Updating the look of the front grille

I wonder if anyone has tried to fit the 2022 grill on an earlier model. IIRC it is just a botox facelift that may be a direct replacement. It might be worth talking to the Hyundai body shop guys, I doubt the parts or sales would know.

 

Oops, somehow I missed the whole discussion "2022 facelift".
Didn't think it would be easy or cheap, but anything is doable if you throw enough $$ at it. I guess it depends on much you hate the original look.

 

I’ve been considering wrapping the front with carbon fiber-patterned vinyl in a grille shape.
My 2020 Kona is white but has a black roof, which made the car really hot on sunny days here in central CA. So I did a DIY roof wrap with white vinyl a month ago, and it’s made a huge difference in keeping the car cooler on sunny days.
I’m thinking carbon fiber would contrast well with the white nose, and I could cut the edges to get a sort of hourglass shape, like a Lexus grille. The big unknown is how well it will bridge over the divots. But it’s only about $20 worth of vinyl, so why not?

 

I did it!!!

I got some “7D” carbon fiber gloss vinyl wrap from eBay and some knifeless tape and made my faux grill. I’m pretty pleased with the results. The vinyl was thick and stretchy enough to span over the divots but I ended up having to squeeze the air out from under each one as I smoothed out the wrap, so it took a while.

I’m less pleased with the wrap job I did on the rear hatch strip (edges are sloppy) so I might redo that if I have enough leftover vinyl.

In the photos you can also see the white vinyl over the black-painted roof and a bit of my rear-window treatment.

I think that will be my last wrap project for a while.

 

Wow!! The grille looks excellent. Well done! I cannot see your "imperfections" on the rear hatch. Both sharpen up the look and I think your white roof looks better than the black would have done.

I have the smooth front and had a clear vinyl wrap applied for stone protection.

 

Be careful making it look like smooth plastic. The early tesla model S looked bad as a result of a big bit of smooth plastic on the front. Looks cheap.
I'm lucky I guess, I love the look of the old model. Change it too much and you loose its resale value and the ability to say its all original.
Each to their own of course, so have fun and its always interesting to see others mods.

 

When I was planning the project I thought I might fill the dimples with clay. I decided against it, mainly to save a (big) step, but also several other reasons. I had doubts about my ability to get a smooth surface that I’d be happy with. I wasn’t confident that the vinyl would adhere to the clay, and was worried that any trapped air would result in bubbles forming under the vinyl. Lastly, I wanted it to be removable so that when I eventually sell the car it won’t harm the value - the vinyl peels off easily without damaging the paint, and I didn’t know if the clay would.

So, I just worked with the dimples. There is still a little air trapped in each, but I pushed enough out to create a vacuum that keeps the vinyl sucked in. The vinyl is quite stretchy and tough, and forms a good seal. If the air heats up and expands a bit, there isn’t a risk of a bubble forming. Not really my original goal, but the dimples are much less noticeable now, and I think it even looks a bit intentional, like the various textured grilles on ICE cars.