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BMW 3-Series and 4-Series Forum (F30 / F32) | F30POST > Technical Forums > F30 DIYs and Coding Discussions > F30 328i 335i Front Kidney Grill / Grille removal and replacement DIY
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      01-25-2016, 07:58 AM   #199
Jason954x
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Weather is decent today, so I did mine.
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      01-26-2016, 11:10 AM   #200
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Did mine on Saturday.
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      01-26-2016, 11:21 AM   #201
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Removing the bumper cover seemed crazy to me. Too many things that could go wrong, so I removed the grills by just going through the slats. I used an old PC expansion slot cover to give me leverage especially with the bottom clips. I started with the passenger side working my way from the right side counter clockwise. The top clips are easier to reach than the bottom ones. Only the first one is hard. Getting out the second one took less than 30 seconds.
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      02-10-2016, 01:53 PM   #202
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Sorry for bringing an old thread back, but I have to tell this to everyone who will listen: I'm not a DIY guy at all, and was able to change both gills in under 10 minutes, without removing the bumper cover or using any tools. And the old grills are perfectly intact.
Finally some benefit of having puny forearms and hands!
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      03-04-2016, 09:07 PM   #203
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2016 BMW 340i  [9.00]
Quote:
Originally Posted by smithf32 View Post
I had to break my old ones off due to extreme cold lol.

It was so cold in NY when I got my grills that the bumper would not flex enough for me to fit my hand in there after removing the 6 top screws or so.

Only other option was from the front but I couldn't get my hands in there good enough to actually release the clips, so I went ahead and cut two of the slats out LOL! I figure I can leave the black grill on on return in 3 years or I can just buy one right side grill, it won't kill me.

I will recommend people just don't even bother to do this when its freezing cold out. I came close to breaking a tab on the bumper itself due to lack of flex and one of the plastic pieces from the grill getting bent and then stuck in one of the clips. If I didn't break it then I came damn near close LOL but I'm pretty sure I did not because my grills sit perfectly flush.
It's 35F outside now I was trying to take out the grill. snapped one of the blades and wasn't able to remove the grill......

Damn it I might just break a few more blades and release the grill with fingers.

Who knows this is harder than I was expecting.
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      03-05-2016, 09:30 AM   #204
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I think because of the cold temperature, ~33F this morning. The plastic is not flexing enough.

Used some brutal force to get that mfkin clip off.
Ripped it apart. Straight to the trash.

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      03-17-2016, 12:58 PM   #205
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who carries the best aftermarket black kidney grilles?
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      03-17-2016, 01:15 PM   #206
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Originally Posted by XKxRome0ox View Post
who carries the best aftermarket black kidney grilles?
OEM is $99 from ebay.
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      04-04-2016, 05:44 PM   #207
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I am a girl and have small hands. I was able to do this switch without using other tools other than my hands
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      04-04-2016, 07:17 PM   #208
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Got mine from ECS Tunning.

https://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-F30-34...lle/ES2707739/
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      04-13-2016, 03:06 PM   #209
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dyl View Post
Great thread.

Battled trying to do this yesterday without research. Checked this thread half an hour ago and 15 minutes later it's done. Easy.

Oh and here is a pic of my black 4GC with it done because i've not seen many images of them on a black f34/6

I'm thinking of doing this for my '16 4GC. Was the process much different or fairly similar to the F30 instructions above? Any help specific to the F36 would be appreciated. Thanks!
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      04-13-2016, 05:10 PM   #210
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HKColter View Post
I'm thinking of doing this for my '16 4GC. Was the process much different or fairly similar to the F30 instructions above? Any help specific to the F36 would be appreciated. Thanks!
Totally the same way of doing it. I'm really glad I did, it looks great on my GC...

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      04-13-2016, 06:53 PM   #211
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Easiest mod ever.

Last edited by the_man_in_blue; 04-13-2016 at 07:05 PM..
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      04-13-2016, 07:39 PM   #212
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Originally Posted by Dyl View Post
Totally the same way of doing it. I'm really glad I did, it looks great on my GC...

Thanks for sharing, Dyl! Yours looks great. I'll have to order the grills and get it done.
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      05-12-2016, 11:12 AM   #213
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Nice
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      06-01-2016, 07:02 PM   #214
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Less than 15 minutes using an ECS grill. Thanks for the instructions.
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      08-23-2016, 07:49 PM   #215
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I did this the other day. I tried the way described and it was PITA. I then took wd 40 and squirted it on all the latches. started to pull on it and it came right out. The SA at the dealership said thats how they do it. I was shocked at how well it worked. Kinda scary but it came right out super easy..
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      10-21-2016, 01:50 AM   #216
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 1.fresh.f30.335 View Post
Hey guys,

This is a quick guide to removing and replacing your kidney grills.

Estimated Time: 15-20 minutes


I hope this helps answer any questions and Good-luck![/size]

This was so much easier than I was expecting thanks to your instructions and pictures. I figured 15-20 minutes was going to be needed just to get 1 grille out. Then the entire process actually took last than 10!

Many Thanks!

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Originally Posted by the_man_in_blue View Post
Easiest mod ever.
Agreed
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      12-28-2016, 04:10 PM   #217
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I was able to loosen up the top and sides of the stock grill with my fingers, but was having no luck with the lower. I read up some more and decided to go with the WD 40 and attempt to pull it out...it worked! Thanks for all the input from other forum members - greatly appreciated!
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      02-18-2017, 05:43 PM   #218
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I just did mines on a 2016 328i LCI. There are 2 additional clips on the sides for a total of 8 clips. If you look at the OP's pics, you can actually see there are holes for the 2 clips on the side. After loosening the top clips, you must loosen the side clips in order to loosen the lower clips. Otherwise, you may think it's stuck and try to force the lower piece out and break something. Just a FYI.
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      03-26-2017, 10:44 PM   #219
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So glad I found this thread!! I'm going to try the easy wd40 methods others have had success with, sans tools. I'm shopping around for carbon fiber grills for my f36 440ix GC.

Is Anybody here running cf grills? My front splitter is OEM cf so thinking the match may look good. Bummed bmw doesn't make the accessory part. I think I landed on giving RW Carbon's cf grills a shot. Never ordered from them before so we'll see how it goes.
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      05-09-2017, 06:52 PM   #220
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What type of paint and clear coat sprays is everybody using
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