Mesh And Fit An Aftermarket Grill.

Mod Description

The original front grill is ok but the visual change of a new open grill makes the car look a lot better.

Mod Details

PremiumNo Difficulty Mod ID394 CreditEvilution Cost££80+ For Linkhttps://www.evilution.co.uk/mod/mesh-and-fit-an-aftermarket-grill.htm Copy to Clipboard

First of all I would like to thank the boys at Smartmovez for donating a black S-Mann grill to the Evilution site, it is very much appreciated. They are no longer trading, buy the grill direct from S-Mann.nlFitting Temporary Mesh

I was quite eager to fit the grill but didn’t have any of the mesh that I wanted to fit permanently so I decided to fit some mesh to make do until I had everything I needed.

I went to the local art shop and bought some clay, using sandpaper I roughed up an area at each end and top and bottom. Taking a handful of clay I created a wall at the ends.

And halfway top and bottom.

I fired up my newly purchased glue gun and set about filling the pockets with hot glue.

As the glue cools it goes hard and a pilot hole can be drilled into it. Cut your mesh to the correct size and screw it down directly into the glue pads. Be careful with your length of screws otherwise your grill will look like a hedgehog.

With everything set and screwed in place you can now fit the grill to the car.

In this case the grill is very easy to fit as it just pushes in place with a click.

I don’t mind saying that it looks excellent with the added bonus that the S-mann parts are very well made, fit very well and come pre-coloured so no wasting money on spraying.

Fitting Semi-Permanent Mesh

This mesh will be fitted in place using standard bathroom silicone sealant. It is very similar to the adhesive used for permanent fixing but a lot less permanent.

It is important to remember that silicone sealant won’t cure (dry) very well if there is a big mass of it. Try to use thin beads of sealant between the mating faces to reduce drying times.

Check out the new mesh, this is the most current mesh I have fitted to the car. The hexagonal honeycomb design is becoming popular with Audi.

This bit of mesh is actually a grill from an unknown Ford built in 2000 (moulded in the grill side). OTV found it at a car breakers yards and was good enough to donate it to me.

Using a hacksaw I roughly cut it so it stayed in the boundaries of the smart grill it was going in.

Check it’s centered. The bend of the Ford grill matched the bend of the smart grill so fitment was good.

Zip tie the mesh in place ready for the silicone sealant. Even though mesh is very thick, the grill will still push into place with no problem.

Apply the silicone sealant to the areas between the grill and the mesh, try not to build up too much in one area as it can take a week to dry. Thin beads are best. Allow to dry fully before fitting.

Fitting Permanent Mesh

With the permanent mesh aquired and cut into a reasonable shape I painted the visible face with a few coats of spray hammerite and allowed it to dry.

Using Sikaflex or Tigerseal (or indeed any bodykit PU adhesive) and a sealant gun I applied vast swathes of sealant through the mesh and into the recesses of the grill.

All the unseen edges where it touched the grill were given a liberal pasting,

and the whole mesh was weighted down so it dried flat. I recommend leaving the PU adhesive to dry for 24 hours and try not to get it on your skin.

A day later the adhesive had dried and the mesh felt very secure in the grill. The grill was then pushed into place and that it the job done.

Removing the Grill

With the original grill you have to bend down small tabs to release it from the panel, the S-mann grill has raised bumps on each tab that lock into place. Removal is very similar to the original except it’s best to bend the panel out of the way of the tab instead of bending the tab away from the panel. The tabs will still bend but due to the raised lump on each one you have to create a little more room for removal.