HOW TO: Autoexe grill install/ upper grill removal
CONSTRUCTION
This is a pretty comprehensive how-to for painting and install of eclipse21's replica autoexe grill.
why am i painting it myself? cuz it costs too much at bodyshops and the piece is relatively small. my "hook-up" price for it was $70, yikes!!!
when you get the part be sure to check it for cracks and un-smooth areas. you can use bondo in the cracks which dries quick and is easy to sand. if you want durability go with epoxy putty which dries stone hard but is a bit harder to sand. on mine i used bondo because there was only a tiny 1/4 inch crack.
primer the entire piece using a darker primer so you can see flaws easier. I start sanding rough areas with 320 grit sandpaper and work my way up to 1000. the secret to smooth sanding is wet-sanding. get a bucket and drop in some soap detergent and wet-sand at 800 and 1000. the piece will be glass smooth.
once its smooth its time to order paint. your body color can be found on a white sticker on the driver door. you can go online and buy premixed spray cans for $15-$20. don't forget clearcoat too.
these steps are tedious. follow the instructions on the can and always remember to dust on light coats and give it plenty of time to dry. after a good coat has dried wet-sand with 800 to 1500 grit sandpaper. when clearcoating go at it with 1500 for a smooth finish. I always leave a little in the can in case anything unexpected happens and I need more paint or clearcoat. Here it is with no clearcoat in between wetsanding:
i am a OEM and JDM nut. so for my mesh i used a modified lower p5 grill with JDM familia badge.
the mesh was a pain for me to cut because i used a dremel to slowly cut away each section. there are 3 support bars that have to be cut out also. Here, the middle one is gone and there are two more to go. These are molded onto the mesh so it is a PAIN to get it looking good.
here it is after some cutting, more than 50% has to be cut away! Do test fits to make sure the mesh is not getting in the way of mounting the grill back onto the car.
to mount it I used epoxy putty, sorry no pictures. But basically I used it in all four corners and one clump in the upper middle. It does not look pretty in back, lol. Epoxy putty is the kind of stuff plumbers use to patch holes. It drives relatively fast and dries stone hard so it is good for mounting. If I had more time I would have made wood mounts that you could screw the mesh into but whatever.
The familia badge was glued on with epoxy glue and then reinforced in back with epoxy putty. If you steal it in one piece you deserve it, lol.
INSTALLATION
Removal of the upper grill is a 5 minute job. Pop the hood and you will see two Phillips screws holding in the grill on each side, sorry I didnt get them in the picture. There are also two snaps you pop off circled below.
once these are out there are 3 snaps on the bottom of the grill and 2 more pictured below. Look at the holes in the autoexe grill to figure out the positioning of the 3 mushroom head snaps on bottom. The other snaps come out easily.
pull gently and itll pop right out.
On install you just screw in the two Phillips screws and push in the snaps on bottom. Your done =D
COMPLETED PICTURES ON PAGE 2
CONSTRUCTION
This is a pretty comprehensive how-to for painting and install of eclipse21's replica autoexe grill.
why am i painting it myself? cuz it costs too much at bodyshops and the piece is relatively small. my "hook-up" price for it was $70, yikes!!!
when you get the part be sure to check it for cracks and un-smooth areas. you can use bondo in the cracks which dries quick and is easy to sand. if you want durability go with epoxy putty which dries stone hard but is a bit harder to sand. on mine i used bondo because there was only a tiny 1/4 inch crack.
primer the entire piece using a darker primer so you can see flaws easier. I start sanding rough areas with 320 grit sandpaper and work my way up to 1000. the secret to smooth sanding is wet-sanding. get a bucket and drop in some soap detergent and wet-sand at 800 and 1000. the piece will be glass smooth.
once its smooth its time to order paint. your body color can be found on a white sticker on the driver door. you can go online and buy premixed spray cans for $15-$20. don't forget clearcoat too.
these steps are tedious. follow the instructions on the can and always remember to dust on light coats and give it plenty of time to dry. after a good coat has dried wet-sand with 800 to 1500 grit sandpaper. when clearcoating go at it with 1500 for a smooth finish. I always leave a little in the can in case anything unexpected happens and I need more paint or clearcoat. Here it is with no clearcoat in between wetsanding:
i am a OEM and JDM nut. so for my mesh i used a modified lower p5 grill with JDM familia badge.
the mesh was a pain for me to cut because i used a dremel to slowly cut away each section. there are 3 support bars that have to be cut out also. Here, the middle one is gone and there are two more to go. These are molded onto the mesh so it is a PAIN to get it looking good.
here it is after some cutting, more than 50% has to be cut away! Do test fits to make sure the mesh is not getting in the way of mounting the grill back onto the car.
to mount it I used epoxy putty, sorry no pictures. But basically I used it in all four corners and one clump in the upper middle. It does not look pretty in back, lol. Epoxy putty is the kind of stuff plumbers use to patch holes. It drives relatively fast and dries stone hard so it is good for mounting. If I had more time I would have made wood mounts that you could screw the mesh into but whatever.
The familia badge was glued on with epoxy glue and then reinforced in back with epoxy putty. If you steal it in one piece you deserve it, lol.
INSTALLATION
Removal of the upper grill is a 5 minute job. Pop the hood and you will see two Phillips screws holding in the grill on each side, sorry I didnt get them in the picture. There are also two snaps you pop off circled below.
once these are out there are 3 snaps on the bottom of the grill and 2 more pictured below. Look at the holes in the autoexe grill to figure out the positioning of the 3 mushroom head snaps on bottom. The other snaps come out easily.
pull gently and itll pop right out.
On install you just screw in the two Phillips screws and push in the snaps on bottom. Your done =D
COMPLETED PICTURES ON PAGE 2
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