Crashmaster

I have a 2015 TLX w/Advance w/Aero package. I decided that I would like to make my TLX stand out a bit and get rid of that all too common chicken beak that has plagued Acura for many years. I realize that some people like it, I do not. If you wish to do this mod, here are the instructions. I utilized a lift in my garage to do this. If you don’t have a lift, be prepared to either do some crawling on your back. Below are the steps.

• With vehicle on ground, open the hood, unfasten about 8 plastic push connectors above grille. Use of a small flat screwdriver is all that is necessary. There are also about four 10mm bolts that also must come out.
• Raise vehicle. Remove about 10 plastic push connectors under grille. Remove about five 10mm bolts that hold the bottom spoiler and lower bumper. In each fender well, remove one 1.5 inch Philips screw and two plastic push connectors that are nearest the bumper.
• Lower vehicle to remove front bumper assembly. As you pull the bumper back about 6 to 10 inches, reach in on both sides and unplug the fog lights. Lay bumper on a few towels to prevent scratching.
• The Chicken Beak can now be removed. Remove about 10 small Phillip screws. The grille has 3 or 4 plastic spring clips built in, so be careful when bending these to remove the grille, they appear to break easy. The grille comes out the front.
• Reassembly is just the reverse.

Here are some pictures of this procedure. I decided to prime and paint the chicken beak. After it dried for a few days, I put on some 3m paint protective film, a clear urethane plastic employing a clear coat finish. Because this chicken beak is susceptible to rocks or road debris, I didn’t want my newly painted chicken beak getting damaged, so I applied this 3m film.
Overall, I would say that to disassemble took about 1 hour and to reassemble took about 45 minutes. Keep in mind that I have a lift, so add about 15 or more minutes to each for doing on jack stands or ramps.
If you have any questions concerning this procedure, let me know. I’m happy to assist.

Hoosier_TLX

That looks like you did a nice job and in my opinion, the key is leaving the chrome surround and the logo the way you did (unaltered). I have considered doing a similar, but for now I still like the look of the "beak".

I thought I read that on the Advance models we should try to avoid putting anything additional over the beak because it can negatively affect the ACC or some of the radar based systems. You may want to look into that, but if you start experiencing some issues that may be the reason.

mapleloaf

Nice work and better than many similar jobs I have seen on a variety of models. That being said, I personally do not like the blacked out look that seems popular these days. I have seen the look deployed on various types of cars in a variety of ways. I thought the Chrysler Sebring back end blackout that I saw today was the best, only because it made it more difficult to identify the car as a Chrysler Sebring

Bottom line, it's a personal choice, and I congratulate you on the workmanship.

miner

Clear film should not cover the 'beak' because of the CMBS. It will affect the operation of the design.

Crashmaster

Do you have a specific source for this? Also see:


https://acurazine.com/forums/fifth-g...-did-i-931563/

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

Good job! But I am more interested in the fact you have a LIFT in your garage!! Wow, that is definitely on the wishlist someday. Is it a professional one or one that is made more for home use? If so, where did you get it? Did it require professional installation?

Crashmaster

I actually custom built the garage around the lift. I had the contractor bury some concrete barrels under where I was going to mount the lift footing. I knew I wanted a 10,000 pound lift, and using a one square foot mounting plate would have to otherwise be very thick concrete underneath. With the barrels, I was able to get by with 5 inches of concrete throughout the garage.

As for the lift, I picked a Worth lift out of Texas. They are not the most expensive nor the cheapest, but provided what I was specifically looking for which was:

1) Asymmetric (Meaning the posts are angled so that you can open a car door without banging it into the posts). Angled about 30 degrees.

2) 10,000 capacity, so that I can lift most all cars and trucks.

3) Overhead style - (meaning that the connecting cables and supports) are connected at the top of the lift as opposed to on the floor under a metal tray. I wanted this so that I could hide the upper cables and supports in the attic. Sort of giving the illusion of just two free standing columns.

4) Heavy Duty maintenance free upper bearings - as I was planning on boxing in the upper section of the lift and did not want a lift that required oiling or greasing frequently. After installation, I sheet rocked everything back up.

I have had thislift now for about 12 years and don’t ever regret having installed it.

Worth sent me the lift ‘motor-freight’ from Texas. The truck company would not deliver to a home residence, so I had to rent myself a U-haul to pick it up at the Yellow Freight depot. My wife and I picked it up and the trucking company loaded it into the U-haul trailer with a forklift. The weight of the lift was about 2300 pounds all parts strapped together.

When we got it home, we had to unpackage it in the U-haul and move the separate components into the garage as I had no fork lift. That was not easy as the columns were very heavy. I did find out that my wife has a very strong back!! Once I made the appropriate measurements, I had to rent from Home Depot a Heavy Duty concrete drill and purchased concrete anchors. While I had the drill I installed a few extra anchors around the garage for pulling body panels. I cut a slot about 8 foot by 2 foot into the garage sheet rock ceiling, we installed the upright posts, bolted it all together, put in hydraulic fluid and then wired it up. It runs on 230volt 50 amp. Keep in mind that you only run the lift about 45 seconds while going up only. Going down does not use the motor. The lift does use quite a bit of momentary electricity, so if you are on a 200 amp service, you could blow your breaker in the hot of summer.

Worth told me that they could send someone out to install the lift at the cost of $400. I declined, on the belief that I could probably do it better. I took my time and did a good job.

All lifts require that you check the mounting bolts regularly for tightness, grease the slides in the columns, check cable tension, and minor lubrication. The cost of the lift by itself was about $2500 and it came with free shipping. With the U-haul trailer, drill rental, hydraulic fluid, and other things, probably add about another $250. What was the cost of maintaining the lift for the last 12 years? About $100 (being some grease, oil, and blue and yellow spray paint for touch up).

In purchasing a lift, don’t buy the cheapest or the most expensive. Decide on what you need and then find a lift that will suit your needs. A mechanic friend of mine is 6 foot 10 inches. He dealt with a lift company that was able to modify the lift to make it go higher than normal so that it would allow him to fully stand up under a car. Again, find a lift that suites YOUR needs.

My neighbors, friends, relatives all love me for my lift. In the winter or during a hail storm, we often will put a vehicle on the lift and then drive another vehicle under it. That way we can get 4 cars into a 3 car garage. If you have a large tractor or large mower, you can get an attachment for the lift to raise your tractor up like a car.

Doing transmissions, engines, lots of brake jobs, and my CSI work, I’m sure the lift paid for itself in less than 6 months. I can’t imagine having to get out the ole creeper. My back really appreciates it too! And yes, my wife really does come out and often helps me install transmissions and engines when necessary. She is a good sport about this, just as I am when she shops at the Coach store.

If you have any specific questions about a lift, feel free to ask.

Hoosier_TLX

^^ My brother has a lift in his shop and it is so useful. I wish I lived closer just so I could use it occasionally. OK, I'd like to see him and his family too I guess.

ltommylel

ahhh. This is exactly what I wanted to do to my TLX grille. I always leave it to the professionals to do this type of work because I don't trust myself with doing a good job. I've been trying to find an auto shop thats willing to do this type of service but no luck here in northern california. They said its pointless since the paint won't stick onto it. I think the only way is to carefully do it myself..

Can you also walk me through the painting process that you did? For example like.. what primer to use... how fine the sand paper should be when I sand it down and etc.

Crashmaster

If you are not familiar with painting I would not suggestsanding, priming and painting it yourself. Because of the size of this piece ofplastic, I would strongly suggest that you just take this part into your localpaint shop and ask them to prime and paint it. I cannot imagine it costing verymuch. Afterwards, if you wanted to add a layer of plastic, that is your option.I did because I don’t want a rock chip ruining my hard work on this piece. Iwish I could tell you absolutely specifics, but I had my paint buddy come overand after a few beers, not sure what grit paper he used.

SPECIAL NOTE: If you have the TLX Advance, you must makesure that the primer, paint or 3m plastic contain nothing metallic otherwise itwill affect the CMBS (Collision Mitigation Braking System) or ACC (AdaptiveCruise Control) radar. I am not an expert in millimeter radar or have precise instrumentsto measure the output, but driving the car using the CMBS and ACC before andthen after, I cannot detect any difference in the distance. Many Acura dealershave an option of painting your beak and do it exactly this same way.

ltommylel

I dont have the adv package. So I don't have to worry about CMBS or ACC. Thank you for your tip though. I definitely won't attempt painting it myself. I'm actually leaning more towards just wrapping it with glossy black vinyl. and btw.. None of this altering the color of the grille is gonna void any manufacture warranties right? Are they going to play that blame game since were removing the front bumper just to paint/wrap a grille?

Crashmaster

As long as you put the grille back in correctly (just like it was before), no, there will be no problem with the warranty.

ltommylel

I went with the wrapping option and here is the final result!

mapleloaf

BTW, it hasn't really looked like a "beak" since the 09 TL. If the first appearance was the front grill's current iteration, the comments would be more positive than they are. I was more than fine with my 2009, 2010, and 2012 TSX grills and really do like my TLX front. Love it or hate it, the "beak" word no longer fits. I realize I am "beaking" a bit. BTW, at least you can change it up….imagine if you were stuck with the Lexus/Toyota front end "thing"!

9SpeedTran

It's cool the way the Acura logo seems to float in the grill.

PrinInvest119

Very nice Transformation of the Painted Grille. It gives it a Classic look and an Athletic Appearance.

BEAR-AvHistory

Nice job to both. Looks better than the factory version.

JohnInVT

Did they have to remove the grill to do this?

Civic2TSX

No, I have the same thing and they did not have to remove the grill to wrap it.

steig

Nice Job, great write-up

VenomInside

Well done. Great write-up to boot!

9SpeedTran

How durable is the wrap? Will it withstand rocks etc.?

Civic2TSX

It's standing up pretty well, IMO. It's been on since about March 2017 and still looks great! Pics were taken 12.21.2017.

9SpeedTran

How much did it cost, if I may ask? It looks like they used a thin vinyl film, is that correct? Thanks!!!

Civic2TSX

$80 bc I originally had the chrome trim wrapped too so he charged me $40 per vinyl piece. After about a week, I took off the outline and I like that look better. So it prob would have cost $40-50, if I would have just got it done the way it is now. BTW, today is the 1 year anniversary of my getting my 2017.