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Technical Topics Cosmetic and Lighting Modifications (exterior & interior) M340i - Driving without grill for 2-3 days

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      07-10-2019, 08:34 PM   #1
miked1999
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M340i - Driving without grill for 2-3 days

Initially, I was one of the haters.... but in person & especially on sapphire black, the M340i mesh grill is fierce AF and I love it. Now that we have that out of the way, I was hoping ya'll could weigh in...

Because 1.) I'm too impatient to wait for a Shadowline (OEM Mesh style) grill to be stocked by aftermarket suppliers, I've found a body shop to paint the Cerium Gray areas on the grill. I'm going Gloss Black for $200...And 2.) because my wife is threatening divorce if I don't quit investing in this car, I'm going to cut corners & remove & reattach the grill myself, creating a net cost savings of at least $150 because these body shop bastards believe the f'ing entire FRONT BUMPER needs to be removed to enable the grill to come off the car! Bastard$! I'm generally comfortable removing the grill and have done it twice on my other BMW's. I also don't have a front camera which is hopefully even easier.

Sidenote- I'm not interested in Dipping or Wrapping. Done it before on other cars, and decided against it this time around.

My plan is to remove and leave the grill at the shop...then pick it up in 2-3 days once the paint is dry. .

Besides the car looking pathetically incomplete, are there any risks I should consider? I assume the vents will remain attached to the body and function normally at ALL speeds? I honestly have no idea but it's difficult to imagine a grill has any real functionality...besides looking sexy, of course.

Am I safe to drive grillless for a few days?
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      07-11-2019, 06:11 PM   #2
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I think you would be fine honestly. Being one of the first people to own a G20 330i, I painted my chrome grill almost immediately after picking up the vehicle, but the final product wasn’t so great, so I recently ordered a shadowline grill and it looks absolutely stunning, all at the cost of $150 for the grill and I installed it myself. I did not find any thread for removing the grills and if I’m not wrong, the piece that you need painted has no moving components, the grill that opens up while in high speeds or sport mode still remains intact when you remove the grill. I think that’s the part that is associated with cooling and such, so I wouldn’t worry too much if you were missing just the part of the grill you can remove with minimal effort.
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      07-12-2019, 07:30 PM   #3
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Think you would be fine but maybe just don't drive it much?

Anyone have a clue when the Shadowline (OEM Mesh style) grill will be available via bmw for NA?

Can you post photos when this is done i'd like to see how it came out!
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      07-12-2019, 07:32 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Persius View Post
Think you would be fine but maybe just don't drive it much?

Anyone have a clue when the Shadowline (OEM Mesh style) grill will be available via bmw for NA?

Can you post photos when this is done i'd like to see how it came out!
Yeah. I'm interested in oem shadowine mesh and not the slat version...
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      07-14-2019, 03:27 PM   #5
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If BMW isn't planing on releasing the M340i version of the grille in the shadow line variation, does anyone have a suggestion if painting the current cerium grey material to gloss black is durable in the long run?
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      07-14-2019, 04:30 PM   #6
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It's available in other markets like Canada.. I've seen many post it on this forum.
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      07-14-2019, 10:03 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Persius View Post
It's available in other markets like Canada.. I've seen many post it on this forum.
It is a available in select markets like Canada when you purchase the vehicle with the shadow line options but currently even in those markets, you can not purchase the shadow line parts separately.
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      07-15-2019, 07:48 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by johnnyg238 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Persius View Post
Think you would be fine but maybe just don't drive it much?

Anyone have a clue when the Shadowline (OEM Mesh style) grill will be available via bmw for NA?

Can you post photos when this is done i'd like to see how it came out!
Yeah. I'm interested in oem shadowine mesh and not the slat version...
Painted with auto dip. Overall it looks great. The color almost matches the Saffire black. You have to layer it heavy. Multiple coats
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      07-16-2019, 05:43 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ssadri View Post
If BMW isn't planing on releasing the M340i version of the grille in the shadow line variation, does anyone have a suggestion if painting the current cerium grey material to gloss black is durable in the long run?
I attempted to order one - None in Germany or U.S.

Just took a VIN from a vehicle for sale in Canada and looked up the part...

Now that I think of it, I didn't even check to see if it had the camera option or not (mine doesn't) lol.... Oh well, we'll see if/when it shows up
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      07-16-2019, 10:33 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Booster View Post
I attempted to order one - None in Germany or U.S.

Just took a VIN from a vehicle for sale in Canada and looked up the part...

Now that I think of it, I didn't even check to see if it had the camera option or not (mine doesn't) lol.... Oh well, we'll see if/when it shows up
would you mind sharing the part # that you ordered?
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      07-17-2019, 01:05 PM   #11
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I'm working with a Canadian dealer now to see if I can get it, or the part number if nothing else... Does anyone have a link to a video to get the grill off?
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      07-23-2019, 08:18 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cabby View Post
I'm working with a Canadian dealer now to see if I can get it, or the part number if nothing else... Does anyone have a link to a video to get the grill off?
If you manage to get the part or part number can you please share it with us?
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      07-23-2019, 12:20 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by joepimentel View Post
If you manage to get the part or part number can you please share it with us?
They cant get it, it apparently doesn't exist... makes no sense really.
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      07-23-2019, 08:18 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cabby View Post
I'm working with a Canadian dealer now to see if I can get it, or the part number if nothing else... Does anyone have a link to a video to get the grill off?
Grill removal pics:
https://www.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=24724788
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      07-25-2019, 01:13 AM   #15
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Thumbs up Cool posts

I also wanna paint my 330 black, that looks awesome!
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      07-31-2019, 10:01 AM   #16
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Here's something that you guys might be interested in. Since I was promised by my dealer that they could get the black M340 and was delivered the standard black slat grill from the 330, I ultimately wrote an email to senior executives at BMW NA asking for their assistance. They responded saying that they're getting the part for me and having the dealer install it. But they also mentioned that the part will be added to their systems. I'm going to try to get the part number for anyone interested in ordering the black M340 grill themselves.
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      07-31-2019, 11:02 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joepimentel View Post
Here's something that you guys might be interested in. Since I was promised by my dealer that they could get the black M340 and was delivered the standard black slat grill from the 330, I ultimately wrote an email to senior executives at BMW NA asking for their assistance. They responded saying that they're getting the part for me and having the dealer install it. But they also mentioned that the part will be added to their systems. I'm going to try to get the part number for anyone interested in ordering the black M340 grill themselves.
Thanks so much. It will be super beneficial as I hate the regular cerium gray mesh grill. Please keep us posted.
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      08-01-2019, 11:02 AM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joepimentel View Post
Here's something that you guys might be interested in. Since I was promised by my dealer that they could get the black M340 and was delivered the standard black slat grill from the 330, I ultimately wrote an email to senior executives at BMW NA asking for their assistance. They responded saying that they're getting the part for me and having the dealer install it. But they also mentioned that the part will be added to their systems. I'm going to try to get the part number for anyone interested in ordering the black M340 grill themselves.
Absolutely dying for this, keep us posted!
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      08-03-2019, 11:38 AM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joepimentel View Post
Here's something that you guys might be interested in. Since I was promised by my dealer that they could get the black M340 and was delivered the standard black slat grill from the 330, I ultimately wrote an email to senior executives at BMW NA asking for their assistance. They responded saying that they're getting the part for me and having the dealer install it. But they also mentioned that the part will be added to their systems. I'm going to try to get the part number for anyone interested in ordering the black M340 grill themselves.
I was also thinking about sending a positive message to one of their VP's and sharing ow much we'd appreciate the part in the near future. Maybe they can accelerate their timeline or elevate the priority. Could you share the format for their emails- ex. FirstName.LastName@BMWUSA.com?
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      08-05-2019, 01:21 PM   #20
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I believe I got the part number mastered today (for the non camera option)... I won't release a number until I get confirmation/delivery to prevent any confusion...

Probably 7-10 days...
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      08-06-2019, 09:05 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by miked1999 View Post
I was also thinking about sending a positive message to one of their VP's and sharing ow much we'd appreciate the part in the near future. Maybe they can accelerate their timeline or elevate the priority. Could you share the format for their emails- ex. FirstName.LastName@BMWUSA.com?
I'll private message you the contact info that I have.
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      08-07-2019, 11:20 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by senderhomes View Post
Painted with auto dip. Overall it looks great. The color almost matches the Saffire black. You have to layer it heavy. Multiple coats
Any close up pics? Thanks.
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