A question of mesh....

[Anonymous]

saw those on spyderchat - look good dont they!  s:D s:D

[Anonymous]

Mesh on 2001 Roadster.

I'm really torn now between the classic "Hong" style mesh and the mesh on page 1 of this thread i.e. more solid with holes "drilled". Guess that a pondering one.  s:? :? s:?  

I noticed that some of you have colour coded the crappy plastic bit at the back where the number plate attaches. Has anyone seen this removed and replaced entirely by a grill. Do you thing this is feasible/would look any good. If anyone had done this and has pics they would be much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Has anyone seen this removed and replaced entirely by a grill.

If I understand correctly, and my memory serves me, i think this is kinda what Comer has done to his grill.

Is this what you mean?

[Comer]

Has anyone seen this removed and replaced entirely by a grill.

If I understand correctly, and my memory serves me, i think this is kinda what Comer has done to his grill.

Is this what you mean?

Yep they are my Chromdesign grills.  Had them 6 months and they look better now I've removed the grey plastic surround which held the number plate.  I've now got the plastic screws to mount the plate direct to the grill.  Plus with those red reflectors from the US, it's a better looking rear than J Lo  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

[markiii]

Just on the subject of mesh, etc, me old mate Hong has been at it again, hes started prototyping for the 2003 model front and rear and also i have included the deck lid mod he did last year, hope this helps  s:) s:)



new for 2003:





Andy

Andy,

Is this a secret project? I just heard from Hong and he denies all knowledge.?

Mark.

[Hope4Sun]

Hong made the rear deck lid grill some time ago and also the smaller upper rear grill, the lower front and rear sections were made by somebody else using some parts from Hong. Sorry, my bad wording   s:oops: :oops: s:oops:  

Though knowing Hong, he will probably be makin them sooner or later, just trying to avoid getting swamped with orders i guess, if i still had my 2 i'd be camping outside his workshop for them  s:) s:)

Andy

[Comer]

Hong kindly supplied some of his mesh for the guy who I bought my member braces from in Singapore to make his own grills.  I wouldn't count on him doing it often.  I'm sure it could be done with mesh sourced from over here.

[Tem]

That looks just like a grill I just bought for a barbecue grill...even shaped round like it was. Later on I already realized myself that it looks just like these "tuning grills" on sale here. Only that it comes with no package and was only 2 euros for 50cm piece  s:) s:)

You guys might wanna check on local hardware/barbecue stores  s:) s:)

[Anonymous]

Comer or anyone else with ss mesh grills - how is the mesh edged? Just wondering how easy it would be to knowck something up myself. mesh is easy enough to come by, then its just a case of working out a template. On the same note does anyone know of anyone selling front & rear mesh grills for the 03 model. it seems the only ones done are custom made jobs so far.

[Comer]

Comer or anyone else with ss mesh grills - how is the mesh edged? Just wondering how easy it would be to knowck something up myself. mesh is easy enough to come by, then its just a case of working out a template. On the same note does anyone know of anyone selling front & rear mesh grills for the 03 model. it seems the only ones done are custom made jobs so far.

The grills I have on the front and rear are by Chromdesign and have a surround.  At the moment I don't think that they make an 03 fron but the pre 03 rears should fit the 03 if the complete rear bumper inserts can be removed.

My SS Grills from Pelican Racing are on my 03 side vents and they are simply trimmed to just cover the hole left once the plastic 'mesh' is cut out.  The SS mesh is then stuck to the vent with some bl**dy strong adhesive that is stuck all round the rear of the side vent.  You could probably do the same with the front and rear bumpers too.  

I don't know what the adhesive is (Markiii may know) but the mesh has stayed stuck to the side vents at 3 figure speeds and normal washing of the car.

[Anonymous]

I don't know what the adhesive is (Markiii may know) but the mesh has stayed stuck to the side vents at 3 figure speeds and normal washing of the car.

Im guessing its the same 3M stuff that Markiii used on my engine bay mesh... it is VERY strong stuff!

[Anonymous]

Just on the subject of mesh, etc, me old mate Hong has been at it again, hes started prototyping for the 2003 model front and rear and also i have included the deck lid mod he did last year, hope this helps  s:) s:)

new for 2003:

Andy,

Is this a secret project? I just heard from Hong and he denies all knowledge.?

Mark.

That is my car in the pics.

Not a secret project. I did it DIY with PR's supplied grille. Took me > 15 hours over 1 week to do in total. I am happy with the final result but believe me it is a real pain.

3 main obstacles:

1. Cutting of the almost indestructable PR grille to size

2. Removal of stock grille.(If you look carefully at your stock plastic grille front & back, you'll find that it is part of the bumper & not detachable so you have to slowly "carve" out the grille using a penknife.)

3. Attachment points. I had to epoxy anchor points on the inner surface of the bumper for the grille to be cable tied to. Unless you do not mind drilling holes in the bumper.

Hong kindly supplied some of his mesh for the guy who I bought my member braces from in Singapore to make his own grills.  I wouldn't count on him doing it often.  I'm sure it could be done with mesh sourced from over here.

As I had one of the first '03, we looked at the possibility for the '03 front and rear bumper. After the install, we decided that it would be too difficult for typical owners to DIY step 2 and 3.

That is why I have yet to see a modded '03 front grille and rear grille with the body coloured plastic surround intact.

[Anonymous]

Comer or anyone else with ss mesh grills - how is the mesh edged? Just wondering how easy it would be to knowck something up myself. mesh is easy enough to come by, then its just a case of working out a template. On the same note does anyone know of anyone selling front & rear mesh grills for the 03 model. it seems the only ones done are custom made jobs so far.

I can provide a pic of the template for the front if you are willing to go thru the carving I mentioned in the previous post.

There's no one selling coz the difficulty is in removal of stock grille and attachment of new grille, not coming out with the sized and shaped grille.

Rear mesh install is tough as hell if you want to retain the plastic insert as mentioned by Comer. No pics for these as I was already fuming after I did the front and started on the rear, so no mood to click click pictures.

Please note that there is a body colour horizontal "crash bar" of sort right behind the grille (covered by the stock plastic panel at the lower part of the grille which many have queried the use of).

When you replace it will real grille, they would almost be against your grille and look ugly from behind (unless your car is black in colour). I masked everything around it and can sprayed it a matt black before putting back the bumper.

[Anonymous]

Willow,

Thanks for all the info, really appreciate it. Any other pics template info etc. would be most welcome. From what you describe it sounds as though you have cut out the mesh plastic in the middle of the meshed areas and left behind the edge or rim that outlines the mesh. I presume that you then attached the mesh from behind the bumper to give the neat finish as per the pics. Getting rid of the plastic mesh looks like a job for a Dremel.

I've got say that your mesh is the best installation I've seen. I think that style of mesh is the way forward - looks particularly good on a silver motor. Mines black so no worries about the rear cross member being 2 obvious. Must say I did notice that on the stock grill the lower bit is filled in to hide the cross member.

Originally I was planning to make the grills to fit the apertures and then edge them with something suitable but as you have to cut away the OEM mesh anyway it's probably far easier to just attach the mesh to the back. I have found some manufacturers of mesh in this country, although I know you can buy the same style from Halfords - think its Foliatec - but pricey but prob less hassle

[Anonymous]

From what you describe it sounds as though you have cut out the mesh plastic in the middle of the meshed areas and left behind the edge or rim that outlines the mesh. I presume that you then attached the mesh from behind the bumper to give the neat finish as per the pics. Getting rid of the plastic mesh looks like a job for a Dremel.

Yes. Note that the at the points where you cut (or Dremel) the surround trim the black plastic would show some rough whitish stress/cut/gound mark. I had it sanded down and can-sprayed it flat black as well. Paint stayed on till today after 9 mths.

Originally I was planning to make the grills to fit the apertures and then edge them with something suitable but as you have to cut away the OEM mesh anyway it's probably far easier to just attach the mesh to the back.

It was not possible for me to "edge" it in. Firstly for the grille I used, the mesh is a criss cross of stainless steel wire held under tension, ie they are not welded or one piece. any legth of wire needs to criss-cross at least 3 other pependicular wires to stay put. Secondly, it would be quite impossible to cut them to such exacting dimension as the opening.

That is also why I had to remove side kidney grilles at the sides altogether and spray paint the trim on the bumper. Yours would be easier as it is alreay in black.

It is definitely easier to remove the rear bumper and work on it rather than to work thru the cut holes. Just 5 min to remove the few screws.

This is just the shape. To get the dimension right, you can easily trace the aperture on a newspaper and give it an 1-inch border all round.


The tedious cut. The corners are nightmares:



Side by side:



Note the mounting points I epoxied on the inner side ofthe aperture (arrowed). Do this first as it takes a while for the epoxy to cure enough to take the pull of the cable tie (at least 1 hour for a 5min rated epoxy).



For the rear bumper, I do not remember doing epoxy. I suppose there are points for you to cable tie on.

My rear is a 2-piece grille (excluding the kidneys) due to the 2 license plate mounting struts that pertrude from the car body thru the grille. Alternatively you can have the stuts removed and mount directly onto the grille. (Do I make sense?)

All the best. Make sure you start work feeling happy, coz you'll end the day very tired (and maybe pissed) I only felt the satisfaction and joy the next day when I look at the result unpissed:)

[Slacey]

Nice article Willow, job well done there.

[Anonymous]

yeah well explained nice one

may give it a go soon   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

[Anonymous]

Awesome Willow,
Thanks  s:) s:)

[Anonymous]

You're welcome.

One thing to mention, try to remember to re-connect the fog light wires before putting the front bumper back.

I never fail to forget and ended up removing and putting back the front bumper 10 times instead of just 5 (I did horn and aircon repair on other occasions). Frustrating! Talk about old habits die hard.

[heathstimpson]

I have been searching through the 'meshing the drip tray' posts but cannot find the guide that I'm sure was on here. I'm sure it was written by Kris and had the cut out dimensions etc. Any ideas what happened to it  s:?: :?: s:?:

[roger]

This one?

 m http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... ngine+mesh m

[heathstimpson]

This one?

 m http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... ngine+mesh m

Cheers Roger; I knew it was somewhere  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

[roger]

This one?

 m http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... ngine+mesh m

Cheers Roger; I knew it was somewhere  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

Heath, don't know if you are planning this job?

 I used this template, but double checked all the dimensions against actual. From memory one was a tiny bit short, so I cut out about an inch extra all round, and then fitted, trimmed, fitted, trimmed etc etc.

A bit long winded, but it gave a nice tight fit in the end. Its a pity I didn't measure the final thing to compare   s:oops: :oops: s:oops:

[heathstimpson]

This one?

 m http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... ngine+mesh m

Cheers Roger; I knew it was somewhere  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

Heath, don't know if you are planning this job?

 I used this template, but double checked all the dimensions against actual. From memory one was a tiny bit short, so I cut out about an inch extra all round, and then fitted, trimmed, fitted, trimmed etc etc.

A bit long winded, but it gave a nice tight fit in the end. Its a pity I didn't measure the final thing to compare   s:oops: :oops: s:oops:

Where did you get the rubber strip from  s:?: :?: s:?:

[roger]

Where did you get the rubber strip from  s:?: :?: s:?:

Car door edging strip from any motorists shop - mine was Motorists Discount Centre (again). I think Halfrauds also sell them. Make sure you get the wider one (3/4" or so) so it will hold the mesh.

Also bought a roll of double sided trim tape (extra sticky) to hold the strip to the boot lid.

Best of luck. Took me a couple of hours going easy.

By the way for the mesh I had, I found garden secateurs were the easiest and best for cutting   s:roll: :roll: s:roll: