40belowceo wrote:Larz,
Would you have any pics of the lower grille removal process? I have been really wanting to remove them to replace my fog lenses as well. I tried pulling them out with my fingers but feel if I pull any harder I am going to break them off. Should I use masking tape surrounding all around the grille?
Thanks,
I highly recommend at least two layers of good painter's tape around both sides and across the bottom and don't be stingy in the corners. As far as the upper inner bumper, I didn't tape at all up there and it didn't scratch the bumper in hat area. I followed the diagram above (which, as we've come to know with Infiniti - made no sense at all).
A few black coloured phillps head screws at the edges of the grille would work perfectly fine, but this is Infiniti and they can't be bothered with common sense or simplicity.
Here is what I did and I apologise for not taking pics - it just didn't occur to me.
There is a small hole on the grille near the top of the
fog light ring. Its pitch black in there, but with a flashlight, you will see a plastic piece with a flathead screw notch in it. Turn that plastic piece like you would a screw. It does NOT unscrew, it just takes 1/4 turn to change the position from vertical to horizontal, or vice versa. That will release the clip, but you can't start pulling the grille off yet.
There are plastic tabs at each end of the grille and also tabs along the bottom and top. You will want to start at the end of the grille closest to the center of the car and work toward the
fog lamp end. Once you begin, you will instinctively know what tpo do next and how these bloody clips work.
Begin at the end of the grille near the center of the car. It is held by plastic tabs near the top and bottom that slide behind the bumper. These are hard to to release. I used a flat headed screwdriver - be careful NOT to let the crewdriver cut through the painter's tape! You must push the grille edge inward and away from the bumper pretty hard to get the tabs to move out from behind the bumper. I was worried I would break the end of the grille off, but it's actually flexible enough that it won't crack or break even when you think it might.
After you free that end of the grille, yank a little more and the tabs along the top and bottom of the grille will start to pop out. That allows you to pull the grille outward enough to get a towel or Tshirt behind it.
Use a strong towel or a Tshirt and loop it behind the grille (see the diagram above). You should have a firm grip on the bottom and top end of the Tshirt - the rest of the shirt behind the grill like a loop. Now you need to pull VERY sharply and VERY hard in quick jolts. As the tabs release, slide the Tshirt farther along the grille towards the
fog light end, and keep yanking sharply. Eventually, the grille will be loose and the only thing holding it are the tabs along the outer edge. These are a pain too. You would think that the grille opens like a door and the outer tabs let go - nope. You have to find a balance between swinging the grille out and in while pulling straight toward you at the same time. When the grille is being pulled at the proper angle, it will give way and the tabs will come out. My tabs bent a bit while removing it, but they can be bent back into place before you reinstall.
The
fog lamps are a slice of heaven compared to that last bit. Just one screw on either side and Bob's yer uncle.
When you re-install, you have to start with those outer tabs by the
fog lights. push that end in the same way you got it out - just keep pushing them inward while adjusting the angle of the grille until they snap back in. Mine did NOT go back in as secirely as when I removed the grille, but they did go back in and the rest of the tabs will also go back in until you get to the inner edge. This will again be a pain because you have to bend the egde of the grille to allow the tabs to reach behind the bumper again.
The last step is to turn that screw headed clamp back to where it was.
If I'm honest, I have to say that my grille did NOT go back in as perfectly as it was before I man-handled it, but it IS secure and it doesn't look crook-eyed, or out of place. It appears as if it was never messed with.