The December issue of BMWcar carries on page 7 an advertisement by Euro Car Parts (www.eurocarparts.com) for a mesh grill available in three finishes that fits the MCS without modifications...I think. Has anyone installed this grill, and is it true that no modifications are necessary to the bumper cover? I ask, having attempted with unsatisfactory results the Aero grill install that requires modifying the cover.

05 MCS

 

On the aero grille does the bumper have to be cut?

 

dont trust those websites...those "oem" part sites can be shady.

 

check moss mini...they have three new mesh covers. dont know if that is what you are talking about though

 

No it doesn't, but that is, IMO, the best way to mount it.

Some have removed the recommended amount of material from the grille and the tabs also. They then use a rather strong industrial type glue to secure the grill to the bumper.

My history with those type glues (3M Trim Adhesive) is that they work well for awhile and then start to fail rather quickly. Especially in an application that will receive a lot of abuse, such as the front of a car.

I prefer to use a roto-zip/dremel type tool and cut new slots for the tabs, and apply an epoxy to the back side of the bumper where the tabs stick through. I just removed my aero grill and went with a chrome one, and that lower grill was more of a pain to remove then it was to mount! I will enlarge the slots a little bit if I put it back on.

 

I only assumed this was it because it comes in three trims...and seems like it would have no install problems

I'm not a huge fan of these...they seem a bit cheap since you can see the stock grill through the openings and it looks just glued on?

http://www.mossmini.com/Shop/ViewPro...eIndexID=45274

 

That might be what Euro Car Parts is selling, but that's not what I want. I'm wondering if they have made a grill to replace the original with no modifications. They haven't responded to my email.

I damaged my modified aero grill on the second trim attempt, so I guess I'll just order another aero grill and try again.

At least the bumper cover is easy to pull.

 

I can't believe that nobody makes an aero-looking grill for the stock bumpers. There seems to be HUGE demand for it. It doesn't make sense that you can replace nearly EVERYTHING on this car with somthing aftermarket except the one piece that gets asked about most often.

Joey

 

Well the thing is...there isnt a demand. You CAN fit the aero grills in the bumper. Where is the fun in modifying a car if you ONLY buy clip on parts. Its all about the little modifications you have to make to make your car that much more special.

It's really not that hard of a process to install the aero grill. It's boring to have all direct bolt-on, take that little extra step and modify your car

 

I have the top part of the black grill but the dealer told me the bottom will not fit. I heard from other people that with some mods you can do it.

Can anyone give some pics or a walk through?

thanks

kyle

 

check this out....
http://motoringfile.com/howto/MINI_a...ll_install.pdf

nice motoring
ugur

 

Those cheap *** covers look absolutely retarded.

I fitted the top aero grille today. I am reading up on how to install the lower grille and am leaning towards cutting new tab holes....

 

I've helped a couple buddies out with installing the grills, I'll be helping another next week sometime, I'll see if I can get him to take pics. while I work and post em for ya.
The Aero kit piece is to thick and just needs to be grinded down around the edges to sit flush with the bumper. While grinding down the edges, I'm making new tabs (marked off from stock lower grill) as I go. Instead of using any kind of glue, I pushed the new tabs thru and melted em flat on the backside of the bumper. hope this helps

James

 

I went with cutting new tabs. Here is a link to some pics I took with a little commentary
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=29829

Sorry for the way this link works, but the original post is from before the merge and the original link isn't working for some reason

I'm not inclined to melt the tabs, I've got 3 different grilles and I like to change the look every once in awhile

Good luck

 

I was going to order these and then remove the bars out of the grille and paint anything that can be seen of the old grille black.... plus, there isnt a carbon fiber aero grille, and thats what i want.....

 

be careful...this isnt even real carbon fiber....so is it worth it? And secondly....even after removing the bars, it will still look stuck on. If something is worth doing, its work doing right

 

i'm still prolly just gonna get an aero grille lol