Varilux

I like the open look of the CDC grille- but I'd like to retain the factory driving lights.

I was thinking of ordering a spare factory grille and cutting out the honeycomb portion between the driving lights. At this site, it appears I could get the grille piece for $50 (which for me makes it worth the experiment).
http://parts.autonationfordwhitebear...rt_name=grille

I'm imagining the end result would look something like this:


I'm just wondering if the mounts for the lights would be cut off with the interior portion of the grille. If anyone has some insight (or if you just have an opinion regarding whether it would good or completely stupid), I'd appreciate it!

laserred38

Funny I was thinking about doing this same thing. Go pull the grille out, you'll see. The center section literally just pulls out of the fascia, surround and all. Then you can separate the honeycomb from the surround once it's off the car. Just be careful of scratching the upper part of the bumper. If you pull straight out, you'll be fine.

I literally take the grille out every time I wash the car. I can't stand drying the grille with the water pooling in every single little honeycomb opening.

Varilux

Great info- thanks! I will be trying that tomorrow (if for no other reason than to bring the thing inside to clean all those little openings while watching a football game ).

I'm also wondering what the difference is between the grille for the "appearance package" ($292.74) vs. the grille without the appearance package ($52.24).

The non-appearance package grille has a part number that ends in "BC," and the appearance package grille has a part number ending in "CA." I'm guessing the "CA" part may be for the "California Special."

Another route I would consider would be to get the Boss 302 grille and emblem ($182 for the set). If I cut out the center of the grille and like it, the running pony emblem would be going on the decklid panel (I would get the RTR faux gas cap deletion panel and fit the pony to that- like on the '15). Either that, or I would figure out a way to fab the front to have the pony "floating" in the empty space (kinda like the Mach 1 on the early 2000 era Mustangs).

laserred38

That's so funny, we have been thinking along the same wavelengths. I preordered my RTR decklid from AM. Should be shipping soon. I loved the look of the NFS/2015 decklid with the pony, and I'll be doing that same thing with my RTR decklid. I'm actually going to be wrapping the decklid in a gunmetal brushed aluminum vinyl first though, along with my MMD tailights trim. I might do the license plate surround, GT500 valance, front grille surround, mud guards, and Roush splitters (when I get them) too.

I had also been thinking about doing the floating pony, a la Mach 1 grille delete. You'll see when you remove the grille, that there's a thin plastic support that runs top to bottom, dead center. That is where I was thinking of mounting the pony, but honestly it needs some support, as the plastic strip is thin. I can see the pony ripping off at freeway speeds....

Varilux

That vinyl should hold up pretty well. I did the center portion of my gas cap in 3M DiNoc vinyl, and (so far) it has shown no signs of peeling/fading. If you happen to come across some vinyl with a "machine turned metal" appearance, please let me know (thinking Boss 302 dash appearance ).

I just ordered the replacement grille, so that will probably be next weekend's project. I'm going to use a Dremel with a cutting disc to remove the center section, then the sanding attachment to smooth out the cuts, then coat in black PlastiDip- which looks like it should match the rest of the black trim quite well. At least initially, I'm going to try and "float" the Mustang emblem in the front. I'm pretty happy with the way my gas cap mod came out- so I'll probably leave it as is for a while.


We have a 3D printer at work, and I've thought of trying to create the "GT" letters that stick through the gas cap in a clear monomer (I work in ophthalmic optics manufacturing). Then, I could rig up an LED inside the cap, and have the GT glow red... Fortunately, half the stuff I think of doing gets filtered out by contemplation before I actually do it (try to keep a "could've been stock" appearance to the mods ).

laserred38

Hah well I'm subscribed so let's keep each other in the loop. We have a lot of similar ideas. I want to get the Roush lower grille delete too, and wrap with the same vinyl. I'll look for the engine turned vinyl, as I was wanting to get the Boss dash panels anyways. You might have just changed up my whole plan if I can find that vinyl hah!

laserred38

So I found these...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0057Y...&pi=SX200_QL40

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B005IY...&pi=SX200_QL40

I'm not sure though, the pattern seems too small for me. The Boss/Bullitt panels have bigger swirls.

Varilux

Dang- I've been casually looking for turned metal vinyl for quite a while, and you find something in one evening! I think a smaller pattern will be better once you get over to the areas with less surface area (e.g., the instrument bezel). The easiest way to install would probably be to order one of the vinyl overlays AmericanMuscle is making now and copy the cut out patterns (I was really REALLY hoping AM would come out with a turned metal overlay set- I would think there would be huge demand for that). Alternatively, I'll create templates from paper

I pulled the grille off yesterday... like you said, it pulls right off (almost alarmingly easy). I saw the vertical brace- I'm thinking I might replace it with a metal one (riveted on top and bottom).

For the emblem, I think something with a long vertical element will be needed to cover that brace. I ordered this from CJ's (its a driver's side fender emblem from a '68):

It will be similar to the Boss 302's grille emblem, and should be tall enough to cover most of the brace (especially if I mount it a couple inches in front of the brace).

The other consideration is the fabrication of a panel to hide the hood latching mechanism (I notice the CDC grille has a cover built into the upper edge). I'm thinking some thin gauge metal.

Varilux

I was about to order some of the vinyl from the Amazon link, and thought "I wonder if I can just look up the company selling the vinyl?"

Sure enough, if you go to this link you'll see Rvinyl sells the engine turn vinyl as a pre-cut kit: http://www.rvinyl.com/Aluminum-Dash-...RD-MUS-10.html

Kit ordered, and I'll have to see how it turns out (depending on how the dash turns out, I might even peel the red plasti on my console and apply there as well).

laserred38

Hah well wouldja look at that! I'm probably going to order it too lol. I want to see all the samples of vinyl I just ordered from Amazon first though...

shouldhavegottheGT

https://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/pts/4649271328.html

I saw this the other day. Someone else already did it.

Varilux

Thanks for the link. Looks like they did a very clean job of trimming the grille. They must not have liked the look too much if they are switching to the Roush grille after a few months, but I'm determined to try (and considering the grille insert only costs $50, and the project will be totally reversible, its worth the experiment).

I believe there will have to be some additional fabrication work, because the mounts for the driving lights are square and will become very visible after the grille is trimmed. I went bought some thin gauge aluminum sheets last night, and will be attempting to create sheathing that transitions from the round edges of the lights back to the straight edges of their mountings. Also, I plan on making a shield that will cover the hood latch assembly (which will also become visible once the grille is opened). For the emblem, I think I'm going to try and black out everything but the pony and highlight the "302" with red.

Of course, once the grille area is opened up, I'm sure the bottom opening will need the same treatment to look right.

laserred38

Unfortunately the bottom grille doesn't pull out like the upper. You need to remove the whole front bumper fascia to remove the lower

At that point, I'd just get the Roush lower...

5.0jrdnsky59

I contacted op of Craig's list ad here's what it looks like

Varilux

I contacted op of Craig's list ad here's what it looks like.

Thanks for posting the pic- I like the look! It really draws the eye to the corners and lights.

I might have to do something with my radiator (I have the track package, which puts an aluminum-colored oil radiator right behind the grille- might not look as good as the radiator looks in that pic). Looks like he had some sort of blue piece along the bottom edge as well. Overall, I'm encouraged and am looking forward to my extra grille arriving (hope its by the weekend ).

firstang001

This is so weird.. I was thinking about doing the same when I came across someone selling GT Grills with Fog's for real cheap. Never pulled the trigger though. I like the look. I might as well give it a shot...

Varilux

Received the emblem in the mail today from CJ, and the grille is on track to be delivered Monday. So, I went ahead and removed the interior of my original grille. Not a particularly easy job. I used a Dremel with a cutting disc and the grinding wheel, and then used a sander.

Can't say I'm happy with how smooth I got the cut areas, but its looking better with each coat of Plasti-Dip . I also realized I should have just ordered the Boss grille insert. In fact, I just ordered that insert + the Boss tri-bar emblem ($182 on the AutoNation link I posted earlier in the thread).

I think I could eventually get the grille smooth enough. I would probably use some body filler and sand it down- which would also give it a bit more stability (once the inside honeycomb is removed the grille gets very flimsy). However, I don't think I'm willing to do all the permanent modifications it would take to make everything look "right" (the bracing for the GT lights would need to be significantly modified to get things where I would want them- and the retainer brackets on the grille surround would have to be cut off as well).

So, I will put the modified grille on for a week while waiting for my Boss grille to arrive, keep the original replacement that is on its way, and just install the Boss grille and emblem when they arrive (I've been going for a Boss 302 theme anyway, so the Boss grille will continue that look).

Now I just wish the turned metal dash overlays would arrive (they shipped 2nd day USPS on the 13th, but the stupid Postal Service doesn't update status and it isn't here yet- hoping tomorrow or Monday).

5.0jrdnsky59

Do you have any pics of the progress so far still waiting to do mine.

Varilux

I'll post some pics tomorrow once I have the grille installed. I believe the material used for the grille must be a thermoplastic- which is unfortunate in this case.

Thermoplastics (like polycarbonate) can be melted, whereas thermoset materials (like plexiglass, an acrylic) cannot melt- but go straight from solid to combustion. The problem in this case is the grille melts as you grind it- which makes it very challenging to get a smooth surface.

If Ford made a version of the grille without the internal honeycomb, I would probably go ahead and make modifications to the GT light bracing. Basically, you'll need to remove the inner vertical brace and (here's the problem) heavily modify the braces for the lights themselves. Otherwise, you'll have a vertical strut in the middle of the opening as well as beside each light.

For around $50, this experiment was worth trying, but I think the Boss style grille will be enough of an improvement for me personally (I just don't like the plastic surround to the running pony on the GT grille). I'm surprised no one has manufactured a grille insert that would mimick the look this project is trying to create- since the result would be pretty cool, IMO.

For as smooth as the grille in the above-posted Craigslist ad looks in the picture, it would be worth giving the fellow $100 for that modified piece if one was completely set on doing this modification.

Varilux

Here are some pics. The install would look a lot cleaner if the grille surround clip brackets were shaved off (which you would do if you were going with this look permanently.

I think it looks good (and I already had a compliment from a neighbor walking by), but when the Boss grille insert arrives, I'll be installing that. I really like the tri-bar pony in place of the full-size running pony.