Not really. The lower grill is a large area and would take a really long time to print. As it is, those upper grill blocks take about 3 hours for a set. IMO, coroplast works great and is much cheaper than I could 3d print something. Its probably lighter too.
Just ordered an upper grill block. What colors you got?
I have white, black, silver/grey, blue, pink, and green spools available now. If you really want another color, we can figure something out.
My car is red so I think blue would look good
You got it. :encouragement:
If you haven't made it yet yellow would be better lol. I grew up in Wisconsin. Maybe get some Green Bay colors n ****
I can do yellow, but you'll have to wait for me to order the filament and get it in. That'll add a week to delivery. If you're okay with that, I am.
Somehow 20 degrees Fahrenheit doesn't sound to me like a temperature that would necessitate grill blocking, and it doesn't sound like cold winter weather for Wisconsin, but Daox has the coolant temp data to support this step, so what do I know.
I do remember my Dad, and others of his era, recommending putting a big rectangle of corrugated cardboard, between the radiators and chrome bumpers of their 1950-60s American sedans and station wagons, when the coldest part of winter arrived (10 to -20 F.) in northern Illinois, where we lived at the time. Then, later, my wife and I would have to tape over most of the grill slots on our air-cooled 1977 VW bus (the grills were on the upper rear sides of the vehicle) for the engine to kick out enough warm air to defrost the windshield in the worst part of winter. And surely others have seen the radiator covers on long haul semi-trucks--they even have zippers on them now for adjusting how much of the grill they cover or leave open! Daox, what about zippers?
There is something I don't understand, Daox: In post #2 of this thread the LARGE lower grill area is open, but, in all of the other posts, your pictures show the large lower grill area blocked, too. Why would you need to block that little slot if the entire large grill is blocked? Did you write about how you blocked the large grill in an earlier thread?
The farther the engine is from normal operating temperature (~180F), the longer it takes to warm up. The longer the engine takes to warm up, the more fuel it burns. Anything done to speed up warm up times is going to save on fuel, and get you heat faster which is always a plus.Quote:
Originally Posted by DonkeyPal
The Toyota Prius (and a few other vehicles) actually use a heat exchanger in the exhaust to speed up engine warm up times. Here is an image of a Chevy setup:
Attachment 14383
That is certainly a valid setup. I'm not very handy working with a cloth type medium, but I'm sure others are.Quote:
Daox, what about zippers?
Post #2 is not my car, it is Tyrelirwin's. But, basically the more you can block off, the more benefit you get. Blocking the grill has 3 benefits for my car:Quote:
There is something I don't understand, Daox: In post #2 of this thread the LARGE lower grill area is open, but, in all of the other posts, your pictures show the large lower grill area blocked, too. Why would you need to block that little slot if the entire large grill is blocked?
1) Improved aerodynamics.
2) Faster warm up times.
3) Warmer intake air temperatures through my warm air intake.
Ideally, I'd love a 100% blocked off grill. That allows me to get up to temperature as fast as possible. When the engine is up to temperature, I'd like a grill opening just big enough to cool the engine. So, if we are looking at a wish list, I'd like a grill block that opens up as needed to get the best of both worlds. OEMs are actually also doing this as well. Lots of new vehicles have grill shutters. Here is a 2012 Ford Focus' setup.
Attachment 14384
Attachment 14385
image from: https://rts.i-car.com/collision-repa...-shutters.html
Quote:
Did you write about how you blocked the large grill in an earlier thread?
I did do a write up on my lower grill block. It is here: DIY Coroplast grill block.
If you haven't already, I highly suggest taking a look at our Mirage Modifications and Customizations list. It catalogs a bunch of the cool stuff that guys on the forum have done.
https://mirageforum.com/forum/attach...4&d=1516112868
Yeah let's do yellow. Thank you