GTI grill on mkV Jetta?

I have a guy on VW Vortex that says he will trade grills with me. I have the mkV Jetta stock chrome grill, and he has this grill:





1) Will this grill fit on my car? Everything about his front end looks exactly the same as mine, but I want to make sure.

2) I don't have any fogs right now, and I don't think I will be getting his in the trade. I have been wanting driving lights for a while, though. Should I try to buy his fogs from him for a complete OEM look, or should I buy these lights to fit into the fog holes:

http://www.autoanything.com/lights/69A2141A0A0.aspx


I thought if I just do the OEM foglights, I might be able to put small driving lights somewhere behind the open honeycomb grill (top or bottom).

So, what does everybody think?

I've seen a few Mk5's with grille swaps, so it will go in. I've not done this myself - Not sure how the old one comes apart.

the oem Chrome grill is worth a lot more than the GTI/GLI setup. Check oempl.us for price differences.

I bought the GLI style and installed myself... works and looks great.
I then sold the chrome grille on vortex classifieds for a lot considering all the rock chips.

OEM fogs for the best look IMO. I bought via part number from 1stvwparts

GTI/GLI grill is a direct swap. Personally, I do not like it. Washing it might be PITA. Plus those closed side grill looks weird. But the chrome looks even worse. Out of these two options get the GTI/GLI grill.

I am getting GT grill painted satin black to match b-pillars.

OEM fog projectors are half the price of these PIAA. And they do not look like they were built for "Pimp my ride". Plus if you connect them through CECM, they can be programmed as DRLs.

maloosheck said:

GTI/GLI grill is a direct swap. Personally, I do not like it. Washing it might be PITA. Plus those closed side grill looks weird. But the chrome looks even worse. Out of these two options get the GTI/GLI grill.

I am getting GT grill painted satin black to match b-pillars.

OEM fog projectors are half the price of these PIAA. And they do not look like they were built for "Pimp my ride". Plus if you connect them through CECM, they can be programmed as DRLs.

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I agree 100% on everything he said. I personally like the GLI look and went for it, as a matter of fact the only thing that makes my car not a GLI is just the diesel engine.
As far as fog lights, do resist the temptation to buy aftermarket. Go with OEM projectors with H11 bulbs, which is what the European Jetta is equipped with.

LF06VWJTDI said:

I agree 100% on everything he said. I personally like the GLI look and went for it, as a matter of fact the only thing that makes my car not a GLI is just the diesel engine.
As far as fog lights, do resist the temptation to buy aftermarket. Go with OEM projectors with H11 bulbs, which is what the European Jetta is equipped with.

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Agreed kind of same with my car... I even have the leather GLI sport seats, and Leather MFSW (steering wheel).

Although my grill is mixed/mismatched... I actually liked the chrome strips better then the closed fog grills I got with my swap so I kept mine and sold the others...

Pic: I also replaced the GTI badge w/ a red TDI one...

Go for it and do the OEM fog's as they are fairly cheap now. And just as above, yes it is a direct fit/swap with the grills.

I had a GTI grille for a while w/out fogs. It's like 4 screws and two clips (for the largest part w/ the emblem). Really easy to do. Took 20 mins?

Da~da~da said:

Go for it and do the OEM fog's as they are fairly cheap now. And just as above, yes it is a direct fit/swap with the grills.

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I did have a set of OEM fogs and the grills, but I just liked the chrome strip and stock "fog" grills better then the closed honey-comb GTI fog grills, so I sold the fog lights, and the GTI fog grills. I don't think I even want the fog lights, so its a non issue for me.

Your car does look great though esp. with the color matched front and fogs. I like the graphite blue on black contrast on my paint color though.

Ok, this is great! I'm really glad the grills are interchangeable.

About the foglights, everybody so far has said to go with the oem's. My only problem with that is that I will still be searching for a mounting spot for driving lights (ones that light up the road a long way ahead, not like fogs that light up the ground right in front of the car). Still, the more I think about it, the more I agree with everyone that the fogs will look better in the grill.

I mentioned possibly trying to mount driving lights behind the top or bottom open honeycomb grill. However, I am worried about seriously abstructing air flow to the radiator or intercooler. Is there room behind this grill anywhere to mount a small pair of lights like the ones I posted at the top? Is there even any good mounting point behind the grill? Would it really be a problem for airflow?

SootHappens said:

the oem Chrome grill is worth a lot more than the GTI/GLI setup. Check oempl.us for price differences.

I bought the GLI style and installed myself... works and looks great.
I then sold the chrome grille on vortex classifieds for a lot considering all the rock chips.

OEM fogs for the best look IMO. I bought via part number from 1stvwparts

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Would you mind telling me how much you got for your old chrome grill? Because if you got any where close to what you paid for the new kit, then that is a much better deal than the one I am looking at right now.

I couldn't beleive it, but the entire chrome grill setup is selling for $710, and the entire GTI/GLI grill setup only costs $220! And that is a new grill, not a used one like the one I would be getting.

F250_JR said:

My only problem with that is that I will still be searching for a mounting spot for driving lights (ones that light up the road a long way ahead, not like fogs that light up the ground right in front of the car).

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Forgive my ignorance, what is the difference between driving lights and normal low/high beams? Can you use them with the incoming traffic, like low-beams and they still give you output as high beams? I have never had a car with driving lights, hence my question.

F250_JR said:

Would you mind telling me how much you got for your old chrome grill?...

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Sure, my grille was in bad shape with rock chips all over, license plate holes, and I still pulled $125 for it on the vortex classifieds.

I would go "new" if I were you.

maloosheck said:

Forgive my ignorance, what is the difference between driving lights and normal low/high beams? Can you use them with the incoming traffic, like low-beams and they still give you output as high beams? I have never had a car with driving lights, hence my question.

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When I say "driving lights" I am referring to aftermarket lights (like Hella's, KC's, or Piaa's) that shine a very long beam in front of the car, lighting up the road way past the stopping point of the high beams. Here is a picture from Piaa that shows the different types of light patterns:


Basically, driving lights have a narrower beam width than regular offroad lights do, and they reach a greater distance. They are supplementing the exisiting high beams in the headlights. From what I have learned, anytime you have lights that shine further than the stock headlights, there will be glare for oncoming traffic. So, this type of light is only supposed to be for offroad use, or when there is no oncoming traffic.

I want "driving lights" because I drive on some very dark, hilly backcountry highways where my stock headlights just don't go far enough. There is very little traffic on these roads, so the glare is not really an issue. I wouldn't be using these lights unless I needed them, and there was no oncoming traffic. I just need lights that illuminate farther ahead and to each side. If you look at the picture, you see that fog lights only illuminate the ground immediately in front of the car, so that wouldn't really help my situation.

The reason I am trying to figure this out at the same time that I replace my grill is that I don't want to just mount some 6" Hellas on my front bumper. I want to find a grill/light combination that allows me to have extra lighting, works with the grill that I like, and doesn't make my car look like an offroad wannabe. I sort of need to make all my changes at once, so that I don't end up doing something that I later need to undo to make room for something else.

I hope I explained myself a little better this time. Sorry about the confusion.

Anybody have any comments about fitting those Piaa's at the top of the page behind the open honeycomb in the GTI grill?

SootHappens said:

Sure, my grille was in bad shape with rock chips all over, license plate holes, and I still pulled $125 for it on the vortex classifieds.

I would go "new" if I were you.

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Wow, sounds like I may need to reconsider this deal.

I had never seen a picture of the front of your car before...I really like the combination of the GTI grill and the Huffs. Painted black, those are my dream wheels. Sharp car!

How to take off your front grill (and install fog lamps)

I found this on vortex. Its a nicely detailed foglamp DIY...which requires removal of the front grill (#8 in the procedure).

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=3223187

j...

F250_JR said:

Would you mind telling me how much you got for your old chrome grill? Because if you got any where close to what you paid for the new kit, then that is a much better deal than the one I am looking at right now.

I couldn't beleive it, but the entire chrome grill setup is selling for $710, and the entire GTI/GLI grill setup only costs $220! And that is a new grill, not a used one like the one I would be getting.

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Don't get too excited here. You won't get anywhere near the $700 oempl.us is asking. I thought the exact same thing and was mocked mercilessly over there (vortex classifieds). I guess alot of people do this swap and supply far exceeds demand. I ended up selling it for $225 to a local party w/plate holes. You may be able get $300 w/o holes and shipping incl. Since I don't have fogs oempl.us swaped the GTI fog grill w/ the Golf GT @ no extra charge, just so I could loose those chrome strips.

blag said:

Don't get too excited here. You won't get anywhere near the $700 oempl.us is asking. I thought the exact same thing and was mocked mercilessly over there (vortex classifieds). I guess alot of people do this swap and supply far exceeds demand. I ended up selling it for $225 to a local party w/plate holes. You may be able get $300 w/o holes and shipping incl. Since I don't have fogs oempl.us swaped the GTI fog grill w/ the Golf GT @ no extra charge, just so I could loose those chrome strips.

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Don't worry, I wouldn't ask for that much money. Honestly, if the sale of my chrome grill would even pay for half of the GTI grill, I would be completely happy.
Thanks for the picture, too. Since I don't have fogs either, I had been thinking about doing exactly what you did with the Golf side grills. I had thought it would look weird, but I actually like it.

F250_JR said:

Don't worry, I wouldn't ask for that much money. Honestly, if the sale of my chrome grill would even pay for half of the GTI grill, I would be completely happy.
Thanks for the picture, too. Since I don't have fogs either, I had been thinking about doing exactly what you did with the Golf side grills. I had thought it would look weird, but I actually like it.

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Thanks. I had the same fear myself but I think it came out o.k. Makes it look more custom. Plus they have big cut-outs in the back to keep the air flowing to your vitals. Any plans to lose the chrome around the windows? That's my next mod and I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it.

blag said:

Thanks. I had the same fear myself but I think it came out o.k. Makes it look more custom. Plus they have big cut-outs in the back to keep the air flowing to your vitals. Any plans to lose the chrome around the windows? That's my next mod and I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it.

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YES!!! I am not the only one who thinks the chrome around the windows needs to go! I actually already found the mod that we need to do here: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=3915129

It sounds like an awful lot of work, but IMO it is definitely worth it to get rid of the chrome. I haven't priced the black window trim yet, because I am probably going to wait until after I have done the grill, skidplate, and driving lights. Supposedly it isn't too hard to find someone on Vortex who is willing to make the swap.

F250_JR said:

Supposedly it isn't too hard to find someone on Vortex who is willing to make the swap.

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Exactly. I highly recommend swapping the trim with sb who wants chrome. Buying new parts will cost you arm and leg.

F250_JR said:

YES!!! I am not the only one who thinks the chrome around the windows needs to go! I actually already found the mod that we need to do here: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=3915129

It sounds like an awful lot of work, but IMO it is definitely worth it to get rid of the chrome. I haven't priced the black window trim yet, because I am probably going to wait until after I have done the grill, skidplate, and driving lights. Supposedly it isn't too hard to find someone on Vortex who is willing to make the swap.

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Seems like malooshecks' DIY is the BEST way to do it which answers my question. That being said, I don't think I want to remove it THAT bad. I think I'll try to tape it in place using either TrimBrite or 3M. I've seen DIY's that make it sound easy but just looking at it, I don't see it. Think I'll start with TrimBrite since it's cheap and if it looks like it's going to work, I'll buy some 3M Scotchcal. About $45 for 150' of 1".

I think I just enjoy doing things the hard way, just for the personal satisfaction I get out of it. Even so, I agree, that mod is extremely intense. It looks like a full weekend of hard work to me.

Maloosheck, exactly how hard was it for you find the window trim you wanted?

Here is mine - i put the full GLI conversion on and reflector foglights. Got it from the dealer for about $220... not really sure, it was a at mile 200 (now at 38k). I really dont like chrome, and am thinking about doing maloosheck window trim conversion.

F250_JR said:

Even so, I agree, that mod is extremely intense. It looks like a full weekend of hard work to me.

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If you do it for the first time - yes. I was driving for a week with one side black and the other one chromed because I did not have a full weekend when I started.

F250_JR said:

Maloosheck, exactly how hard was it for you find the window trim you wanted?

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Finding it was the hardest part. I could not afford new parts (go ask the dealership yourself how much it cost to get all the window trim parts), junk yards usually sell the complete doors as one part, I could not find anybody willing to swap (the amount of work involved was a barrier). I finally got my trim from carparts4sale. They sell on ebay and on vortex classifieds. They probably still want to kill me for the amount of work involved in removing that thing .

SBAtdijetta said:

Pic: I also replaced the GTI badge w/ a red TDI one...

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Can I see a pic of the grill w/ the red TDI badge? Did you get it from oempl.us? I was wanting to do something similar. How does it attach?

I'm on my umpteenth iteration of grill mods for my car - 80 mph+ freeway commuting flails these things to smithereens.
This is v4.0, GTI grill I bought used - it was painted crappy white, so I sanded it down, and resprayed it with Plasti-dip rattle can for a matte black finish that matches the original honeycomb. I don't like the honeycomb though, so v5.0 will be back to the factory slat grill, but strip/Plasti-dip the chrome shield in similar fashion. My side grills have factory chrome strips, but they're covered with Trimbrite Blackout tape. This stuff is suprisingly durable! Yet still easy to remove/redo when needed.
I also went with OEM projector fogs, pieced together from 1stvwparts.com. I was working on a low profile license bracket mount for some small high intensity driving lights a couple years back, for dark winter months - never finished it though. Hope was to make them removable for summer use.
Instead, I've switched efforts and am working on installing some ultra high intensity LED lights - that's still in-progress.
Here's the current v4.0...

CADtechTDi said:

I'm on my umpteenth iteration of grill mods for my car - 80 mph+ freeway commuting flails these things to smithereens.
This is v4.0, GTI grill I bought used - it was painted crappy white, so I sanded it down, and resprayed it with Plasti-dip rattle can for a matte black finish that matches the original honeycomb. I don't like the honeycomb though, so v5.0 will be back to the factory slat grill, but strip/Plasti-dip the chrome shield in similar fashion. My side grills have factory chrome strips, but they're covered with Trimbrite Blackout tape. This stuff is suprisingly durable! Yet still easy to remove/redo when needed.
I also went with OEM projector fogs, pieced together from 1stvwparts.com. I was working on a low profile license bracket mount for some small high intensity driving lights a couple years back, for dark winter months - never finished it though. Hope was to make them removable for summer use.
Instead, I've switched efforts and am working on installing some ultra high intensity LED lights - that's still in-progress.
Here's the current v4.0...

Click to expand...

Looks like you got rid of the the red stripe as well. TrimBrite also? I'm thinking about using TrimBrite on the chrome around the windows. Any experience with that?

kromicacid said:

Here is mine - i put the full GLI conversion on and reflector foglights. Got it from the dealer for about $220... not really sure, it was a at mile 200 (now at 38k). I really dont like chrome, and am thinking about doing maloosheck window trim conversion.

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Wait, did you say you got the whole conversion kit, and the foglights for $220? Because if you did, I want your dealer's phone number.

maloosheck said:

Finding it was the hardest part. I could not afford new parts (go ask the dealership yourself how much it cost to get all the window trim parts), junk yards usually sell the complete doors as one part, I could not find anybody willing to swap (the amount of work involved was a barrier). I finally got my trim from carparts4sale. They sell on ebay and on vortex classifieds. They probably still want to kill me for the amount of work involved in removing that thing .

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Thanks maloosheck, I will try them out. Honestly, my family became firmly convinced I had lost my sanity when I spent about 25 hours total one weekend detailing, polishing, and waxing my car (this was shortly after I had gotten it). It's just that I am willing to spend that time in order to get the results. I like working on my car. I especially enjoy it when I get to take apart more of my car, because I get to learn more about it. I think your mod is right up my alley.

F250_JR said:

Honestly, my family became firmly convinced I had lost my sanity when I spent about 25 hours total one weekend detailing, polishing, and waxing my car (this was shortly after I had gotten it).

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You have too much time. But do not worry, once you started modding, you will not have that much time for washing and waxing .