Blackened my kidney grills. With steps.

[Brew]

I like the look of the black kidneys on my car. Dave's Mtech 2 cabbie looked great with them. They look pretty good on red and silver cars, too.
To each his own, I suppose.

Do we really need an article on how to do it though? Seems to me that if you can't do this without directions, then you shouldn't be driving.

[Sean]

I think I'll probably stick with Chrome on mine, cause my color is light. And, I like to show them off. Helps even out chrome-ness with my rims too.

[Bhadole]

Grills

Whoa there guys, calm down a bit. I've never been much of DIY guy...my other cars have never been worthy of upgrades and i've only had my e30 since September. So I like to follow tech articles and stuff just in case. Especially if they recommend specific proucts, etc.

[Super Eta]

Each to there own.

Looks nice :up:

[Clay'87IS]

Just spray them mang, it ain't rocket science.

My thoughts exactly.

[Jordan]

Each to there own.

Looks nice :up:

If I wanted your opinion I'd have given it to you.

[Sean]

Each to there own.

Looks nice :up:

If I wanted your opinion I'd have given it to you.

;)

[rwh11385]

Here are the pictures. The whole thing is self-explanatory but the pictures should help out even the ones who need the most aid in this project.

THE SUPPLIES:

Grill, sandpaper, primer (optional), black paint (used Duplicolor Bumper Trim Coating), (plus used some rubbing alcohol to clean grills)


Remove plastic pin. Just small flathead screwdriver and you might need some needle-nose pliers as well.


Clean grills


BLING BLING!


Use sandpaper- i believe this was 120 grit - just need to rough up surface to improve paint adhesion.


Roughed-up grills


Sprayed with primer.


1 Coat of black. (Did other piece as well - it was slightly faded, I just cleaned then sprayed it)


Another Coat of black


Final spray of black


Let them dry completely.

I put on two coats of primer, and three of the black trim coating. Waited 15-20 minutes between coats.

Enjoy, and Good Luck.

[SlammedE30]

Damn! You went way overboard. I just took them off the car, cleand, primered and sprayed them, mounting piece and all :P
-Ted

[rwh11385]

Yeah, I did Ted. It was pretty easy to do every single step with a camera on hand. If I can help out Brent (Bhadole) it'd be enough to validate it. I went all the way as if someone needs a DIY for blackening kidneys, better make everything clear as possible.

[Bhadole]

Thanks for the pictures and explanation. I apologize for my stupidity.
edit: (not meant sarcastically...hope it didn't come off that way...I really do realize I have a lot to learn about DIY stuff).

[RCWells]

Yeah, I did Ted. It was pretty easy to do every single step with a camera on hand. If I can help out Brent (Bhadole) it'd be enough to validate it. I went all the way as if someone needs a DIY for blackening kidneys, better make everything clear as possible.

Hey Robert,. I am sticking my neck out here, but I like the blacked out kidneys too. I guess it's too bad BMW didn't make every E30 one color with no options. What were they thinking. People might want something different, HA! NEVER! Everyone shares the same opinion, right? Anyway, you do your thing and we'll all do ours. Mine are blacked with GASP! , dare I say it, ELECTRICAL TAPE!!! Some weekend soon I am going to properly shadowline all my trim including the kidneys. And thanks for the info.

[Sean]

Thanks for the pictures and explanation. I apologize for my stupidity.
edit: (not meant sarcastically...hope it didn't come off that way...I really do realize I have a lot to learn about DIY stuff).

Hey man, It's all good. People here just like to give each other shit. All you really have to do is laugh with them.

Everyone on the forums has something to learn, that's why we're here. ;)

[alex]

Damn! You went way overboard. I just took them off the car, cleand, primered and sprayed them, mounting piece and all :P
-Ted

Speaking about going overboard... When I did mine I actually removed all chrome before sanding, priming, and painting. Saves a lot of weigh too 8)

http://e30.us/autocross/NationalTour/Toledo-2003/pages/DSC00165.htm

[OOMPH!]

Damn! You went way overboard. I just took them off the car, cleand, primered and sprayed them, mounting piece and all :P
-Ted

Speaking about going overboard... When I did mine I actually removed all chrome before sanding, priming, and painting. Saves a lot of weigh too 8)

http://e30.us/autocross/NationalTour...s/DSC00165.htm

how much weight?