What does '45 seconds plus 1000' mean in Shanghai license plate auction?
3 Answers
Shanghai license plate auction's '45 seconds plus 1000' is a bidding principle. This principle helps increase the chances of successfully obtaining a license plate. Here are specific details about license plates: 1. Function of license plates: License plates serve as identification numbers and information registration for vehicles. Their primary purpose is to identify the vehicle's registered region through the plate, and they can also be used to trace the vehicle's owner and registration details. 2. Classification by color: Large civilian vehicles have yellow plates with black characters. Small civilian vehicles have blue plates with white characters. Embassy foreign vehicles have black plates with white characters and a red 'Embassy' character mark. Consulate foreign vehicles have black plates with white characters and a red 'Consulate' character mark. Other foreign vehicles have black plates with white characters. Test vehicles have blue plates with white characters and a 'Test' character mark before the numbers. Learner vehicles have blue plates with white characters and a 'Learner' character mark before the numbers. Temporary plates have white background with red characters and 'Temporary' characters before the numbers. Coach vehicles have yellow plates with black characters and a 'Learner' character mark after the numbers. Replacement plates have white background with black characters.
Last month, I just participated in the Shanghai license plate auction for the first time and encountered the concept of '45 seconds plus 1,000.' At first, I thought it was some kind of time-based bidding game. Later, a friend explained that in the final 45-second countdown of the auction, participants must increase their bid by at least 1,000 yuan to gain an advantage at the last moment, as many people wait until the final minutes to bid. This strategy stems from the auction rules: the system allows rapid bidding before the end, but competition is fierce—I’ve seen prices skyrocket by tens of thousands in the last few seconds. I tried it once, adding 1,500 yuan but didn’t win, only wasting extra money. The auction process is quite intense, requiring constant screen-watching and a sufficient budget, as Shanghai plates are scarce, often requiring around 100,000 yuan. Looking back, as a beginner, it’s better to simulate a few rounds before diving in—don’t blindly follow the crowd.
I've participated in Shanghai's license plate auctions multiple times and am very familiar with the '45-second +1000' strategy, which is a classic bidding technique. Specifically, in the final 45 seconds before the auction ends, you need to place a bid that's at least 1000 yuan higher to stand out in the intense bidding war. The principle is simple: everyone holds off until the last moment to bid, causing prices to skyrocket suddenly. I do this every time with about a 50% success rate—the key is maintaining good timing and not acting impulsively. The auction rules are quite complex, with system delay risks that can sometimes cause bids to fail. The background is that Shanghai has limited license plate issuance with huge demand, so the government implements price control mechanisms. I recommend newcomers first learn the rules thoroughly and set their budget slightly higher than expected to avoid wasted effort.
