Grill emblem / trim removal. 1st Gen how-to!

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04-01-2011, 05:04 AM
daug1502

5 Attachment(s)

Grill emblem / trim removal. 1st Gen how-to!

The weather was nice, and I didn't have anything to do the other day, So I did this.
Attachment 4081

Or in other words removed this.

Attachment 4082

It's a little ugly close up, but not bad for what most people will see.

And since this is a how to guide.

It's real simple. you will need a phillips screw driver and maybe something really flat but stiff to act as a light duty pry

Take the grill off of the car, it's just 3 screws and 2 clips

Now look at the back of the grill, you will see 5 screws across the top, one in the middle behind the chevy emblem (no it does not hold the chevy emblem and/or the trim in place, but there are screws that do that. if you want to paint the trim, this could be useful.) Also there are 4 clips across the bottom.
Attachment 4083 Attachment 4084

Remove the 6 screws and set them aside.

Now carefully unclip the trim from the rest of the grill. Take your time, mine were a little stubborn. This is where the pry came in handy, remember to not pry to hard.

Now the clip is off the grill. If you want a simple mesh grill you are done. Replae the screws and put the trim piece up somewhere for safe keeping. Replace the grill.

If you are painting the emblem, this is the half way point. Removed the 6 remaining scews (set them aside)

The emblem and chrome trim should come out easily, and then it's just the painting process. Reverse for the install after it's painted.

If there is more to taking the emblem apart please feel free to add it. I only went for the mesh look so never took off the emblem.

I will also be doing a de-badging how to for the rest of the car. this will take some time as I am now working two jobs, plus military, and a kid to take care of. I would also like the weather to be warmer so i'm not working as hard. (heated glue comes off easier than cold)
04-01-2011, 04:58 PM
FASTRAKR

Just for reference, I think I did mine in under 10 minutes. Makes a world of difference in looks.
04-01-2011, 05:55 PM
Daox

Nice DIY. I'm sure this'll help out quite a few folks looking for a simple mod to clean up the front end.
04-01-2011, 06:55 PM
daug1502

Thank You FASTRAKR and Daox. I wasn't in a hurry when I removed mine so didn't pay any attention to the time. As for writing the DIY, I am more than happy too. It's amazing how little information there is out there for beginners to do the simple mods. I have found more information on installing turbo's than I have found for Simple mods like this one.
04-03-2011, 01:49 PM
MatchboxKiller

I ended up putting mine back on. I did black out the chrome bar, remove the chevy symbol and paint the border green before I put it back on though. Gives it a good clean look with my black aveo
04-03-2011, 06:10 PM
daug1502

Yep, that was something else I had in mind when I wrote this mod, that is why I put in The information on removing the badge from the rest of the trim. I'm Glad to see the idea's being put out there. I know it's threads like this that give me a lot of ideas for my car, and how-to's help me accomplish some of them.
04-07-2011, 12:51 PM
seatbeltpads

I took mine off the other day, still getting a feel for it... I may do something different, not sure yet....
04-09-2011, 01:37 AM
daug1502

If I had the skill I would cut the bar out of the middle of my trim and fill the two side cuts with plastic, just to clean up the mesh a little bit. Basically make the trim into a sort of halo.
05-02-2011, 02:00 AM
Garbear

Quote:

Originally Posted by MatchboxKiller

I ended up putting mine back on. I did black out the chrome bar, remove the chevy symbol and paint the border green before I put it back on though. Gives it a good clean look with my black aveo

I was wondering if you could post a pic of this. Im thinking i would like to black mine out aswell but im not to sure yet and i dont want to paint it and not like it and have to buy a nother one to replace.
10-30-2011, 06:01 AM
aveonix

1 Attachment(s)

I cut the cross bar out then re-installed the lip around the grill opening. Didn't fill the gaps left when I cut out the crossbar, just filed the attachment spots flush and repainted. And I'm not ashamed to revive an old thread :P
Attachment 4902

Happy Driving,
Kirk
10-30-2011, 08:08 PM
daug1502

Quote:

Originally Posted by aveonix

I cut the cross bar out then re-installed the lip around the grill opening. Didn't fill the gaps left when I cut out the crossbar, just filed the attachment spots flush and repainted. And I'm not ashamed to revive an old thread :P
http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/attac...avgrill-sm-jpg

Happy Driving,
Kirk

Can you provide a closer picture of where the bar used to be, This may be what I am looking to do for mine. I want to see how clean it looks where the bar used to be. Thanks.
10-31-2011, 06:58 PM
aveonix

2 Attachment(s)

Since this is a daily driver and not something I'm showing off at all, I decided not to get picky about the grill appearance. If it bugs me I'll build it up with J-B Weld or some other filler then smooth and repaint, but it's just not noticeable from 10 feet away. When I hacked the crossbar out, I stayed about 1/16" away from the surround which I kept so as not to ding it with the hacksaw blade, then used a file and finally some 1200 grit paper to flatten and smooth it out.

Attachment 4909 Attachment 4910

Happy Driving,
Kirk
11-01-2011, 02:08 PM
daug1502

That doesnt look bad at all. Definitely something i will have to consider.
01-08-2012, 05:24 PM
radio_earbug

Nice work. I've been considerig this. I think with the emblem removed you might have a bit more air intake as well, yes? I haven't considered looking into where the cold air comes in.
01-08-2012, 06:44 PM
aveonix

Thanks. The cold air comes in at the front fender on the passenger side, straight down from the filter box in the engine compartment. I removed the giant resonator box (had to remove the fender well liner and pulling the right front wheel made it much easier) and the connector boot at the bottom of the filter box. Slight sound change, seems to rev better, no problems with getting the filter wet. I also got rid of the last muffler and put in a straight pipe, which has also made the breathing at the higher revs better and sounds sweet, IMHO.
02-24-2013, 05:23 PM
sflindall26

has anyone removed the emblem from the Second Gen? I have an 08 sedan and would love to know if someone has done this, and how they went about doing it!
03-08-2013, 10:14 PM
Sal_fresco

Inspiration

Quote:

Originally Posted by aveonix

I cut the cross bar out then re-installed the lip around the grill opening. Didn't fill the gaps left when I cut out the crossbar, just filed the attachment spots flush and repainted. And I'm not ashamed to revive an old thread :P
http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/attac...avgrill-sm-jpg

Happy Driving,
Kirk

Kirk, after reading the march update I saw your modification and a light bulb went off above my head. I had removed the cross bar about five years ago and it's just been sitting in storage. I preferred the look of the black mesh grill but it was always a ten footer at best. This morning I stopped by storage, picked up the grill insert and had at it with my dremel tool. After the initial cuts I took a blow torch and a razor blade, heated up the blade and made the cleanest cuts I could. Then I sanded the edges and shot it in high build primer. Tomorrow I'm going to paint it gloss black to match my hood. Thanks for the idea!

http://s22.postimage.org/u25ryk7lp/image.jpg

http://s13.postimage.org/woppjg8o3/image.jpg
03-20-2013, 08:46 AM
Sal_fresco

So here is my new paint job and my painted/ finished grill insert.

http://s8.postimage.org/b8dlc3fc1/image.jpg

http://s8.postimage.org/ku75se6ht/image.jpg

http://s24.postimage.org/qnl2jxtn5/image.jpg
http://s24.postimage.org/y4u9z5j69/image.jpg