider spacing for the serial from the last plate, but changing the background image slightly. The state name and slogan were changed to a darker blue color, and the ram in the graphic was moved to the left of the bolthole (standing on the "6" in this case).

Nevada 1987 passenger issue. By the BNx series, the state reverted to the darker blue paint for the serial, leaving the background the same as on the last revision of the plate. This variation was issued through the end of 2000, when it was replaced by a new baseplate.

Nevada 2002 passenger issue. This new graphic issue was introduced in January, 2001 and replaced all previous "Silver State" baseplates by the end of that year. Pre-1984 blue plates, however, are still valid and are in fact eligible to be re-manufactured, a move to keep motorists with older, "classic" Nevada plates happy. The new design features a blue serial on a blue background, with a mountainline and yellow-orange sky at the top. These plates began at number 001-MAA, although a number of these plates were remanufactured with numbers from the previous base.

Nevada 2007 passenger issue. Starting in late 2006 in the TUx series, Nevada joined the ranks of states using 3M's digital flat plate technology. These flat plates are unique in that they are the first that I'm aware of to continue to have an embossed sticker well. Garden variety flat plate otherwise, right down to the ugly generic 3M typeface. Not much else to say, they look awful.

Nevada 2015 passenger issue. Starting in 2009, Nevada introduced a program where some dealers could process registrations directly for buyers who chose not to transfer their previous plates. For some reason, a special series was introduced for these registrations, starting with the ZAA suffix. These plates are otherwise identical to the passenger series of the time.

Nevada 2014 and 2016 passenger issues. Upon reaching the end of the YZZ series in 2013 (the Z series has been in use since 2009, reportedly for dealer-processed registrations, but the standard series technically ended at 999-YZZ), Nevada extended the 123-ABC format plates briefly, first using the remainder of the Lxx series originally skipped at the end of the sheep base. After LZZ, plates were issued in the remainder of the Axx series, previously skipped at the end of the blue bases in 1984. This bought the state a couple years before running out of serials and needing a new format.

Nevada 2016 passenger issue. After the last of the 123-ABC format plates was exhausted at the end of the AZZ series, the state introduced a new format, 12A-345. These plates were initially continued as 3M flat plates, although were quickly revised (see next.)

Nevada 2016 passenger issue. Beginning in 2015 the state reverted back to an embossed plate. This occurred somewhere in the B series of the new format, adding both embossed characters and an embossed state-shaped divider to the plate design. Plates are supposedly produced using new embossing equipment in-state, although it looks as if the dies were sourced from Waldale, as they match the current set used for Mississippi, Alberta, Prince Edward Island and others.

Nevada 2016/2017 passenger issues. Somewhere in the late 80B series for standard passenger, and the ZBH series of the dealer-issued series, the state tweaked the background slightly, resulting in a lighter blue fade. This style carried over through the remainder of the sunset base, which was discontinued in late 2016.

Nevada 2017 passenger issues. Nevada introduced a new graphic for new registrants starting in November, 2016. This new plate features a stylized mountain range at bottom with a blue sky background across the rest of the plate. A new slogan, "Home Means Nevada" was introduced on this plate. These plates remain embossed, starting in the 123-A45 series. These plates were slow to appear initially as the state ran through existing stock of sunset plates. A recently implemented eight-year replacement cycle for the state likely means these plates won't fully replace the sunset bases until at least the end of 2025.
Again with this base, plates in the Z series of the 123-ABC format are issued, supposedly directly through dealerships. This appears to be limited to a set of participating dealers, as they've only gone through the ZDx series after 8 years of issuance. I've never heard a good explanation as to why a separate series is required for these, but that doesn't mean there isn't one.

Nevada 2018 passenger issue. Plates of the older Silver State series were issued until the supply was exhausted in 2017, so natural 2018 issues can be seen on both bases. This particular plate shows the weird square-0 die used on Nevada's return-to-embossed series, and is a pretty cool number in general, which is why it's here.

Nevada 2018/19 passenger issues. Only a few months into the issue of the Home Means Nevada base a change to the reflective sheeting occurred. The state began using newer enhanced-reflective 3M sheeting that's also appeared in Oklahoma, Wyoming, South Carolina and Wyoming of late, notable for a raised texture to the sheeting. The background color on these is notably darker than the earlier Home issues.

Additional Nevada information provided by: Jeff Ellis

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Last Modified 3/20/2019 (added 2019 suffix plate).

	Nevada 1969 passenger issue. These plates were first issued in 1969 and are still valid today. The 1969 issue marked the last general plate reissue in Nevada before 2001. The first one-to-three alpha of a Nevada plate of this era indicates the county of issue. "CA" would indicate Clark county. All white-on-blue series Nevada plates are debossed rather than embossed.
	Nevada 1970 passenger issue (1969 base). Continuation of the 1969 baseplate. Staggered monthly registration was introduced in Nevada starting in 1969. Existing registrations were not staggered, so most registrants received DEC 70 stickers for their '69 plates. New registrants between July and December, 1969, however, received stickers expiring 12 months later. This was such a plate, issued in November, 1969. These stickers were a little too wide for the available space on the plate and ended up overlapping the state name in some cases. This plate was also issued in Clark county, indicated by the "CF" prefix.
	Nevada 1974 passenger issue. This undated "NEV" baseplate was introduced in 1970 and was the first issue since 1916 to carry an abbreviated state name. This is a passenger issue from Washoe county, which was allocated plates in the Wxx series.
	Nevada 1976 passenger issue. Around 1975, the state name on the plates was lengthened back out to "Nevada". This plate was another Clark county plate, as were all plates starting with "C" during this era.
	Nevada 1984 passenger issue. Around 1982, Nevada began issuing these plates with a more centered state name and reversed serial (starting at 100ABA). These plates were issued in order and carried no county coding. Some plates of this type carried county stickers (see next).
	Nevada 1984 passenger issue. Same series as above. See, I told you some of them have county stickers. Of course, this one is from Clark county as well.
	Nevada 1984 passenger issue. This is a rare variety issued near the end of the blue Nevada bases. This variety had a centered state name at the top and no sticker navel at all. These were issued in the AAx series of plates, which was issued out of sequence at the end of the plate's run in 1984. Not all the AAx plates were issued in this format, however (Jeff Ellis reports known plates like this in the AAA, AAB and AAN series, but also a known AAF plate in the previous format with the offset state name and sticker naval). This makes it difficult to narrow down exactly how many of these were made/issued.
	Nevada 1985 passenger issue. This Mountain Goat graphic plate was first issued in 1984, picking up at where the previous series had left off number-wise (at 001-BAA, appropriately enough). The first issue of this plate had the state name and slogan in a lighter shade of blue and had the Ram standing to the right of the bolt hole and immediately left of "Nevada". This plate shared ALPCA's Plate of the Year award in 1985 with North Dakota.
	Nevada 1986 passenger issue. A slight revision to this baseplate, in the early BGx series the serial was spaced wider on the plate and painted with a lighter blue paint. These plates otherwise used the same background sheeting as the earlier ones, with the light blue state name/slogan and the ram to the right of the bolthole.
	Nevada 1986 passenger issue. Starting in the BKU series of plates, the plate was tweaked again, retaining the lighter blue paint and wider spacing for the serial from the last plate, but changing the background image slightly. The state name and slogan were changed to a darker blue color, and the ram in the graphic was moved to the left of the bolthole (standing on the "6" in this case).
	Nevada 1987 passenger issue. By the BNx series, the state reverted to the darker blue paint for the serial, leaving the background the same as on the last revision of the plate. This variation was issued through the end of 2000, when it was replaced by a new baseplate.
	Nevada 2002 passenger issue. This new graphic issue was introduced in January, 2001 and replaced all previous "Silver State" baseplates by the end of that year. Pre-1984 blue plates, however, are still valid and are in fact eligible to be re-manufactured, a move to keep motorists with older, "classic" Nevada plates happy. The new design features a blue serial on a blue background, with a mountainline and yellow-orange sky at the top. These plates began at number 001-MAA, although a number of these plates were remanufactured with numbers from the previous base.
	Nevada 2007 passenger issue. Starting in late 2006 in the TUx series, Nevada joined the ranks of states using 3M's digital flat plate technology. These flat plates are unique in that they are the first that I'm aware of to continue to have an embossed sticker well. Garden variety flat plate otherwise, right down to the ugly generic 3M typeface. Not much else to say, they look awful.
	Nevada 2015 passenger issue. Starting in 2009, Nevada introduced a program where some dealers could process registrations directly for buyers who chose not to transfer their previous plates. For some reason, a special series was introduced for these registrations, starting with the ZAA suffix. These plates are otherwise identical to the passenger series of the time.
	Nevada 2014 and 2016 passenger issues. Upon reaching the end of the YZZ series in 2013 (the Z series has been in use since 2009, reportedly for dealer-processed registrations, but the standard series technically ended at 999-YZZ), Nevada extended the 123-ABC format plates briefly, first using the remainder of the Lxx series originally skipped at the end of the sheep base. After LZZ, plates were issued in the remainder of the Axx series, previously skipped at the end of the blue bases in 1984. This bought the state a couple years before running out of serials and needing a new format.

	Nevada 2016 passenger issue. After the last of the 123-ABC format plates was exhausted at the end of the AZZ series, the state introduced a new format, 12A-345. These plates were initially continued as 3M flat plates, although were quickly revised (see next.)
	Nevada 2016 passenger issue. Beginning in 2015 the state reverted back to an embossed plate. This occurred somewhere in the B series of the new format, adding both embossed characters and an embossed state-shaped divider to the plate design. Plates are supposedly produced using new embossing equipment in-state, although it looks as if the dies were sourced from Waldale, as they match the current set used for Mississippi, Alberta, Prince Edward Island and others.
	Nevada 2016/2017 passenger issues. Somewhere in the late 80B series for standard passenger, and the ZBH series of the dealer-issued series, the state tweaked the background slightly, resulting in a lighter blue fade. This style carried over through the remainder of the sunset base, which was discontinued in late 2016.

	Nevada 2017 passenger issues. Nevada introduced a new graphic for new registrants starting in November, 2016. This new plate features a stylized mountain range at bottom with a blue sky background across the rest of the plate. A new slogan, "Home Means Nevada" was introduced on this plate. These plates remain embossed, starting in the 123-A45 series. These plates were slow to appear initially as the state ran through existing stock of sunset plates. A recently implemented eight-year replacement cycle for the state likely means these plates won't fully replace the sunset bases until at least the end of 2025. Again with this base, plates in the Z series of the 123-ABC format are issued, supposedly directly through dealerships. This appears to be limited to a set of participating dealers, as they've only gone through the ZDx series after 8 years of issuance. I've never heard a good explanation as to why a separate series is required for these, but that doesn't mean there isn't one.

	Nevada 2018 passenger issue. Plates of the older Silver State series were issued until the supply was exhausted in 2017, so natural 2018 issues can be seen on both bases. This particular plate shows the weird square-0 die used on Nevada's return-to-embossed series, and is a pretty cool number in general, which is why it's here.
	Nevada 2018/19 passenger issues. Only a few months into the issue of the Home Means Nevada base a change to the reflective sheeting occurred. The state began using newer enhanced-reflective 3M sheeting that's also appeared in Oklahoma, Wyoming, South Carolina and Wyoming of late, notable for a raised texture to the sheeting. The background color on these is notably darker than the earlier Home issues.