HOW TO: Remove/Replace Radiator Shell, Grille & Moulding

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You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.You should upgrade or use an alternative browser. HOW TO: Remove/Replace Radiator Shell, Grille & Moulding

• Thread starter Thread starter DerFuror
• Start date Start date Jan 5, 2011

DerFuror

500E Terminus Illuminatus

Member What to do on a Winter day? Shovel snow? Yes, right to the garage door! I decided to replace the dented piece of vertical Garnish Moulding as well as all 6 of the faded horizontal Garnish Moulding pieces of the ‘93s radiator shell grille. The WIS Service Manual provides a scant R&R procedure regarding the ’92/’93 500E. This “How-To” will provide better detail & tips. Required Parts: • vertical Garnish Moulding (EPC Item 29 p/n 124 888 02 85) qty1 • horizontal Garnish Moulding (Item 35 p/n 124 888 03 85) qty6 • plastic clip (Item 44 p/n A 124 988 29 78) qty 24 (before ordering new, first verify if old clips exist & can be reused) Reference Info: • EPC Group 88 Attachment Parts, SubGrp 135 Radiator Grille Shell • WIS 88-400 Removal & Installation of Radiator Cowling • WIS 88-401 Removal & Installation of Radiator Grille • WIS 88-402 Removal & Installation of Trim Strips on Radiator Grille Tools: • Philips head screwdriver • Small socket wrench & extension • 8mm socket (magnetized if at all possible) • 10mm socket • A pinch of Autobody Mastic or sticky chewing gum (if no magnetized socket) • Miniature channel-lock pliers or equivalent • Autobody Trim Removal toolset • Jewel saw or equivalent The dented vertical moulding looked like a blemish on the nose of the prettiest girl at the prom & just had to get fixed. I’m sure one can get by with just removing the grille from the shell & leaving the shell in place. In doing so, the removal of several parts (particularly the pre-tensioned retainer locks) may place your body in awkward APITA positions. I removed all components in order to perform a thorough inspection & cleaning. 1. Open hood. Cover engine compartment with a blanket or sheet to keep small parts from accidentally getting lost. Place a fender cover along the top of the radiator support directly under the radiator shell. The Shell is fastened to the hood with 6 metal screws (Combination Bolt, Item 65 p/n N 914031 005208). 2 screws are clearly visible on each rear side where the grille meets the hood. The remaining 4 screws are well hidden within the tooled sheet metal nooks of the inner front hood & will take a bit of effort to remove (especially without long, pickpocket fingers). 2. Stick your fingers within one of the nooks directly behind the shell & locate a screw head. Once located, place a finger on either side of the screw head to guide the 8mm socket on target. Use this method to remove the 4 screws. My socket was not magnetized, so I placed a pinch of Autobody Mastic inside the socket head to hold the screw upon withdrawal. Interestingly, only 2 of the 4 screws were present on the ’93. 3. Remove the 2 visible screws. Avoid accidents by making sure to hold onto the shell while removing the screws. 4. Remove the shell carefully to avoid damaging the radiator shell to hood seal (Insert, Item 62 p/n A 124 888 00 97). Set the shell face down on the fender cover. If your garage is not heated, this is a good time to take the assembly inside to a more comfortable work environment. 5. Remove the one bottom-center radiator shell to grille screw (Item 23 p/n A 126 990 08 36). 6. Remove the 10mm nut (Item 53 p/n N 000934 005008) holding the Mercedes badge (Item 47 p/n A 201 880 00 88) to the shell. Set the badge safely aside. The grille is now only held in place by 4 pre-tensioned retainers (Top Lock, Item 17 p/n A 001 994 27 45) and (Bottom Lock, Item 20 p/n A 201 994 04 45). 7. Carefully use the miniature channel-lock pliers to grab hold of a retainer by its sides. Reverse the retainer’s tension while pivoting the retainer within its confines formed by the grille structure. It will remove rather easily this way. Remove the remaining retainers. Remove the grille from the shell. The grille moulding consists of one vertical & 6 horizontal pieces semi-tightly friction fit into position. Take a look at the grille structure on the crimped-end of the horizontal moulding. The grille design holds the moulding end in place. The horizontal moulding appears to have received a design change after leaving the factory. The horizontal moulding style I removed (and prefer) had its retaining feature incorporated into its design. The replacement pieces do not; and requires 24 plastic clips (Item 44 p/n A 124 988 29 78) to perform the same function.

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• FrontGrille033.JPG 245.5 KB · Views: 33

Last edited: Apr 9, 2012

DerFuror

500E Terminus Illuminatus

Member "HOW TO" continues... 8. While carefully lifting the moulding end just up over the end-grille feature, push/pull the moulding piece linearly towards the outside of the grille. It will slide right out as if on a rail. Remove the remaining horizontal pieces. 9. (Take note of the old vertical trim piece’s top & bottom end locations in relation to the grille. The new piece must be positioned to these same locations). Use a similar technique to slide the vertical moulding straight down towards the bottom of the grille & off. No additional clips are required to remount the new piece. Now is a good time to inspect the overall condition of the grille & shell. Determine whether to just clean, repair or replace any additional items. Everything looked pretty good for the ’93; no chips or cracks. I sprayed down the grille with Simple Green & scrubbed it with a toothbrush. After a thorough rinsing & protectorant rub-down, it looked real nice. Reverse the operations for component re-installation. The application of a lubricant such as liquid dish soap or WD40 to the backside of the trim moulding will aid in the ease of its installation. 10. Use the same technique to slide the new vertical moulding on & down towards the bottom of the grille. Guide from the front while pushing from the rear. The horizontal pieces are 326mm long. Two of these pieces (the bottom row left & right) must be trimmed down about 6 millimeters in length. Use the old pieces as a guide. A jeweler’s saw works ideally. 11. Mask along the cut-line to protect the finish. Cut to replicate the end angle of the other pieces, so the cut end will fit flush to the vertical piece. 12. Each horizontal moulding takes 4 retaining clips. Slide the clips into the back of the moulding. 13. It is easier to push the horizontal pieces into place instead of sliding them in. Create a line-up gage by butting the cut end against the vertical piece. Slide the retaining clips along the horizontal piece until they line up with their mating locations molded into the grille. 14. With the 4 clips lined up with their grille-mates, push the horizontal piece straight down into position. It will snap into place. Repeat this procedure for the remaining horizontal pieces. The new trim pieces are now mounted onto the grille. The grille is ready for reinstallation. 15. Insert the grille into the back of the radiator shell. 16. Apply downward pressure while sliding the retaining clips forward into position. Make sure the hole lines up. 17. Reinstall the Mercedes badge using 10mm socket. 18. Reinstall the one bottom-center radiator shell to grille screw. The radiator shell is now ready for reinstallation onto the hood. Test-fit alignment with the hood seal. The seal may need a few careful dabs of weatherstrip cement to hold it into place. 19. Reconnect the shell to the hood using the 2 visible metal screws & 8mm socket. 20. Reinstall the remaining 4 hidden screws using the same technique with which they were removed. Done. Clean up your worksite. Wipe down your chrome & reflect on a job well done.

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• Grp88%20Subgrp135.jpg 71.8 KB · Views: 27
• FrontGrille010.JPG 257 KB · Views: 33
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• FrontGrille036.JPG 193.6 KB · Views: 18

Last edited: Oct 6, 2011

DerFuror

500E Terminus Illuminatus

Member The Old vs. New vertical moulding pieces...

Attachments

• FrontGrille041.JPG 276.9 KB · Views: 33

jano

E500E Guru

Member Woah.. I didn't know one could replace the horizontal trim pieces, too... that's cool! Do I need to actually remove the grille for this? One of mine is dented and it does irk me to no end.

DerFuror

500E Terminus Illuminatus

Member

jano said: Do I need to actually remove the grille for this? Click to expand...

You must remove the grille to replace its mouldings, but not necessarily the shell. Removing only the grille, requires a bit of a body contortionist act (hopefully not resulting with a Twist & Shout!)in order to remove the 4 retaining clips which secure grille to shell.

sheward

E500E **Meister**

Member I removed and painted my grill this past Sunday. I used a semi gloss black paint made for plastic. I also reinstalled the amber turn signal lenses. Very pleased with the results. Thank you DerFuror for your great write up. Kept my time bent backwards over the fan shroud to a minimum. As a side note, all three sets of horizontal trim were slightly different lengths on my OEM grill. Longest on top...shortest on bottom. drew

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gerryvz

Site Honcho

Staff member Looks GREAT !!

DerFuror

500E Terminus Illuminatus

Member That black grille creates the perfect contrasting accent to the color scheme of your car. The amber corners then set it off. A very handsome ride. S

Swordfish

Active member

Member Der- Thanks for the write-up ! I started working on my grill as its ever so slightly off on one corner and I was wondering if those were 8mm's tucked away in the back. As luck would have it, thats the socket size I can't seem to find at the moment. @ Sheward- stunning !!!!!!!!!!!!

gerryvz

Site Honcho

Staff member DerF, Glad to see you're around and kickin'. I thought you'd bailed as I hadn't seen any posts from you in a while. Looking forward to your next high-quality How-to. Cheers, Gerry

JordiC

E500E Guru

Member Thanks DerF. Another outstanding "How to" to go along with the trunk lid stops, broken mirror tabs and air filter unit mounts. I have decided to pass on those aftermarket 600 style grills and just refresh my original '92 look. Thanks go to Drew's pics for reminding me just how handsome the pre facelift look is when rejuvenated. Those 124 988 29 78 plastic clips must be ordered also correct? You did not add them into the required parts list so I was just curious and I'm sure they don't come included with the moldings. 24 bits at $1.56 each hmm...

DerFuror

500E Terminus Illuminatus

Member

JordiC said: Thanks DerF. Another outstanding "How to" to go along with the trunk lid stops, broken mirror tabs and air filter unit mounts... Those 124 988 29 78 plastic clips must be ordered also correct? You did not add them into the required parts list so I was just curious and I'm sure they don't come included with the moldings. 24 bits at $1.56 each hmm... Click to expand...

Thank you for the kind words. Re: the clips; verify if the moldings you are replacing are the original style (which do not require clips), or are the newer generation replacement moldings (which should already have the clips attached & hopefully are reusable). If the moldings you are replacing are the originals, then yes, you must order the clips. The price per clip x required quantity is indeed shocking once tallied up. The extruded all-in-one molding design used on other models is superior, but it probably became non cost-effective to produce. Anytime good specimens are discovered during junkyard expeditions, they come home with poppa. As shown in the pics, the original 500E moldings are stamped thin-gauge metal with the clip feature built in (which evidently also became non cost-effective to produce). The current generation moldings are simpler, stamped thin-gauge metal requiring the plastic clips. Last edited: Apr 9, 2012 You must log in or register to reply here.

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