lower grille block

steve05ram360

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2008
Location
all over
TDI
2011 2D Golf
Installed a lower grille block tonight using the link below as a guide for removing the center grille...
forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=316763

I used the same material that I put on the Ram, let me say that the ram was far easier :mad:. Fog light housings came off easy, I read elsewhere that the easiest way was to grab the center & pull, that did the trick on both sides. Then I had to reach in and un-hook the fog light grille from the center grille. Easy enough. Then came the center grille... top came off easy, bottom would not come off. After fighting with it for quite a while I decided I would fight that fight another day (already broke a tab off... double :mad:). I cut the material I got from Tap Plastics into the shape of the lower grille, poked holes in it so I could tie wrap it to the grille. Then, using black tie wraps I strapped it to the grille and put it back together. Also swapped out the yellow sylvania halogens for their ultra's (looks better IMO, will see how long they last).

The better choice for a grille block can be found here http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=400352 and I will probably pick up a set sometime next month.

Took it for a spin & no cooling problems as expected and IATs are a bit higher. Not high enough though. Added some plugs to block some of the air coming into the engine compartment and already have the small cover on the box feeding the air box removed in an effort to get things warmer.

Motivation: To get IATs back up above 60 on the commute to & from work. Currently in the mornings IATs are in the low 30's if not in the 20's. I have seen more smokey exhaust in the winters with the ram (before the custom tune) in winter conditions, once it warms up in the spring & IATs are warmer, smoke goes down.


for anyone interested...
ram mods post, shows basically what I did tonight but with the ram
http://www.cumminsforum.com/forum/3rd-gen-non-powertrain/548763-mpg-quest-13.html#post5893380

ram testing results
http://www.cumminsforum.com/forum/3rd-gen-non-powertrain/548763-mpg-quest-14.html#post5895098

Edit: forgot to add, total cost =$10
 
Last edited:

steve05ram360

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2008
Location
all over
TDI
2011 2D Golf
Update... Been a few weeks since this install and I thought I'd toss out an update...

MPG's got a nice bump, summer time mpg's were in the 46~48 mpg range (160 mi daily commute) and dropped off with cooler temps. Before the block back in Oct-Nov I was seeing low 40's, now lately I'm seeing mid 40's, last tank was 45.6 so I decided to go and do a mpg test/check by keeping my foot out of it, using CC and avoiding getting stuck behind large profile vehicles. Currently the MFD #2 is telling the tank average is above 48 mpg with over 200 miles on this tank. I havent seen that since it was well over 100* in the summer. Morning lows are 34~40*f with highs in the low 60's.

Monitoring the engine parameters as usual and do not see any decrease in coolant warmup times so I'm thinking that may only happen if both grilles are blocked. Intake temps are typically 15~30*f hotter than ambient air temps putting them in the 70~100*f range. I have seen when stuck in traffic that the IC will get heat soaked and temps will climb up as high as 112~115*f. It takes a few miles before it cools back down, something I'm not concerned with ATM as it's no worse than the hottest days here in Central Cali. Coolant temps remain below 210*f, I do think however if I had a significant climb ahead of me I'd toss in some wire cutters to clip some tie straps in case I had to let more air in. I'd previously seen coolant temps up at 221*f while climbing over Donner Summit back in September with no real load in the car, just the wife & I.

I should also mention that I blocked the cold air intake snorkel in the front grille and have removed the cover on the CAI box so I draw air in from the engine compartment. I have not checked ash levels in the DPF lately and plan on doing so in the next few days. I'd expect it to be still at the 48ml mark since its only been about 9k miles since it rolled over from 39ml on Oct 31st.
 

steve05ram360

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2008
Location
all over
TDI
2011 2D Golf
Another uodate... Did a mpg test on this last tank since its been a while and i was seeing an increase... 48.7 mpg over 600+ miles. Last time i did the test mpg was 45ish.
 
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