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How-To by redbaron

Caractere Front Grill Install (how-to)

Since my instructions came in French, for those of us here in the Good ol' U.S. of A may appreciate some English along with some pictures. In addtion to the kit that you receive, I recommend the following tools:

Screw Gun
Hack Saw
Diagonal Pliers
Dremmel Tool
Screw Drivers (flat and Phillips)
Torx set (T-20, T-25, & T-10)
Drill Bits
1 Piece of Rubber Door Guard Protector

 

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Steps

OK let's start.

1. Cut lower bracket by following the instructions that came with the kit. You need to come in 30 cm from each edge and cut the lower middle out. There is a plastic rivet that you will need to drill out in center bottom. See picture:

 

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Once you have made the cuts, the bar is held in place by small tabs that are inserted into the stock plastic mesh grill.

You end up with the following:

 

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Closer:

 

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Next, take out the center bar. You will need to make cuts on the far ends, and on the insides of the fog light housings. (total of 4 cuts) See pics:

 

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Heres why you don't need to cut both sides of the fog. The end closest to the fog is tucked under & free. 1 tab to pull:

 

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Here's your end result. You are now ready to pull the fog cover off. It's held by tabs.

 

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Close up of the housing & how close to make your cuts:

 

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Your current grusome sight:

 

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Close-up of fog housing:

 

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Close up fog without shroud:

 

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At this point you will want to smooth your edges and sand/dremmel/or file the plastic that you have just cut to make everything flush.

Once completed you are ready for the PITA of the install, the placement of the inlet grills. The center is a no-brainer. Line it up and screw it down. The two outside inlets with the fogs are tough. What we found is this, from the inside edge, place the shroud and then give yourself an extra 1/4 ". This is a good start point. Screw the grills in and put the shrouds back on the fogs (one at a time) and then do a test-fit by brining the whole caracter piece and mating it with the car.

NOTE: We used a piece of rubber door guard to cover the sharp edge of the cut grill so it would not scratch the housing. (We thought of it after we test-fit and scratched the housing-DOH!)

 

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Close up with rubber door guards:

 

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Lastly, mount the new piece. There are 2 screws that attach the pice to the frame on the bottom (see your Caractere instuctions) then you'll have 4 crews left, 2 per fenderwell to secure the wrap-arounds.

NOTE: Caractere includes an epoxy to attatch the grill. We opted NOT to use the Epoxy at this time as the fit was snug and secure. We figured we could always come back later and un-do 6 screws and epoxy the piece if need be. You'll need to make your own decision based on how you drive & how often you drive the vehicle.

Special NOTE: The Grill mod is 1/8 " lower than the stock grill.

Finished product:

 

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If you have the license plate holder, you will need to mod it to fit the new configuration. Dremmel tool works well here. If you are fortunate enough to live in a state where the front plate is not reqired, cover the holes and go.

 

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To discuss this How-To please visit the link below...

Caractere Front Grill Install - (How-To) -Discussion Thread<---click here