The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission is answering this question: What comes after ZZZ? With the current New Jersey license-plate format running out of combinations that begin with three letters, the MVC has begun making license plates that will begin with one letter and two numbers, followed by three letters. The last license-plate number in the former sequence is ZZZ 99Z. This is being followed by A10 AAA. The new sequence will be used for about 25 million combinations and will last for about 20 years, according to MVC Commission spokesperson Sandy Grossman.

Some agencies already have the fresh batch, beginning with A10.

The agency, formerly known as the Department of Motor Vehicles, began a new system in 1967, beginning with AAA 100 through ZZZ 999, according to Grossman.

In 1974, it reversed the pattern, beginning with 100 AAA through 999 ZZZ.

Since then, the state has used various combinations of letters and numbers on either side of the image of New Jersey.

In 1992, it began a sequence with three letters and four numbers. Cramming seven digits onto the plate drew complaints from police and motorists who found then difficult to read. The seven-digit plates were abandoned a year later.

What is not changing is the source of the plates. They are manufactured in the auto-tag shop at Bayside State Prison in Leesburg.

According to the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, the first New Jersey license plate was stamped in 1908, with cream letters on a black background.

From 1908 through 1951, the color scheme was changed annually. In 1952, plates had a black background and orange letters. That color scheme lasted until 1959, when the state introduced plates with a straw-colored background and black letters.

From 1979 to 1992, the colors were changed to a blue background and buff letters.

That was changed in 1992 with the current generation of reflectorized plates that are “goldfinch yellow” on the top third, fading to pale yellow at the bottom. The Eastern goldfinch is the state bird. mycentraljersey.