Accent Grille Block Material Suggestions?
 

You can see that the Accent has two ways to get air through the radiator. The bottom opening seems a good place to start as the fans are in behind the upper. Because there would be quite a recess were I to put a back cover on the lower grille, I think placing something in front may be more desirable. Small screw holes don't distress me and I have a scrap piece of 4x8 plexiglass lying around. Worried about the durability of anything I use down there because of rocks and such. Plexiglass won't stay clear long, and paint will get messed up, no matter what the material is. I don't really want to buy black plastic, but it seems a better strategy. I would need something long, but not that wide (max is a bit less than 5"). It'd be better if it could be one continuous piece, which means a length of a little over 5'. Maybe the edging you see in some gardens? I assume that's got some UV resistance since it's intended for long term outdoor use.

Any other suggestions? Thanks.

https://www.gassavers.org/garage_imag...mrmdaukkll.jpg

Looks like the same design as my car, with the smallish body-colored upper grille and huge gaping black plastic lower grille.

Here's what my ugly lower grille block looks like:
https://www.gassavers.org/showthread....641#post124641
I made it from coroplast, a popular aero mod material. I used some tinted plexiglas-like stuff (I don't know exactly what it is, I salvaged it) on my truck but took it off after a month or two because of my transmission temperature. I painted my white coroplast with a lot of layers of adhesion promoter, flat black spraypaint, and Plasti-Dip spray. 3,100 miles later no touch-up is necessary.

Someone else on this forum has plexiglas that he painted and used for his upper grille, I think on a Saturn, and it looks great.

Your block looks really good and is exactly what I had in mind. I'm sure small flaws always look a lot worse to the person who created it. I know the car's paint does OK (well, duh!), but was skeptical of DIY finishes. Thanks.

plexi-glass all the way.

I would say to cover the top one and see how it does and then cover parts of the bottom one. I discovered that the design of my car makes it get all of it's cooling from the bottom. that is the ONLY reason that I made mine permanent and to cover the entire thing.

I would also get some sort of temp gauge or indicator for the fan. I remember you saying you didn't have that on your car. it may be something easy to add. I wouldn't do it until you got some sort of indicator. you don't want to overheat it.

*edit* you could also use plexi on the top one and mark where the symbol is and cut out a hole for that so that it looks more factory. I did that on my wife's element. it was about the only way I could get her to agree to letting me do it. a pic of it is in my garage under her car "ellie mae"
https://www.gassavers.org/garage_imag...k915nmt28o.jpg

Definitely a good idea. I'm actually bidding on that Scangauge II, but don't expect to win it. It would be ironic to pick up a used Scangauge for significantly less than the one I sold. Probably end up with a light (or buzzer) hooked to the fan.

Was just at my hardware store and that garden edging stuff actually looks pretty good. They only had green in stock and it came in 20' rolls, but it's still in the running. Not that I don't love painting and all...

Did you outbid me? I didn't bid very high and won't go back to add to my bid.

Lemme check...It's at $52.11. I expect that to shoot up once it's a little closer to closing.

Wow Beef! That's amazing! I'm sure it's part of the picture angle but I had to go back and forth between the picture and the post to make sure I was looking for a grill block. If it wasn't for the zipties I wouldn't have been able to make it out. Good job with that! https://www.gassavers.org/garage_imag...k915nmt28o.jpg

How about a cheap, black plastic trashcan?

https://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=8907

https://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=8927

Within its size restrictions, that's a great option! Does it hold up to UV OK? There's also this plastic place I know in Burlington I should give a call, since I'll be nearby soonish.

The trashcan plastic can be cut down to any smaller size. It has held up well, and shows absolutely no signs of deterioration yet. Not even any color fading.

aalb1,

I made a template out of paper, cut the main shape, fit it into place, outlined the emblem with a sharpie, used a dremel to cut out the opening. it did take a while as I wanted a tight fit. put it on, take it off, cut a little, put it on, take it off, cut a.....you get the idea.

if you are coming towards her and the sun is behind you, the glare sometimes gets you. other than that, it's close to invisible.

the zip ties is because she told me that if she didn't like it, it was coming off. if you look at the other pic in her garage (lol, her garage) you can see that there isn't even any radiator behind it. just for looks. is it helping? she drives it not me so the jury is still out on that one.

I used this to make my tire deflectors... I was amazed at how thick it was. It seems very flexible and durable too.

:thumbdown: to having to cut plexiglass (or anything plastic) with a Dremel. I just wish there was another way to get great precision with another tool without melting the plastic :mad:

Once again that grill block is great beef!

If you use the right bit and go slow it won't melt, but what's so bad about melting it? Just shave off the melted edges with a knife after.

Otherwise, there's always the good old coping saw.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._saw_(PSF).jpg

I used a piece of sand paper to get rid of the melted areas. usually I would have to make two passes. one would melt it significantly and the second would clean out most of the melted material.

I used the potato chip cut off wheel I did pretty good. only broke one of them. man those things are fragile

I hate those potato chip cutoff wheels. The diamond ones are cheaper in the long run and work a lot better, though I guess I'd be afraid of clogging it on plastic.

With the dremel, I'd use a drill saw. There's two kinds:
https://www.anchortools.com/data/images/119l.jpghttps://www.homedepot.ca/wcsstore/Hom...1565.560_4.jpg

Otherwise, I might use a jigsaw for details.

For the one I cut for my truck, I just used my little cordless circular saw. I tried it with the blade forward and backward, and I can't remember which way worked better. An abrasive blade probably would have worked well, too; abrasive blades are great for cutting vinyl siding, so I imagine they'd be good for other/thicker plastics.

Also, it helps to screw the material to a piece of sacrificial plywood.

A router with a blade for cutting laminate countertops would probably be PERFECT.

I'd probably use my little bandsaw for the rough cuts, then grind it for an exact match. Usually for such work I glue the paper template to the part. Never done anything this big, though.

Look around. I've seen that stuff in black...

the drill saws that you speak of tend to get away from me pretty easily, especially in my cordless dremel because it is so light. try cutting a straignt line with one, it can be fun.

the larger cut off wheels do work better but the potato chip cut off wheels were on hand and came in the accessory kit with the dremel. christmas presant from the parents. they give the best stuff

My dinky local place would just have to order it. Since the local place also tends to be pricey, I'm going to check Home Depot out next time I'm near it (it's 1.5 hrs away, so I'm not making a special trip!).

By "potato chip" you mean those super thin disc type wheels, right? Don't own a Dremel.

Yeah, he means the super thin abrasive discs. The diamond wheels I was talking about are the same exact size and shape, not larger; they're just tougher, made of metal.

$4 @ Harbor Freight: https://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=31501
https://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/pho...1599/31501.gif

Those as fragile as they look? I had fun grinding some welds on my homemade rip fence before I bought an angle grinder. I used my bench grinder. VERY good arm workout!

The diamond-coated metal ones I posted above are tough as nails, I haven't managed to hurt one yet and I abuse the hell out of 'em. You can cut with them, patiently or by shoving too hard; you can also grind with their surface.

The cheap abrasive ones that come with every dremel, usually in a can of a few dozen, are absolutely useless, I don't know how anyone cuts anything with them. I only have to look at them sideways and they break.

https://i5.ebayimg.com/06/i/001/33/32/a439_1.JPG

those chip disks are actually better than the ones I use. mine are the same material thourghout. just a hole in the center.

depending on what you are cutting, it will actually burn the disc down. cutting some metal tubing, I actually used one up before I broke it. I think that is a first (for me anyways). if you put any pressure on it at all from the side or twist it in the material it will snap. I usually break it getting it out of the drill or when I go to get it for another project. you don't buy one though, you get a small container with like 25 or so in it.

I have seen the metal ones, they are nice and the one I saw was much larger. not sure if my dremel would handle it. I have the really cheap one. I think it is a lite?

*edit* cow, you beat me to it. those are the ones and they are difficult to work with but I never think about it when I am in town to get any of the others.

How thick does grille block material reasonably have to be if well supported behind it? Actually, let me be more specific: how thin could it be? I've got some weird ideas for adjustable grille blocks and the moving part would have to be flexible if any curving of the block were required.

My front grill and the horizontal bar and Hyundai logo can all come out pretty easily, although I don't want to do anything that can't be reversed in less than 15 minutes or so in case I need to use my warranty. I plan to keep the tools needed to do so in the trunk just in case.

Duct tape works as a temporary grille block. As long as the material you choose is structurally sound at that thickness you're ok.

-Jay

Turns out I do have a temp sensor after all! Seems pretty obvious now that I've spotted it, so I'm not sure how I missed the description in the manual. Oops. It displays a red thermometer if the temperature of the coolant gets above 253.4 +/- 37.4 F. So at least I don't need to bother rigging anything to the fan. Obviously I can be pretty vigilant when testing, but I sort of wish it had a buzzer in case later on it comes on and I don't notice it right away. I guess I could rig one and I'm pretty sure I have a couple 12VDC buzzers lying around.

Hey,

I have the 2008 Accent. I bought some 1 inch pipe insulation. The grey foam kind and cut them to fit in the gaps. The fit snug and they stayed stuck as they expanded. They look pretty good too.

I did it because I am in Canada and wanted to block the cold air coming into the engine compartment. Worked like a charm! They stayed in place all winter. I have a ScanGuage and used it to watch the cold ait intake and engine temps. The engine warmed quickley and stayed warm longer. Cost me $7, 5 minutes to install and my local hardware store had them in stock.

Interesting idea! I have some of that lying around.

A slightly more refined version could involve cutting some foam to fit. Think I chucked some 2" foam board but I'll take a look.

Nah, I chucked it. 2" would work pretty nicely so maybe I'll pick some up. Wish I had a hot knife.

Adjustable grille block design
 

Designing an adjustable grille is fairly easy if starting from scratch, but I wanted to see what could be done for retrofits. I figured that any block would need to be very thin and also be able to curve (at least in one direction). I also wanted a shape that was aerodynamically clean in any position and reasonably attractive (that one is debatable...). Here's the geometry that seemed simplest. The moveable part would be supported by the fixed one, which could also have a support grid underneath the openings. The sliding part could be made very thin so that it could negotiate a curve. This means it would need to be pulled, not pushed so a return spring would be required. It would be cleaner to have the fixed part outside, but the need to support the thin moving one takes priority. A purely decorative outer cover could be one way to address this (or possibly a grid shaped inner layer, maybe using those light diffuser grids you see at hardware stores). If space were at a premium a control cable could be used to a remote actuator. It only attains a maximum of 50% opening in theory (less in practice), but there's no reason part of the grille area couldn't be left totally unblocked to allow for various ratios of flow in higher cooling scenarios. There are a variety of ways a track could be made for the sliding part (not shown). https://www.fuelly.com/attachments/fo...ba787cf9ec.jpg

that has been discussed somewhat on here before.

the easiest way to adjust it would be a choke cable or similar type cable. remember though, you only have so much movement in a chok cable. you could put some sort of lever in place.

I was considering something like this for my car. my car is a special case. it gets about 90% of it's cooling from under the bumper. I was thinking of closing off that opening with something like that. I was going to use plexi-glass (plastic sheeting from lowes) to do it and just cut some thin strips in which to make the L-bracket for the track.

money is tight and time tighter for me right now so that one will take a while. I did block off that area with coroplast before and my car almost immediately overheated. the temps just kept rising. I ripped it off and went back to the drawing board.

*edit* I found the post where it was briefly discussed
https://www.gassavers.org/showthread....ighlight=block

By adjusting the slot widths, you can theoretically accommodate different strokes. It may require connections in the middle to add back in some more strength, depending on the exact dimensions.

I considered some much more radical designs but this seemed easiest. Linear slots and a washer/standoff combo could provide an easy track. On of the weirder ideas was for arms that had a rubber membrane stretched very tightly over it. That could allow in theory for greater than 50% opening. I explored a few rotary ideas but they didn't accommodate a curve very nicely.

I don't plan to implement this myself. I just don't drive enough to justify the effort.

50% ought to be fine for most hypermilers in most vehicles. If you're towing a camper up a mountain in the summer, maybe not.

A bicycle derailer cable should work to operate it, and using a bicycle shifter it may be possible to get enough travel. If so, a modern bicycle shifter will offer indexed, partial movements, allowing you to adjust it quite finely. You may need to buy a length of bulk cable and housing from a local bicycle shop or online retailer instead of a pre-cut kit, in order to get it long enough.

If you're not familiar with modern bicycle shifters, I'm thinking one like this:
https://cdn.mos.bikeradar.com/images/...-90-480-70.jpg
It has one lever that pulls the cable, ratcheting up to three clicks in a single push, and another lever (not visible in that picture) that releases it one click at a time. It's also got a display to show you what gear you're in. There are other designs, but I think that one (except maybe with a different display) would work great.

Come to think of it, if it doesn't provide enough travel, a bicycle derailer could multiple the travel and is already setup to work with that cable.

Does anyone know how Basjoos put his adjustable grille block together?

I wish he (basjoos) was more active here. he has a lot of knowledge to share. he would probably be easier to find at ecomodder but I only have time for one forum.

he has comented on here a few times but not on that (I don't think)

He has that extended front to work with, so it gives you a lot more design possibilities, so I'm not sure how much would trasnlate.

it may not for you, but for me it would translate almost perfectly. I have an opening on the underside of my car between the bumper and the radiator. that is the only place that air is getting in. I do have a 6 inch gap between my hood and bumper but the purpose for that is to be able to unlatch my hood.

I think that you could still apply the concept. I am sure he tried some stuff that didn't work and he could at least steer us clear of those things.

I think I am going to try and PM him. I doubt it will be answered but it would be cool if it did get answered. we shall see.

6"? That gives you a lot of choices. I'll start thinking thinking along those lines.