ngravatt

i just did this. from what i read it is easier than the 2012 removal.

i made a DIY page since i could only find 2012 institutions:
whole process took about an hour.
http://www.nealgravatt.com/acura/2013/grill/

Also. i wrapped by beak with some carbon fiber vinyl wrap. comments are welcome, but dont be an ass just cause its not your style.

one guy said it makes it look cheap. maybe ti does. to each their own.

i am going to try a gloss black wrap once it comes in the mail.

C8N

I didn't know the grill can be removed without taking off the bumper as well. Thanks for the instructions!

Like the look... if you can post of pic with the grill on the car would be appreciated!

unkled20

I also didn't know that the grille could be removed without taking the bumper off! That's some great information for others. I already had mine painted and I took the bumper off. I wish I had your instructions before I did that.


Also, I do like the carbon fiber. It's something different than what you usually see. Great job.

Mr Marco

CF freak over here...

Thanks for the pics & info

Look out Crabby Justin, there's a sheriff with a new badge in town.

ngravatt

not the best light, but here is what it looked like this morning. ill see if i can get some better light when i get off work.

Jay Hope

Good stuff...I wish I had this info before I spent almost 3 hours replacing my grill.

ngravatt

more pic. looks better:

Threerick

Thank you, ngravatt. I've been looking for something like this for a while. I always love to DIY. Please post a pic when you do the Gloss black wrap, would love to see how this turns out.

boe_d

Nice job - a huge improvement.

weather

ngravatt....amazing job and looks really good!! Thanks for posting and providing ideas and tips for people wanting to modify their TL.

ngravatt

thanks guys. i will post some pics when i wrap the grill with the gloss. since the CF wrap is holding up so good, i really dont want to take CF wrap of now .

i may take the edges of the grill and wrap edge of the grill in gloss.

FireAtWill

is this 13+ exclusive? or can you take the grill off on a 09-11 without removing the bumper?

ngravatt

from what i read i think you may have to take the front bumper off of a '12 to remove the grill.

I think they were issues with removing the push pins that hold the bottom of the grill to the bumper, but i didnt have a problem pushing them back through with a long screwdriver. Some had recommended you take off the bumper and pull the pins out like your supposed to.

ngravatt

i do know that the rear bumper is different. someone told me you HAVE to remove the bumper to remove the rear garment chrome piece that sits there between the bumper and the trunk

91lgndsdn

Looks great, I've been thinking of doing the same only maybe a lighter more silver CF.

mrphilipanderson

Hey, OP, do you have the instruction on how to remove the grille?

SHMasta

He posted a link, here
2013 Acura TL SH-AWD Grill Removal

Also this will work on 09-11 as well with no issues.

I have been saying this over on the facebook group as well, I will share this thread.

Mike Bee

btw , the 2 Side pins are really hard to put back... after 1 hour spent on Them, i think i Will have to remove front bumper...

Anicra

Ya I definitely need to do this to get rid of the ding in the chrome someone did backing into me, not sure when. It is minor however I curse about it every day.

TLbullet

Old thread. Got bored and wanted to paint grill.
Thread is helpful. Process is painful and takes a while especially if ur hands are as fat as mine!!
This works but i was holding my breath along the process. Afaid to break any clips.
If you gonna take of the grill, just remove
the bumper. Probably easier and faster.
But if you want to be brave this thread works!

altair47

100% If the bolts on the fender liners are not rusty, then the bumper can be removed in 5 minutes.

4G.TL

Does anyone know anyone who can do this? Or anyone who sells these grilles?

altair47

Oh my God, how awful it looks. My eyes, I'm blinded by this ugliness XD

4G.TL

All of my hopes and dreams destroyed in one reply

altair47

Stop, everyone has different preferences, the picture shows that this is a grill from 2019 RDX, buy this grill (eBay lot number 184551502514), buy this emblem here (eBay lot number 294159902601
) take the saw, adjust the grill for the TL, and twist it from the inside, everything is simple. Honestly, I was shocked when I found out that Acura was selling these emblems for $ 400, they went crazy for a piece of plastic to ask for so much money.

Riboflavin

Last I saw, it was being done by a guy on Instagram called "blackwidowturbo". A couple people DMed him to get grills made, most got no responses, and someone somewhere was told they'd be $1k (reasonable, considering the parts cost + fab labor).

I went down that rabbit hole last year as my quarantine project and was going to recreate that grill myself, but didn't like the giant $200-300 Acura emblem in the front (front radar cover for the TLX), so I just went with powder coated aluminum hex mesh instead. I still have the diamond TLX mesh collecting dust lol.

4G.TL

I'm not the best at artwork, so it would be a real struggle for me to put together that grille. I'll see if anyone has any instructions on how to do it though.

echodigital

I would work on bolt on upgrades first if you have a 2012-2014 TL. i.e. Riboflavin's XLR8 J-Pipe / XLR8 Catback + HFPC before doing cosmetic upgrades. The 4G aero kit is a hard find these days so you may need to go aftermarket.

https://www.sarona.com/Acura/TL/Grill/Body%20Kit/

4G.TL

So I've decided on a whim to take this project on. I'm a bit busy at the moment with work and life, but will get to it as soon as possible. I searched the ebay lot number for the RDX grill and found it, but the emblem came up empty for me. Can you let me know what you searched for it? Was it as simple as "2019 Acura RDX grille emblem"?

echodigital

I give you kudos on the project! Maybe start a new thread for it to show your progress.

csmeance

Stupid emblem has the radar sensor for the safety systems, that's why it so expensive! Cheaper than the Acura RL one with CMBS, those used to be like $1800 for the emblem.

altair47

No, there is no radar. Radar is a separate part (36803-TJC-A13) for $ 540

.

4G.TL

The 2019 RDX grille came in, and I'm planning to pair it with the 2013 TL grille frame. I have no idea where to begin! Ideas are more than welcome.