With a little effort we managed to fit the transparent license plate cover and the license plate in the groove. It sits well on the car and feels thick enough to help with an accidental bump from an unwary parallel parking attendant in front of me with a direct hit. Update: So that's a good thing. The groove fits so well that the shield and clear license plate cover that fit into the grooves are so tight that it looks like a diorama. In fact, it's so narrow that when it rains or is humid, I get condensation behind the transparent panel cover. This is not a slap against this product but rather explains how well made it is.