--- title: 'Lotus Esprit GT3 — Front Grille' url: 'https://andywhittaker.com/articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille' markdown: 'https://andywhittaker.com/articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille.md' lang: en date: '2002-05-18' description: "Front Grille Replacement The standard front grille on the GT3 is made of chicken wire, or more technically, welded wire mesh. This look is a bit dated and is going rusty. I'll take you through the steps necessary to replace this and to make your own. Making a Former To make a good job of such a com…" taxonomy: category: - articles tag: - lotus - esprit - gt3 - cars --- ## [Lotus Esprit GT3 — Front Grille](https://andywhittaker.com/articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille) 18th May 2002 [lotus](https://andywhittaker.com/tag:lotus#body-wrapper) [esprit](https://andywhittaker.com/tag:esprit#body-wrapper) [gt3](https://andywhittaker.com/tag:gt3#body-wrapper) [cars](https://andywhittaker.com/tag:cars#body-wrapper) 0 views today · 112 views all time # Front Grille Replacement The standard front grille on the GT3 is made of chicken wire, or more technically, welded wire mesh. This look is a bit dated and is going rusty. I'll take you through the steps necessary to replace this and to make your own. ## Making a Former To make a good job of such a complicated shape, you have to visit your local DIY store and purchase some planks of pine. You'll also need a jig-saw and pen. ![](https://andywhittaker.com/user/pages/02.articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille/grille1.jpg?g-b57e6500) You have to clamp two pieces of wood together and cut it out to mimic the size of the aperture it's going to be fitted into: ![](https://andywhittaker.com/user/pages/02.articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille/grille3.jpg?g-b57e6500) ## Forming the New Grille Once the wood is cut, sandwich your new grille material in-between the timber. ![](https://andywhittaker.com/user/pages/02.articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille/grille9.jpg?g-b57e6500) Cut straight slots down to the wooden former and trim the metal to suit. After beating everything you can see with a trusty hammer, you should have a nice looking grille! ![](https://andywhittaker.com/user/pages/02.articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille/grille12.jpg?g-b57e6500) Split the wooden former into two and is should look something like this: ![](https://andywhittaker.com/user/pages/02.articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille/grille14.jpg?g-b57e6500) ## Fitting it to the Car ![](https://andywhittaker.com/user/pages/02.articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille/grille20.jpg?g-b57e6500) Not much to say here but use plenty of silicon rubber. You may find the use of a few pop-rivets may be needed to keep the assembly together. ## The Result ![](https://andywhittaker.com/user/pages/02.articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-front-grille/grille22.jpg?g-b57e6500) Times page accessed since August 2001: Page created by: Changes last made on: 18 May 2002 16:19 -0400 Previous Post Next Post --- ## Navigation - Parent: [Lotus Esprit GT3](https://andywhittaker.com/articles/lotus-esprit-gt3.md) - Previous: [Lotus Esprit GT3 — Exhaust](https://andywhittaker.com/articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-exhaust.md) - Next: [Lotus Esprit GT3 — Main Beam Modification](https://andywhittaker.com/articles/lotus-esprit-gt3/lotus-esprit-gt3-main-beam.md)