Has anyone received a CA Green HOV Sticker yet?

I got our yellow stickers in '04 . . . and the neighbor's EV1 had white ones prior to '03 ... which was about the time GM took it back for crushing. They were around prior to '05.

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The first yellow stickers issued for Prius in ca started being offered August 11, 2005. No one had stickers on Prius before that date. Hill you may have gotten them for a 2004 model but you didn't get them in 2004 calendar year.

 

It wouldn't be the 1st time my memory failed (since I haven't looked for the check copy sent to the DMV) ... but it sure seems like it was prior to '05. In fact, a quick wiki check shows the following:

High-occupancy vehicle lane - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

. . . . not that wiki hasn't been wrong before. Still, it's at least once a month my wife corrects my defective memory :redface:

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You are correct about the white stickers being out earlier, for EVs and natural gas vehicles, etc. My post should have clarified that I was talking about YELLOW stickers and HYBRIDS, which was the subject in Calbear's post, to which I was replying.

 

EDIT:
Just found my check copy ... I stand corrected ... yellow came in 05. oops

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Yep, the lady is always right, as you know. As another oldtimer with ingrained habits, I have the checks, or at least the records, going back that far as well. However, I am currently 2200 miles from home so couldn't look it up that way. However, I did find a post here on PC from back then that included an article about the hybrid stickers being released. Here it is in part:
California DMV Ready to Distribute Stickers Allowing Hybrid Vehicle Owners to Drive in HOV Lanes
Articles / dBNews Sacramento
Date: Thursday, August 11, 2005 02:18:19
SACRAMENTO -- With the signing of the federal transportation bill (H.R. 3) this morning by Pres. George Bush, legislation allowing the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to issue special stickers to owners of hybrid vehicles that will allow them to drive without penalty in High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes with only one person inside has become a reality. HOV lanes have traditionally been reserved for vehicles carrying at least two people. The law is something that Californians have been waiting for since January 1, 2005. That's when a new state law took effect that allows hybrid vehicles getting at least 45 miles per gallon to use HOV lanes with only the driver on board. But because the federal government sets rules for federal interstate roadways and until the federal government gave California the authorization to proceed with its new law, it couldn't go into effect without putting much-needed highway money at risk. All that changed this morning. "The HOV waiver and sticker program is another example of California's leadership role in the areas of clean air, alternate fuel systems, environmentally-friendlier vehicles and transportation funding," Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

I remember waiting and waiting on the bureaucrats and politcos to get their collective acts together and "just git 'er done!" having had the '04 for going on two years at the time, and driving almost daily on the 405 freeway.

 

Received my stickers yesterday. 15 day turnaround with DMV.

 

I had a funny incident on I-880 yesterday: I was humming along in the HOV at about 50mph, with the slow lanes being at ~20mph. A cop cruiser was hiding in the slow lane and very suddenly pulled out behind me and got very close - it took him a while to realize that I had HOV stickers, and then he went back into the slow lane to wait for the next violation. :rockon:

 

Just got mine yesterday.#156.

Took about 12 days from when I mailed the check.

 

I think I still hold the record with 6 days, including the weekend. App. mailed 3/21, Processed 3/24 (a Saturday), Stickers mailed 3/26, received 3/27.

 

back in the days of the yellow stickers, i had a very strange experience with a motorcycle CHP on 880S near dixon landing. i was running solo in the HOV lane. he pulled in front of me in the next lane over, turned around and gestured two fingers to me, and then took off. this was several years after the stickers had first come out so it seemed very strange that he would be trying to tell me that i had to have 2 people in the car to run in the HOV lane.

or maybe he was just giving me the peace sign. or maybe he was english.

 

Hi All,

The frustration was worth it and I picked up the car yesterday!!! It's like waiting in line for a posh club and kept getting denied until the hot girl shows up and I was able to go in with her .

The dealer sent they are DMV accredited so will send in the registration and documents for the license plate. However they told me it will take up to 30 days. Is this common? It seems folks here get their license plates about 2 weeks after their purchase and I really don't want to wait too long.

Is there anything else I can do?

Thanks!

 

I explained to my dealer why I wanted the plates ASAP, and he tried to give me a bit of run around. I told him that several other dealers in the area were able to get it done, so I expected he could too. I said I was paying MSRP for a car he didn't even have to sell me on and said he was getting a bad review with Toyota corporate (apparently this matters a great deal to them?) if he couldn't get me my plates within 7 days. Dealer guy got on the phone, and made it happen. I just needed to fax/bring in proof that the check cleared. I did that, and he was true to his word so he got a good review when it came around. I suggest you call your dealer back and tell'em other dealers in the area (Putnam, Capitol, Stevens creek, etc) are getting the job done in a week or less and you expect the same level of service.

 

Every dealer has to be "DMV Accredited" (if there is even such a term) in order to accept payments for fees and submit the paperwork to register vehicles. Otherwise, you would have to take everything to the DMV office yourself. So he is just giving you lip service and doing nothing he wouldn't do for any customer. It can take several weeks for the plates and registration card to be sent to you, and once you have those, you can then apply for the HOV decals, but not before.

 

I had heard much longer to get plates if you have to do it...
Vehicle Registration and Title Information

How long does it take to get the plates?
Personalized plates will be available about 8-12 weeks after they are ordered online or the completed Special Interest License Plate Application is received by DMV. You will be notified by mail when your personalized plates are ready for pick up. Sequential license plates will be mailed directly to you at the address on your DMV vehicle record; you should receive them in approximately 4-6 weeks.

 

Yep, that's several weeks in my estimation. The OP didn't mention personalized plates, and since they are custom made, it stands to reason they would take longer.

 

Well the 30 days is the timeframe is what Toyota 101 gave me and it's wasn't the salesman but apparently the Finance person who was also typing up all the paperwork. She said she will put expedite on it. She also mentioned that if I can get a pdf image of the check being cleared she will send the papers in.

So there you have it, though I guess my best case is to ask my salesman as people have been getting the plates here within 2 - 2.5 weeks.

Hope all goes well. I don't imagine the 40K allocation will run out but of course I would love to get on the HOV lane earlier than later

 

It took me three weeks to get my plates. I got my plates yesterday and sent in my application today. We'll see how long it takes the DMV to issue the stickers.

 

i didn't hassle putnam about this at all, and they got it done in 2 weeks (plates in my hands 2 weeks after pickup, but the plates were actually sent to putnam a couple of days earlier).

i think this is pretty decent.

 

by the way, you don't have to wait until you have the plates in your hand. just call the DMV a couple of times per week, give them your VIN number and ask if they have allocated the plate #. when they have, ask them to read it to you, fill out your HOV sticker form, and send it in. you can save a few days like that.