|
Built and finished the installation of a custom grille for my car today.
The grille is built from two disassembled grilles- a 92 240 grille surround, and an 88 740T eggcrate insert. The install is on the 92 244.
Looking at the two, it seemed the 740T insert was nearly identical dimensionally to the 240 grille insert. The 240 frame is much wider, taller and deeper. The 740 piece used complete doesn't fill the whole space available without extra trim work.
I pushed apart the plastic rivets in both units. The 240 grille comes apart easily. The 740 has not-quite-blind rivets at the top that needed to be kind of broken off and wrestled out.
Once all apart, I used my bench grinder to cut reliefs in the outer bottom corners of the 740 insert. In fact, all the mods were to the 740 part. You can set aside the 740 grille surround and the 240 slotted insert- they're no longer needed.
One relief to line up with each 240 mounting tab. Grind off the two raised lines at center bottom so it sits a bit flatter on the center 240 tab. Cut a slot through vertically at the top and bottom edge of the 740 grille from the back side, in line with each vertical divider on either side of the emblem. This lets the flat 740 grille equal the curve of the 240 grille shell.
The center bottom holes should line up, and a #8 or 10 screw fits through the bottom hole. I recommend stainless steel and Nylock self locking nuts (though I didn't have enough for the job handy). Double nuts otherwise.
Small brackets were cut to extend the bottom tabs inward about 2 inches, as the original 240 grille does. The 7 has its pins much closer to the front of the car. One screw goes through the shell hole and one through the insert hole at each bottom corner. One extra washer was needed as a spacer to make it sit flush. A long #10 screw is used as a locating pin to the long slot on the body.
The top retainers are original. The springs from the original grille are snapped into the square 740T tabs. They fit just a little loosely, so I added a bolt outboard of each in the slot- a 1/4-20X1 inch bolt is about perfect. Keeps the retainer locked in side to side. Probably should add a bit of rubber fuel hose or something around the plastic retainer pin to tighten it up a bit.
The finished look is striking and my favorite local Volvo geek said " Love the eggcrate look" the second I pulled in. Build one yourself and be the envy of the block!
--
Rob Bareiss, New London CT ::: 92 244-M47-208K ::: Bilsteins, Turbo swaybars, Virgos, Lowered, Group A wing, Tach, 6-Disc, Satellite Radio, Keyless Entry ::: Coming Soon: B-Cam!
|
