Removing the front grill

[Veruca]

BTW... I blacked out my rings with vinyl trim tape (made for this type of job) available through most auto supply sources.
< $5

Looks great, doesn't chip & can always be restored back to OE condition.

Hey! When did you do that?! The tape doesn't crinkle around the curves at all? That would be a good project for tomorrow.

[inTgr8r]

BTW... I blacked out my rings with vinyl trim tape (made for this type of job) available through most auto supply sources.
< $5

Looks great, doesn't chip & can always be restored back to OE condition.

Hey! When did you do that?! The tape doesn't crinkle around the curves at all? That would be a good project for tomorrow.

I've had it on for almost a year now.
A little heat from a hair dryer helps to stretch the tape into place.
It is much easier with an assistant to hold the frame while you work the tape.

[Carlo]

BTW I used the Bavarian Autosport black out grill covers. Fitment is perfect and the finish on the covers themselves are very nice and clean. I'll update tomorrow when the glue is done drying and I install them back into the car.

[Veruca]

Okay, inTgr8r, I have the blackout tape. I went to pep boys today because advance didn't have it yesterday and pep boys has wayyy more stuff. I ended up going in for a $5 roll of tape and ended up spending $50. LOL I'll post up some pics when I'm finished. Thanks for the idea!

[inTgr8r]

Okay, inTgr8r, I have the blackout tape. I went to pep boys today because advance didn't have it yesterday and pep boys has wayyy more stuff. I ended up going in for a $5 roll of tape and ended up spending $50. LOL I'll post up some pics when I'm finished. Thanks for the idea!

Good luck with it.... it takes a little patience to get it right.
LOL... I had a couple of do-overs on the first one.
I started the tape on the upper part near the center (of the car), it helped hide the edge.

Also here's the thread that gave me the idea... Blackout tape shadowline trim

[Veruca]

Does the seam show? I haven't started on it yet. Waiting until tomorrow so no one is staring over my shoulder. I did cover my ipod in fake carbon fiber (because i'm lame like that) to match the interior that I don't have. It's laying on the coffee table and I am continually impressed with it. LOL

[inTgr8r]

Does the seam show? ....

No not at all.... just keep it at the top near the inner corner.
Many people have looked at this at various meets.... no one has noticed the seam.
I let it overlap about 1/2" rather than try to butt splice the 2 ends

[Veruca]

Thanks so much inTgr8r! I can't imagine anything looking better than this. Exactly what I wanted! I'm not going to say how much time I put into it, but it was worth it. Here are some pics before I put it on the car. (btw - it was harder to get the grilles back on than it was taking them off)

Please excuse my hand prints.


Close up of the seam - you can't see it at all on the car.

[ovrkll]

Good Job! Looks good

[Veruca]

Thanks! I'll take a picture of them tomorrow on the car. They look sweet!

[inTgr8r]

Great job!
I know what you mean about the time...
IIRC it took me 3 tries to get the 1st one right, after that it was cake.

A side benefit is, the tape helps protect the chrome from pitting.

[srhutch]

I'm looking to do this mod myself.

Cannot get Blackout tape in the UK easily from what I have been told (liking rocking horse shite), but these two are on ebay from the States.

Prices are similar, but nybody suggest one over the other?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TRM-T900 ... enameZWD1V

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Blackout ... enameZWD1V

thanks

[inTgr8r]

1st one looks like what I used.
It worked great.

[unionjack]

You can remove the chrome surrounds as long as you're careful not to break the tabs. I'm having a friend paint my surrounds black tomorrow. I'll post the results when he's done.

[unionjack]

Grills are back and on. My friend did an awesome job on them.