morrisond

Hi,

I just bought an E3504matic (in Palladium Silver) with AMG wheels and am thinking of changing the grill and doing the Flat Badge mod.

55 Tech has two new grills:

http://www.55tech.com/index.php?main...31ca212aafe286

and:

http://www.55tech.com/index.php?main...31ca212aafe286

versus the one everyone likes:

http://www.55tech.com/index.php?main...31ca212aafe286

I kind of want less Chrome, so one of the first two might be preferrable, how do people think the first two would look on Palladium? Is the top fin going to project too far out of the Hood> Does anyone have anymore pictures?

I kind of leaning to the silver one, but pop the mesh out behind the star and paint it black (if possible) there doesn't appear to be any other mesh between the slats.

Thank you for your help.

EmE247

Pass, pass, and pass. Sounds like The Packs. Go Packs!

Not a fan of the star...

K-A

+2 on the passes. IMO, the aftermarket ill-fit and ill-proportioned Star grilles are the best way to ruin the look of the E's, basically making them look like desperate wannabee's of M-B's with properly designed and proportioned Star grilles from the get go (the W212 has a classic Benz-Stately-Power face, with the taller, more evil-grin VS cheeky-smile grille area, which doesn't work with the Star grille's, hence the huge border they require).

That's my piece, but opinions may vary!

CEB

I agree. I think the best aftermarket items are those that look OE. None of these grills look OE.

threeMBs

Ok, I'll try to keep it close: 2 for - 3 against (with I'm sure more to come).

RobbieRob

I have one of those grills. I switch back and forth from my painted black factory grill to the star grill every couple of months, just to change up the look. The grill fitment is just as good as factory. Since that 55 tech uses the oem star on their grilles(same size as cls,ecoupe,and sls), its like putting a coupe grill on a sedan. Kinda gives the w212 a sportier appearance like the CLS. For as cheap as they are, get one and switch it up once in a while like I do. The only down fall I have with it, it makes our car kinda resemble a c class.

K-A

Just for the record, what I personally mean by "disproportionate" is how the actual grille openings are not universal when Designed by M-B, and never have been. I.e, the Luxury faces are narrower, and taller (bigger mouth), while the Sport faces are shorter, but usually span wider. The actual Star symbol is indeed the same. The CLS and E have very differently proportioned grille openings, which is why I just can't help but see shoehorning a Star grille onto the E-Class as mismatched.

The C-Class is also a good point, as well with so many new M-B models coming out in the lower segments (A Class, etc.) in the U.S, along with the plethora of SUV's, et al now using the now-generic/corporate Star grille face. The E and S are the only two to use the Luxury face exclusively, giving that grille a more powerful presence IMO, especially as time goes on and more Star faces are on the roads (used to be the opposite before M-B started exploiting the Star grille).

threeMBs

Look how much sportier the one with the star looks (and its on a white car too):

K-A

No contest: First one looks so much more aggressive, clean and powerful. Second one just looks cheesy and blatantly "Aftermarket" IMO, and the overall design has now been distracted. The biggest telling point is the giant border the aftermarket grille needs. M-B designers never design such a large chrome border around a Star grill.

Also, the 55 Tech grille does NOT fit like OEM. There's a sizable gap at the bottom, where it doesn't go downward as sharply as the OEM grill, fit with the bumper counters.

K-A

Notice the stark differences in these grill openings.

The CLS is the way the Star grill is supposed to be, carefully designed and appropriated by M-B designers. Not as tall, but wider, more sporty. The E's is more dynamic, not as wide, but more angularly shaped and more vertically tall, intended to be harmonious only as the stately-Luxo face. The E's aftermarket Star grilles keep the huge chrome border, as they have no choice due to the ill-proportioned fit, which is not catering to how M-B designs their Sport grill fronts.

threeMBs

You're right, one of them (white cars that is) looks more aggressive. Clue: it is not the first one.

You probably never held that aftermarket grill in your hands. It feels just like OEM and IMO looks OEM as well. Yes there's minor gap at the bottom, but it's cleverly concealed/filled by felt which is part of the grill.

I actually do not like new CLS from the front - that whole opening is off IMO.

You're entitled to your opinion. So am I.

PHML

I agree ...the first pic on the left is NOT aggressive...

Im sure most of you know that the 2010+ 2-door Couple and Cabriolet E-class grill has the star emblem as them OEM grill.

CEB

K-A hit the nail on the head. The aftermarket star grills have the thicker luxury surrounds rather than the thin surround from the OE star grill.

That thick surround screams aftermarket. I'd like to see a W212 star grill with a thin surround.

PHML

So it has NOTHING to do about the star emblems...its ALL about the surround frame thickness that makes is sporty/aggressive?

Whatevers!!!

threeMBs

What naysayers fail to see (or say) is that the aftermarket grill has an identical thickness surround chrome frame part as the OEM grill. The only difference is that instead of OEM's 3 slats (or 5 for "luxury" grill) aftermarket one has an E coupe like 2 slats with an OEM star.

There'll be no winners/loosers in the argument, so what's the point? Some like it, some don't. I have no problem with that, just do not give esthetics lessons to others as everyone has their own eyes and tastes - a simple "like" it or "don't like" it will do.

CEB

No, I think we all recognize that the aftermarket uses a similar grill surround thickness as the luxury grill. I believe that this works with 3 or 4 slats but looks cartoonish with the star.

I also don't think that we are "naysayers," we just don't like it.

morrisond

As I started this thread, I'll have to agree with the Majority, if the aftermarket grills had a thinner surround they would look better, but what about the two new grills that have no surround?

Would the the silver or black look better on my Palladium Silver E350?

EmE247

Save the bling and get yourself some nice wheels.

K-A

The E Coupe and E Sedan have very different grille openings. The E Sedan with the aftermarket Star grille looks nothing like the E Coupe with its OEM grill (I don't know why you'd want the Sedan to look like the Coupe from the front anyway, but to each their own). The E Sedans is clearly ill proportioned to my eyes with a Star grille, it's just not wide enough and too tall.

Yes, the thick surround looks great and very well fit with a luxury grille. My point is that the thick surround looks way "too much" and too cheesy/gaudy/distracting not to mention unfit with the aftermarket Star grille. Note that I see OEM and aftermarket Star grilles in very different contexts.

Debating design is always subjective, but we do it anyway, that's all this is.

Exactly, on both accounts.

threeMBs

I have held all those grills in my hands. IMO, what you refer to as "new" grills actually do feel (while holding/touching) and look (when installed)aftermarket while the "old" one feels and looks OEM.

As to your direct question, unless your car is iridium silver or older brilliant silver (in other words would match grill's color almost exactly), black grill would always look better.

CEB

Fixed it for you.

RobbieRob

I wish a company would make a grill with just the 2 slats and no star, so I could keep the star on the hood with it. I think that would look pretty good, especially if it was black on my black car..

CEB

Clearly beauty is in the eye of the beholder but the wide surround with those fat slats just looks funky to me.

Black matte slats with chrome trim and a thin surround may look nice but the current aftermarket grills don't. The wide surround combined with the fat gray slats gives the illusion that the grill juts out from the car like in PHML's signature



The black slats with chrome trim on the luxury grill (either three or four slat) makes the slats look more elegant and OE

K-A

Looking at that pic above, so much of the sharp dynamism is eradicated from the 212's front with the aftermarket Star grill IMO. The OEM grille really accentuates all the lines on the car and how they all really sweep forward and climax toward the center of the grill (or vice versa, as if the grill from the pointed middle sets off all the lines as they sweep back dramatically). In the comparo pic, my eyes don't catch that drama with the Star grill, showing that the Designers really knew what they were doing when designing this car as a cohesive whole, including the cleaner and less cluttered grill.

I agree that I wish there were more Aftermarket grill options, sans Star (I also love the hood Star). Kind of like the Lorinser or Vaeth grill's, although I don't like those as much as the OEM grill either. However, they're on the right track. I'd love to see different interpretations on the OEM Luxo-Stately look, instead of the typical Star grill.

RobbieRob

I agree that I wish there were more Aftermarket grill options, sans Star (I also love the hood Star). Kind of like the Lorinser or Vaeth grill's, although I don't like those as much as the OEM grill either. However, they're on the right track. I'd love to see different interpretations on the OEM Luxo-Stately look, instead of the typical Star grill

Yep KA, we need more options. I do love the star on the hood,just need a bada** grill..