I'm trying to get my '68 Mustang back on the road with intent on registering it under the Texas antique registry but I want to utilize year of make plates in lieu of the current funky state-issued antique product.
I was hoping to find a free-ish reliable online resource but comparing a few is giving me mixed & unreliable results.
Plate sets run ~$100 a swing which makes gambling on a set of numbers cost-prohibitive in a hurry, is there an online resource I'm missing or do I need to bug my local LEO? That said if LEO is the answer I'd prefer to dabble with ARFCOM folk if possible & send beer to local friendlies.
Picture for attention

Are you asking for the style of the plate to match the year the car was made or are you asking if the year is 'available' to be your license plate number?

Be careful not to put counterfeit plates on your car.  My understanding is that plate has to be issued by the state.  A copy of a issued plate is a counterfeit plate.  A ERUO plate with a real TX plate number is a counterfeit plate.

Just go to the tax office where you would pay for your vehicle registration and give them the number of the plates you want to use, like a 1968 set you have found on ebay, and they can tell you if the number is already in use.  Safe bet that any six digit plates are probably not going to be already in use.

Just go to My Plates (the States personalized plate site) and enter the plate number you are looking at buying.
If the plate is already in use, then it will show not available.

I did this with my motorcycle with some old plates I had, 1 set was not available, the other was.

This, except I called.

Remember - whatever plates you buy will need to be inspected by the tax office before they allow you to use them.   You will also need to have both front and rear plates.

As the Texas plate for 1968 was the Hemisphere one (and is super cool)  be prepared to pay a premium.

It's too bad the MyPlates people can't just make custom year plates for antique registrations.  That would make it a lot easier and it would be another source of revenue for them.  I imagine that either DPS or the legislature would have to do something to allow that though.  It's not like there aren't already a bizillion different plates they make...