License Plates (for Vehicles)

Available from ModelExtras v2.0+

🪪 License Plates (Regional & Illuminated Plates)

ModelExtras includes a complete, high-definition License Plate rendering system that is 100% compatible with the IVF (Improved Vehicle Features) standard.

It automatically provides region-specific plate textures based on the current in-game city or countryside location, as well as emissive nighttime plate illumination when headlights are activated.

---

🎨 1. Material Setup for 3D Models

To adapt your vehicle's license plate mesh to ModelExtras:

1. In 3ds Max, Blender, or ZModeler, assign a material named carpback to the license plate geometry polygon.
2. Apply proper UV mapping over the standard rectangular plate texture template.
3. ModelExtras will dynamically generate the plate text and overlay the regional background texture during gameplay.

---

🌆 2. Regional Plate Textures

The plugin detects the vehicle's zone and automatically applies the authentic San Andreas regional plate:

Zone / Region	Daytime Texture	Nighttime Illuminated Texture
Los Santos (City)	plate_ls	plate_ls_l
San Fierro (City)	plate_sf	plate_sf_l
Las Venturas (City)	plate_lv	plate_lv_l
Red County / Countryside / Desert	plate_cs	plate_cs_l

📁 Custom Texture Packs: You can customize these plate backgrounds by replacing the corresponding .png or .txd textures inside ModelExtras/textures/ or your vehicle's .txd.

---

🌙 3. Automatic Nighttime & Headlight Illumination

When any of the following conditions are met:

• The in-game time enters the night period (21:00 to 06:00), OR
• The player or NPC turns on vehicle headlights,

ModelExtras automatically:

1. Swaps the background texture to its emissive night version (plate_*_l).
2. Increases the material's ambient surface reflectance (MaterialAmbientOn), creating a realistic, glowing license plate illumination effect.

---

💡 Features Summary for Modders:

• Fully IVF Compatible: Any vehicle model adapted for IVF license plates will automatically work in ModelExtras without modification.
• Dynamic Characters: Renders sharp license plate characters using plate_char raster font texture.
• Realistic Ambience: Ambient brightness levels can be fine-tuned via [VISUAL] MaterialAmbientOn and MaterialAmbientOff in ModelExtras.ini.