Painting my front grill

[Radad Nomad]

I  have a 2001 Chevy express. My front grill is gray with a lot of the paint missing. I bought some satin black with which I’m going to paint it. My question is how easy is it to take the front grill off to paint it.?  Would it be  easier just to mask off around it and paint it that way or does it come off fairly easy I would rather take it off if it’s not too big of a problem.  Thanks

 

[highdesertranger]

I would take it off it's cheaper and easier in the long run.

remember to lightly sand it with like 400 grit to scratch it up(promotes adhesion) then use one of the paints for plastic. if they don't have your color use it as a base coat then paint your color over it.

highdesertranger

 

[MrNoodly]

I don't know about your generation of Express, but with the current ones there are two 10mm bolts at the top and one behind each turn signal/daytime running light. Remove those then yank on the grill to release some tabs from their slots. Unplug the turn signals so the wiring and bulbs feed through the grill. And the Chevrolet logo snaps off by squeezing some prongs.

 

[B and C]

Here ya go:

Video instructions

 

[Radad Nomad]

Thanks everyone. I decided I was going to take off the grill unless I came into some snags but like one of the posters said just a few screws and bolts and it came right off. I went over the whole thing with the sanding sponge and now I’m letting it dry I’ll probably paint it tomorrow morning I have some primer I’ll go over it with first and then I’ve got some of the new  Fusion spray paint and will see how it turns out. Thanks again to everyone

 

[maki2]

First of all people start out thinking they know how to put on paint. You are supposed to use a primer first right? In this case that is wrong, you should have read the instructions first. Fusion paint does not need a primer, it is formulated to stick to plastic without any primer being put on first. So if you put on a primer it might end up leading to failure of the Fusion paint as that is not how it was designed to be used.

What is important to do is to completely degrease the plastic grill and then give it a very good rinsing. Being on the road means there is very likely oily residue from your own vehicle and from other vehicles and from the asphalt types of products and road sealers. If you have a bathtub then soak it in a good degreasing soapy water solution. If you are without a tube consider making one out of poly plastic sheeting. Then rinse it very well and let it get completely dry.

 

[MrNoodly]

...there is very likely oily residue from your own vehicle and from other vehicles and from the asphalt types of products and road sealers....

Don't forget bug guts. 

 

[Radad Nomad]

I talk to the guy at Lowe’s about that very issue. I told him the fusion paint says you don’t need primer that it is a primer in it self, he replied it would still be better with primer so that’s why I use primer. 
“ i’m so confused! “ Ha ha not really I already primer and painted the grill I still have to do the bumper maybe I’ll leave the primer out and see how that goes we’ll see which one starts to chip first either way I know it’s going to look better than what it did thanks everybody

 

[Radad Nomad]

PS:  I did give it a good scrubbing with warm soapy water along with wet sanding it so that should take care of any bugs and oily residue, thanks again guys.

 

[maki2]

Bumpers can be tricky to paint. They are a different type of plastic than grills. Plus it has to be a paint that is very flexible. So if I was going to paint a bumper I would purchase a paint made specifically for bumpers from auto paint supply sources.

But of course as always....your vehicle ...your choice of what to do with it.