Article on: Grill Mesh Modification

 Grill Mesh Install

Total time was about 3-4 hours (including 1 hr paint drying time). Cost: Mesh sheets ~$.80/ea, bag of zip ties $1.50, spray paint ~$4-5.

The steps described here are how I did this. Drilling holes in my car was my choice. If you can find a more effective mounting method, I suggest you use it. Do not hold me responsible for "wrecking" your car if you have issues with the drilling. This is just a general guide for this process.

What you will need:
You will need about 3 pieces of gutter guard or gutter screen. You can get it from Lowe's, Home Depot or wherever. It is in a diamond pattern and comes in sections. It comes in pieces like 5" x 36" for about .80 a sheet. 3 sheets is all that you will need (5 if you want to make 2 sets).

You will also need tin snips or some sort of cutters to cut this aluminum mesh with. A bag of small black zip ties (cheap at auto parts store). A marker for marking your cut lines and possibly some newspaper to create a template (for the hood scoop, it is easier that way). You will also need the tools required to remove your hood scoop and grill (socket or appropriate hex wrench, philips head screwdriver and long small regular head screwdriver or something similar to pop the clips on the front grill). The removal of these items is self-explanatory or described elsewhere, but I will post some pics. You will also need a can of enamel spray paint (if you decide to paint).

Preparation, measuring and mark-up
I started by removing the hood scoop and then the front grill. These are both easy to do. There are some hidden screws under the insulation on the hood and you have to take the large piece first and then you can take off the scoop.



Next, I removed the front grill on the car. This is held on by six clips that pop out with a thin screwdriver in the tabs. Four of these are right on top and two are down below the outside two (where arrows are on the picture below).



After I had the scoop and the grill out I proceeded to fit the mesh pieces. For the scoop, I fit a piece of newspaper on the area and taped it on. I then marked it from the front with a marker. I transferred this over with a little bit of extra trim room to the mesh. For the grill, I just placed the mesh behind and and drew a rectangle around the area that I wanted to cut out making sure that there was enough overlap. I fit a large piece in the bottom and only trimmed the length. Now is a good time to use these as a template and mark a 2nd set if you are making one.


After the pieces are cut, you can then paint them (if you want to).Use enamel paint, the tougher the better. I has some ceramic enamel high-temp paint left over from my headlight mod, so I used that. Apply a few coats for maximum resilience. Let this dry before continuing.

Drilling and mounting
After all of your mesh pieces are ready to be applied, it is time to drill (if you choose to, I found it the best method). I used a drill bit which was just large enough for the zip ties to fit through, and I tried to keep my drill locations as strategic and invisible as possible. Below you will see the locations of the holes that I drilled. I (of course) drilled the holes in the scoop and the grill after they were removed.




When mounting the mesh with the zip ties, make sure that the connections are on the inside for the cleanest look. The lower grill is the hardest because it was not removed. The smaller hands the better to reach in behind there. I made sure it was all tight and secure and then I trimmed off the excess zip tie on the inside for a finished look.

Attatching the mesh to the front grill and the scoop was easier because they were removed and you can flip them around and secure them easily.




After all of the pieces have been attatched it is time to put the grill and scoop back on.After that, step back and admire your handywork.

(The ISDC cannot be held responsible for any modifications that adversely effect the warranty of your car.)