BrianC72gt

<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/68070/a8_grill.jpg"></center><p>So, last week, I did the oil cooler service and wrote a tome about it. Anyway, I finished up and started the car to idle for half an hour to ensure there were no leaks, 5 Heinikens in, so then I start wondering about when I'm going to make new grills for the foglights out of that sheet of stainless mesh sitting in the garage, then I start looking at the grill and then out come the snips and well....see for yourself. I feel like I woke up in Vegas married to a hooker...is it too pimpin??

It is totally reversible. The little recessed chrome button on top is actually the hood release. Oh yeah, I swapped out the black pull tongue for a replacement bathroom sink drain pull handle cut and bent it around to accommodate. $3.00 from the local hardware store.

Your thoughts?

tozoM8

I am thinking about to make a new grille without the rings. It would make the car look wider.

BrianC72gt

<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/68070/img_3385.jpg"></center><p>
Here is a photo of the new hood release pull from underneath. I removed the hood latch ground the rivet holding the old pop out black tongue, knocked out the rivet and remounted the latch. I then bent the $3 chrome drain pull in a vise and test fitted it several times placing a couple of bends in it to get it more centered and tilted slightly upward at the head to match the slope of the grill. It is also almost flush as I made a little depression all around it on the grill front.

Keep it or chalk this one off as a bad idea??

P.S. the Stainless grill material is from a sheet I ordered from Pegasus Auto racing supply...medium sized openings...I think...$30 for a sheet??<ul><li><a href="http://www.pegasusautoracing.com/group.asp?GroupID=SCREEN">Pegasus Auto racing supply</a></li></ul>

A8AWD

on another forum members car while surfing through picture posters. I'll see if I can find the pic. It was on a black car. How did you secure everything? Nice work.

testarossaguy

I've always wondered how that would look. Thanks for doing this job. I think it looks nice. I've tossed around the idea of doing the same thing to my A8. Hmmm...gonna have to study your pic for a while. Well done!

A8AWD

<ul><li><a href="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/51726/t-316_stainless_steel_woven_mesh.jpg">http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/51726/t-316_stainless_steel_woven_mesh.jpg</a</li></ul>

BrianC72gt

<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/68070/img_3383.jpg"></center><p>A shot from the passenger's side of the new hood release pull. I know a nut is still loose in this photo, and i did just bend the front guide pin up out of the way...no needed as the grill acts as a guide.

The mesh was first secured to the chrome plastic grill surround with...hmmm...lets see what we have lying around....ahhh a caulk gun sized tube of high temp automotive silicone...oh nuts its red...oh well...turns out you can't see it from the front. I used maybe 8 or 10 spring clamps to hold it while it set up overnight. I used black Butyl tape from an autobody supply store to secure it into the opening. I think this is the same stuff they use to secure windshields. In hindsight, black silicone would be easiest for both.

BrianC72gt

I thought about retaining the stock hood release "tongue" but it would require a fairly big cutout like in that photo. Also, I had the grill naked for a day and thought it looked too naked, my brother (man of very few words) agreed, so then I stuck on the logo sans plastic tabs. I don't know if it is the light or the blackout treatment, but that black one looks...a little too much? Maybe black primer on the fog light grills would quiet things down a little? Anyone handy with photoshop? Hmmm maybe without the chrome grill surround it looks a little lost? Hard to tell from that photo.

jazbo123

As long as you don't F up the airflow, it's cool.

Jkay

That's not bad at all.