motorjock205 Posted March 12, 2008 Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 Received my lower Billet grill this evening...UPS is soooooooo slow :-( Anyway, finally got everything lined up and mounted using 4 rivets...I know, 2 are good, but I figure 4 are better...Tried to take a few pics, but they didn't turn out good with my crappy little Olympus camera at dusk, so I'll grab a few tomorrow and post...But the front end looks finished now!!! I'm happy! :happy feet: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ngnear Posted March 12, 2008 Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 Did you go with the Chrome finish or Black? I also have the 08SGT and am trying to figure our which one to install. Post pictures when you have time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorjock205 Posted March 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 Did you go with the Chrome finish or Black? I also have the 08SGT and am trying to figure our which one to install. Post pictures when you have time. I went with the Chrome Billet grill to match the upper grill...I'm happy with the look. I thought about doing the black lower grill, but decided to go with the chrome billet just to keep it consistent. I've attached a pic to the original post now. Take a look and let me know what you think! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SGT1171 Posted March 12, 2008 Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 I like it. Last fall I purchased the chrome, but haven't installed it yet--waiting forthe fog light/brake duct kit to do everything at same time. Since I bought the lower grill, I've grown more accustom to the look without it, and started to think that the car looks so good anyway, that may be I should leave it(the lower grill off) off. But now I like the look of yours. Too many decisions to make, help me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ngnear Posted March 12, 2008 Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 I like the new look. Thanks for the Pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKurgan Posted March 12, 2008 Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 I like it. Last fall I purchased the chrome, but haven't installed it yet--waiting forthe fog light/brake duct kit to do everything at same time. Since I bought the lower grill, I've grown more accustom to the look without it, and started to think that the car looks so good anyway, that may be I should leave it(the lower grill off) off. But now I like the look of yours. Too many decisions to make, help me! I too have the lower grill and am waiting on the front brake ducts to come out, but I don't think they will be coming out anytime soon so I will probably end up installing mine here shortly to prevent more damage on the radiator. I guess I can always just rip out the old rivets and install new ones when the brake ducts finally come out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorjock205 Posted March 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 I too have the lower grill and am waiting on the front brake ducts to come out, but I don't think they will be coming out anytime soon so I will probably end up installing mine here shortly to prevent more damage on the radiator. I guess I can always just rip out the old rivets and install new ones when the brake ducts finally come out. Yup, my thoughts exactly...If we could be guaranteed that the brake duct/driving light kit would be out next week, I'd have waited, but I've already got a few bugs that have hit the fins hard enough to ding them some, so I want to do everything I can to prevent further damage... Rivets are cheap! LOL Besides, we'll have to do some cutting of the facia to put the new brake duct/driving light kit in anyway...prob. have to remove the lower grill anyway to do it, so no big deal...wasn't all that hard to do in the first place! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorjock205 Posted March 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2008 I like it. Last fall I purchased the chrome, but haven't installed it yet--waiting forthe fog light/brake duct kit to do everything at same time. Since I bought the lower grill, I've grown more accustom to the look without it, and started to think that the car looks so good anyway, that may be I should leave it(the lower grill off) off. But now I like the look of yours. Too many decisions to make, help me! JUST DO IT!!! It looks much better than a dinged up radiator down there! Darn thing looks unfinished anyway...it's something Shelby SHOULD have done in the first place...Well, FORD should have done it too on the GT/CS, because it has the same issue...oh well, SOMEONE SHOULD have done it without us having to spend more money! LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avidShelby Posted March 13, 2008 Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 Yup, my thoughts exactly...If we could be guaranteed that the brake duct/driving light kit would be out next week, I'd have waited, but I've already got a few bugs that have hit the fins hard enough to ding them some, so I want to do everything I can to prevent further damage... Rivets are cheap! LOL Besides, we'll have to do some cutting of the facia to put the new brake duct/driving light kit in anyway...prob. have to remove the lower grill anyway to do it, so no big deal...wasn't all that hard to do in the first place! Guys, if you want a guarantee, here it is. If you put the grille on THIS week, the brake duct/driving lights will be available NEXT week. Or you can wait and install your grille next week, then the brake duct/driving lights won't be available until the WEEK AFTER NEXT. And so on, and so forth... I can't take credit for this guarantee, there's a fellow named Murphy that takes care of things like this... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Macomb Mi 08 SGT Posted March 13, 2008 Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 Received my lower Billet grill this evening...UPS is soooooooo slow :-(Anyway, finally got everything lined up and mounted using 4 rivets...I know, 2 are good, but I figure 4 are better...Tried to take a few pics, but they didn't turn out good with my crappy little Olympus camera at dusk, so I'll grab a few tomorrow and post...But the front end looks finished now!!! I'm happy! :happy feet: Looks great! Is that the lower grille out of the Shelby catalog? Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mastersmech1 Posted March 13, 2008 Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 I've grown more accustom to the look without it, and started to think that the car looks so good anyway, that may be I should leave it(the lower grill off) off. I like the factory look too. It has the look of the old GT350R Shelby's of the 60's. The only reason I'd consider the grille is to prevent radiator damage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyGJ Posted March 13, 2008 Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 I couldn't decied between the Chrome or the Black, but I went with the Black to give it more of that blacked out appearance -- wanted the focus to be on the Upper Grill, not the lower grill when people see me coming. Shelby Performance Parts check on the tracking, and its due to arrive at my office tomorrow. Looks like the honey do list will have to wait this weekend!!! I'll send pics as soon as I have it installed. Andy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorjock205 Posted March 13, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 Looks great! Is that the lower grille out of the Shelby catalog? Don Yup, catalog has it listed at $79.95, but invoice said it was $74.95... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorjock205 Posted March 13, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 I like the factory look too. It has the look of the old GT350R Shelby's of the 60's. The only reason I'd consider the grille is to prevent radiator damage. Well, the radiator damage was my major concern too...Unlike many others, I DO DRIVE MY CAR! So, as a daily driver, I wanted the protection...in just a week, I've already seen a few dings from bugs hitting the lower portion of the grill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ski Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Received my lower Billet grill this evening...UPS is soooooooo slow :-(Anyway, finally got everything lined up and mounted using 4 rivets...I know, 2 are good, but I figure 4 are better...Tried to take a few pics, but they didn't turn out good with my crappy little Olympus camera at dusk, so I'll grab a few tomorrow and post...But the front end looks finished now!!! I'm happy! :happy feet: Since you have your grill installed I was wondering if you could offer some advice. First, I have been to the SAI instruction area and the install looked rather simple, but when I started working on my car I quickly realized it was not going to be that simple. I have no way to directly access under the front facia, there is a plastic plate under the entire front end. How did you access the front facia to drill the needed holes? Did you have to remove the plastic plate as well? Any help you can offer would be appreciated at this point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorjock205 Posted March 14, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Since you have your grill installed I was wondering if you could offer some advice. First, I have been to the SAI instruction area and the install looked rather simple, but when I started working on my car I quickly realized it was not going to be that simple. I have no way to directly access under the front facia, there is a plastic plate under the entire front end. How did you access the front facia to drill the needed holes? Did you have to remove the plastic plate as well? Any help you can offer would be appreciated at this point. YES, I had to remove that plastic piece that runs along the entire width of the front end....all of the fasteners have a phillips screw in the middle of them...just unscrew it then pull the fastener out...there are only two that are phillips screws only and those attach inside the wheel well into the inner wheel well liner. once all of the fasteners are out, just drop that piece down on the floor and do your install...I had trouble figuring out where to drill...I didn't have a drill small enough to drill from the inside through the holes in the grill into the front facia...I finally just guessed where the holes were by drilling into the facia and then into the grill...As I said, I used 4 rivets...I'm probably into overkill, but I don't want anything to fall out...LOL Once you get the grill all buttoned up, replace the plastic piece back under the front facia and button up all of the fasteners again and the two screws in the wheel wells and your all done! OH, ONE OTHER THING....BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL WHEN DRILLING THE BOTTOM TWO HOLES INTO THE GRILL!!! YOU CAN EASILY MAR THE BLACK PORTION OF THE FACIA WITH THE DRILL...I have a couple of very small marks now where the drill touched that portion of the facia... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twobjshelbys Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 YES, I had to remove that plastic piece that runs along the entire width of the front end....all of the fasteners have a phillips screw in the middle of them...just unscrew it then pull the fastener out...there are only two that are phillips screws only and those attach inside the wheel well into the inner wheel well liner. once all of the fasteners are out, just drop that piece down on the floor and do your install...I had trouble figuring out where to drill...I didn't have a drill small enough to drill from the inside through the holes in the grill into the front facia...I finally just guessed where the holes were by drilling into the facia and then into the grill...As I said, I used 4 rivets...I'm probably into overkill, but I don't want anything to fall out...LOL Once you get the grill all buttoned up, replace the plastic piece back under the front facia and button up all of the fasteners again and the two screws in the wheel wells and your all done! OH, ONE OTHER THING....BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL WHEN DRILLING THE BOTTOM TWO HOLES INTO THE GRILL!!! YOU CAN EASILY MAR THE BLACK PORTION OF THE FACIA WITH THE DRILL...I have a couple of very small marks now where the drill touched that portion of the facia... The holes on mine were too small to even get a 1/8 rivet through and one was overdrilled past the edge so it couldn't be drilled out, so I lined the grille up on the front and marked some pilot marks. Then I held the grille in with a string and drilled through the plastic with 3/16 bit to mark the holding plate, removed the grille, drilled where the pilot marks were and riveted it in. I wasn't going to get my drill in back to drill through anyway so I didn't bother removing the bottom plastic piece. You are right about the bottom portion of the fascia - have a scuff mark. Hardly noticeable except to a concourse judge, and there are some marks on similar plastic pieces that I know I didn't put there. However, I've learned a lesson - I'm going to cover every piece I work on with blue painters tape when I put in my HD radio/iPod kit and electrochromic mirror this weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ski Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 YES, I had to remove that plastic piece that runs along the entire width of the front end....all of the fasteners have a phillips screw in the middle of them...just unscrew it then pull the fastener out...there are only two that are phillips screws only and those attach inside the wheel well into the inner wheel well liner. once all of the fasteners are out, just drop that piece down on the floor and do your install...I had trouble figuring out where to drill...I didn't have a drill small enough to drill from the inside through the holes in the grill into the front facia...I finally just guessed where the holes were by drilling into the facia and then into the grill...As I said, I used 4 rivets...I'm probably into overkill, but I don't want anything to fall out...LOL Once you get the grill all buttoned up, replace the plastic piece back under the front facia and button up all of the fasteners again and the two screws in the wheel wells and your all done! OH, ONE OTHER THING....BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL WHEN DRILLING THE BOTTOM TWO HOLES INTO THE GRILL!!! YOU CAN EASILY MAR THE BLACK PORTION OF THE FACIA WITH THE DRILL...I have a couple of very small marks now where the drill touched that portion of the facia... Thanks that explains a lot. I just bought my 2007 SGT in February so I have been trying to dress it up before I take her out for the first time. I live in Michigan, so the way things are going it will be June. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grabber Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Thanks that explains a lot. I just bought my 2007 SGT in February so I have been trying to dress it up before I take her out for the first time. I live in Michigan, so the way things are going it will be June. Thanks again. These photos might help you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grabber Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardluck33 Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 All, Just did mine yesterday---what a pain in the a$$! I used zip ties to hold mine in place on the sides. I also discovered that the Grille was not drilled out properly to fit in the 1/8 by 1/2 rivets, I had to tear off the zip ties and re-drill the holes in the grille and make them larger. Proper alignment is the hardest thing to do with this... I did it alone and wish I had someone (i.e. my wife or one of the children) there to hold one side of the grille in place as I tried to center it for mounting. In the end it worked out but took me about 45 minutes, mainly due to having to tear it apart and re-drill after having everything in place. I will post pics this weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKurgan Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Grabber it looks like in this pic that you are putting a rivet way over to the right where it would not go into the mounting bracket on the grill. Am I seeing things here ? From the looks of the grill mounts, it appears there should be a rivet about 4 inches directly below that top one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grabber Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Grabber it looks like in this pic that you are putting a rivet way over to the right where it would not go into the mounting bracket on the grill. Am I seeing things here ? From the looks of the grill mounts, it appears there should be a rivet about 4 inches directly below that top one. Click on the pic to make it enlarge and you will see that I just finished installing the rivet to the left of the rivet gun. My son snapped the pic just as the rivit tool poped in the rivit and the tool kicked back to the right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ski Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Grabber it looks like in this pic that you are putting a rivet way over to the right where it would not go into the mounting bracket on the grill. Am I seeing things here ? From the looks of the grill mounts, it appears there should be a rivet about 4 inches directly below that top one. Looks to me as he is pulling the gun away from a rivet that he just placed. I think he is admiring quality craftsmanship, and taking pride in the fact that he was able to out smart the engineers. :happy feet: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grabber Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 All, Just did mine yesterday---what a pain in the a$$! I used zip ties to hold mine in place on the sides. I also discovered that the Grille was not drilled out properly to fit in the 1/8 by 1/2 rivets, I had to tear off the zip ties and re-drill the holes in the grille and make them larger. Proper alignment is the hardest thing to do with this... I did it alone and wish I had someone (i.e. my wife or one of the children) there to hold one side of the grille in place as I tried to center it for mounting. In the end it worked out but took me about 45 minutes, mainly due to having to tear it apart and re-drill after having everything in place. I will post pics this weekend. SAI had 2 holes in oppisite corners drilled in mine. They were useless. You have to hold the grill exactly in place and drill a pilot hole thru the plastic and score the grill flange in the exact drilling location. Then drill the 4 holes and rivet it into place. It took me 45 minutes once I figured it out. Since it came with no instructions, you have to think out of the box. I figured the 2 holes that SAI had drilled into the flanges were for them to hold it while they painted it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grabber Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Click on this Pic to enlarge and you will see the 2 useless holes that mine came with. Here are my temporary tie-wire rigging devices to hold the grill while I drilled my pilot holes and installed the rivets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKurgan Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Next stupid question.... Are you saying that you are guessing where to hit the hole on the mounting bracket when drilling from the front? Has anyone tried to poke through from the backside of the grill out through the front with a pocket knife or something or is there not enough room for that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grabber Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Next stupid question.... Are you saying that you are guessing where to hit the hole on the mounting bracket when drilling from the front? Has anyone tried to poke through from the backside of the grill out through the front with a pocket knife or something or is there not enough room for that? There is no way to mark the existing hole from the back side and transfer it accurately to the front. This is what I did. 1. I held the grill on the front of the car to get an idea where the flanges would lay out on the plastic facia. I then marked those spots on the plastic facia. 2. I then drilled the 4 holes in the plastic facia. You have to be right on. 3. I then held the grill into position with my tie wire rigging and while holding it in place, I took my drill and stuck the bit thru the plastic holes and drilled a score mark in the metal grill flange. 4. I then drilled the holes in the flanges. 5. I then put the grill into position and did a dry fit of the rivits to make sure they all worked. 6. I them rivited the grill into place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twobjshelbys Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Next stupid question.... Are you saying that you are guessing where to hit the hole on the mounting bracket when drilling from the front? Has anyone tried to poke through from the backside of the grill out through the front with a pocket knife or something or is there not enough room for that? Here's what I did: I held the grille up to the hole in front with the flange in front. Then I used something to mark where the 4(ea) 1/8 original pilot holes were (approx). Then I put the grille into the proper location (as shown as everyone has done, with string to pull towards you to hold it in place. Then I used the marks as a guide, and went to the left a little, and drilled the holes through the plastic so the drill would leave a mark on the flange. I used 3/16 drill/rivets since I didn't think 1/8 was good enough and since I was drilling new holes anyway. There are some instructions with the grille (at least with the billet one) but they aren't too useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twobjshelbys Posted March 14, 2008 Report Share Posted March 14, 2008 Here's what I did: I held the grille up to the hole in front with the flange in front. Then I used something to mark where the 4(ea) 1/8 original pilot holes were (approx). Then I put the grille into the proper location (as shown as everyone has done, with string to pull towards you to hold it in place. Then I used the marks as a guide, and went to the left a little, and drilled the holes through the plastic so the drill would leave a mark on the flange. I used 3/16 drill/rivets since I didn't think 1/8 was good enough and since I was drilling new holes anyway. There are some instructions with the grille (at least with the billet one) but they aren't too useful. One more thing: Please note that there is a top and bottom. At least on the billet grill I got, the louvers have a slant to them. My main grille slanted down from front to back as did the lower grille. Make sure you match. I don't know if anyone would know if you put it in upside down except a concourse judge... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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