Custom Grille mod thanks to 4RNR.org!

[ZonaT4R]

yo man the grille looks awesome i want to do it to my car. i went to home depot and gutter gaurds are about 3 foot x 6 inch and the top grille is like 8 or 9 what did u do?

I did this and cut one of them in half, so the upper grill is actually multiple pieces of gutter guard (went around the Toyota emblem as well).

Ok guys I will say it, this grill will get to be a pain in the butt after a while when you have to clean it and all the bugs off of it!!!

I guess it really depends on your area. I've had this thing in for a few months and have only collected a few bugs. I can see where it might be a problem in the buggy areas....

 

[navyaircrew]

nother benefit

Just thought of another benefit for this grill insert... doing 75 mph on a highway, following some sort of gravel transport truck, he kept dropping rocks, it drove me nuts... but, that grill certainly kept the rocks from flying into my radiator and causing more damage... cause it surely got dented a few times by them... and yes, i got dent marks on the hood ... bastards... some people just don't care about what they do... ashame

 

[toyo]

You may be able to find it in bigger pieces from a stucco supply house. The mesh they use in applying mesh comes in 4x8 sheets. I have been wanting to do this myself, now I might try. I think if you use a good wheel cleaner on the grill it would clean up pretty good without harming the paint.

 

[skategoat]

toyo, I would think the stucco backing is steel, not aluminum. Thus, it would rust. For this kind of application, you have to use stainless steel or aluminum. As for bugs and rock damage, hell for the price of this stuff, you can just chuck it and install a new one. I love DIY projects like this.

 

[toyo]

Yes, you are correct. It is galvanized. There has got to be bigger pieces out there somewhere.

 

[NoRaSS411]

advance auto parts has the mesh in larger peices made to put in grilles amongst the neon lighting decals and other great perforance honda parts but i think its kind of expensive. i made a grille out of the stuff for my friends acura 3.2 tl once and ill try to get some pics of it

 

[Cliff s]

The stucco base is galvanized so that it won't weep rust when it rains.
It is available in large sheets and is a little stronger than the gutter covers.

I was thinking of doing this and painting the expanded metal Black. Then adding a much heavier piece from the bottom of the bumper to the skid plate to keep the rocks from hitting the A/C radiator and the oil cooler.

Cliff s

 

[Hoomiester]

Looks just like mine!

I installed it this spring and we have plenty of bugs here. A little spray from the hose washes what's there off. My son saw mine and then did the same to the Corolla and it looks really nice.

It's got to be the cheapest mod out there and really looks good on the Gallactic Grey!

:dancin:

 

[toyo]

Hey Cliff, I dont mean to sound like a know it all, but that is the trans cooler, not the oil cooler. Just in case you ever need to know that for future reference.