Mugen 02-03 grille painted & installed NBP :)

[ragebomb]

At the King Motorsports Dyno Day back on June 12 I was able to pick up a Mugen grille for the 02-03 Civic. SKU: 75100-XK2-K0S0

I thought I'd post some pics of the kit and info about the painting/install.

This grille is actually my 2nd. I had previously bought an NRG CF kit off eBay. It didn't go so well, you can read about it here.

So here's pics of the unfinished grille:










The kit comes with:
1. 4" Mugen metal emblem
2. 3M double-sided tape for a red H emblem, edges of the grille that touch the bumper cover
3. new plastic clips to replace the ones along the top edge of the grille
4. thin strips of rubber for the gap along the bottom edge
5. instructions (only in Japanese)

The kit does not come with the red H emblem, I got mine from Showstoppers for $49 shipped.

I had it painted at a local paint shop here near Portland. Paint and install cost $200 total. After my headaches with the NRG CF grille, I decided to pay for the installation. Also you have to remove the bumper cover for the install, so I decided not to hassle with that complexity.

Here's a pic of the stock grilled removed.



The center of the Mugen grille slots into the opening where the stock grille used to be; then the top of the grille clips into the factory locations along the top. The bottom of the grille sits on top of the "shelf" of the bumper cover. It's kind of involved as far as grille kits go.

Pics of the final installed grille!







I didn't use the metal Mugen badge that came with the grille. I had a knock-off red one lying around that I decided to use instead. I have a red Mugen badge on my rear wing so decided to use the red one up front as well. The knock-off red one is aluminum and fairly well made but is not as thick as the genuine one. Also the genuine badge is finished better along the edges.





Pics of the removed stock grille:





A couple notes:

1. The red H has no "mounting guide" holes the way that the stock grille does. So that means you have to line it up by sight. I had to re-mount the H emblem TWICE -- once at the paint shop, and once when I got home. The first time, it was too much to the left. Once I got home, I realized it was rotated counter-clockwise -- so with much fear, I took it off and repositioned it. I actually nicked the paint doing this, ugh. If you have a black car like mine, make sure you have plenty of light or do the emblem install outside in the sun. The shadows can play tricks on you and fool you into thinking you've got it centered.

2. The bottom edge of the grille is not a perfect fit; for the super OCD, they will notice that the driver's side has 1mm or so more of the grille hanging off that side (closest to the driver's headlight). The body shop pointed it out to me. But after a week I don't even notice it anymore. Not a biggie. :)

That's it! Thanks for reading.

[Kerby]

I can't wait to get mine in... It looks really good man!

[ragebomb]

I can't wait to get mine in... It looks really good man!

Thanks Kerby!

Now if only I could get rid of my front license plate. :)

I was running around without a front plate for the last 4 years since I moved to Oregon. And, you guessed it, I finally got a ticket for not having one installed. Was eating dinner downtown, came outside, and had a $30 ticket for no front plate. My wife and in-laws were there too! So many questions!! "Why don't you have a front plate?" "is there no place to install it?" "did you lose your front plate?" LOL.

the questions and look of confusion from the in-laws was worse than the ticket actually. My only response was "yes, i have the plate. yes, i can mount it. no, i didn't mount it b/c I don't like how it looks. Yes, i'll put the plate back on to avoid another ticket."

Sigh. :)

[Si Death]

if u dont mind me asking, how much was it???

[ragebomb]

if u dont mind me asking, how much was it???

Sorry man, but i can't really reveal how much I paid. :(

I've been helping King with a few projects so the part was *deeply* discounted. :)

[nonamealr]

Sorry man, but i can't really reveal how much I paid. :(

I've been helping King with a few projects so the part was *deeply* discounted. :)

Ah booo, I want one too... discounted though lol. Looks perfect, now i know for sure to not get a replica. I have a black si too, so this helps me a lot.

[fobman]

wow it sits so perfectly on a usdm bumper

[ragebomb]

Ah booo, I want one too... discounted though lol. Looks perfect, now i know for sure to not get a replica. I have a black si too, so this helps me a lot.

You're welcome dude. Replicas might be fine, there are plenty of ephatchers with them. But my guess is that they had a lot of work done to the grille to make sure it fits. These parts are not as "plug and play" as you might think. Even the Mugen one needed some TLC.

wow it sits so perfectly on a usdm bumper

Thanks man. Yeah it looks really great, but if you saw it in person and really stared at it, you would see that the grille is not quite as flush on the driver's side, right by the headlight. It's barely noticeable, but it isn't 100% perfect. Still, it's about the best fit you can get without custom shaving or modifications.

[dirtyMETHOD]

Two Thumbs UP.

[DrZfInEsT]

The grille looks good on the EP bro, makes me anxious to get mine.

[Blooper0]

nice!! damn now i gotta get one lol

[ragebomb]

The grille looks good on the EP bro, makes me anxious to get mine.

nice!! damn now i gotta get one lol

Thanks guys! I'm really happy with it. I'm glad I just got a genuine Mugen one instead of fussing around with a knockoff that would need more modification.