Facelift grill?
#1
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Nov 2021
Posts: 167
Likes: 39
From: Jersey
2019 E53 Cabrio, Lunar Blue. 2020 GLC 300
Facelift grill?
I have a 2109 E53 and really love the facelift grill with the vertical components. Anyone know if that is an easy swap? I am not desperate to do it, just wondering.
#2
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 2,342
Likes: 442
From: The Palmetto State
19 E63s(wifeys) & a 21 GLE580
I’ve been curious to do it on both mine too, especially on my GLE with that ugly diamond grill. I’ve heard both ways. Easy and hard. Most have said the whole front has to come off. I’m not worried about that as much as I’ve heard the distronic has to be unhooked and therefore it has to go back to the dealership to get recalibrated. I made a deal a few weeks ago that I will never set foot back into my local dealership (Carlton MB). I think most on here have had someone do there’s and I’ve talked to two local shops and neither seemed to eager to get involved with it.
So honestly who knows for sure. Maybe some pros will chime in. I’ve been looking and watching for maybe a thread that goes more in depth about.
So honestly who knows for sure. Maybe some pros will chime in. I’ve been looking and watching for maybe a thread that goes more in depth about.
#3
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Nov 2021
Posts: 167
Likes: 39
From: Jersey
2019 E53 Cabrio, Lunar Blue. 2020 GLC 300
I’ve been curious to do it on both mine too, especially on my GLE with that ugly diamond grill. I’ve heard both ways. Easy and hard. Most have said the whole front has to come off. I’m not worried about that as much as I’ve heard the distronic has to be unhooked and therefore it has to go back to the dealership to get recalibrated. I made a deal a few weeks ago that I will never set foot back into my local dealership (Carlton MB). I think most on here have had someone do there’s and I’ve talked to two local shops and neither seemed to eager to get involved with it.
So honestly who knows for sure. Maybe some pros will chime in. I’ve been looking and watching for maybe a thread that goes more in depth about.
So honestly who knows for sure. Maybe some pros will chime in. I’ve been looking and watching for maybe a thread that goes more in depth about.
#4
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Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 2,342
Likes: 442
From: The Palmetto State
19 E63s(wifeys) & a 21 GLE580
Originally Posted by shekmark;[url=tel:8515765
8515765[/url]]I most definitely do not want to open up anbag of worms although if I had a little accident I would not worry about it and wither would the shop. They would fix it. Lets see who else chimes in.
#5
I did mine over the holiday break. Took around 7-8 hours, but I consciously paced myself and was deliberate with each step of the process so I wouldn't screw anything up. There are a lot of bolts involved, including some that are a bit tricky, but I did a lot of homework ahead of time to learn as much as possible about each of those challenging steps and at the end of the day, it was not hard. Once the bumper is off, the hardest part is snapping the numerous tabs that hold the grill to the bumper itself (and by "hard" I mean awkward to deal with, but with patience it becomes just a matter of time). The only special tools I needed were 2 car jacks, a torx bit set and metrics socket set, a socket extension set from Harbor Freight (for a few of the hard to reach spots) and a $15 rivet gun from Amazon.
All in all, it was just time consuming, but at least to me, it was an immensely rewarding job since I don't have experience working on cars. It's easy to feel overwhelmed looking at your front end all ripped apart with so many complex components showing, but keeping in mind you don't have to touch any of that helps stay focused on the job.
All in all, it was just time consuming, but at least to me, it was an immensely rewarding job since I don't have experience working on cars. It's easy to feel overwhelmed looking at your front end all ripped apart with so many complex components showing, but keeping in mind you don't have to touch any of that helps stay focused on the job.
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#6
This is BS. Before I mustered the courage to tackle it myself, I shopped around for a place that would do it for me and I heard this same story, which didn't quite make sense to me. All you have to do that is remotely related to distronic is that you have to twist the start on the front grill counter clockwise to get it loose, then disconnect the radar harness as part of the bumper removal. The star emblem went back on the new grill perfectly and with no fuss, and all my distronic functions were 100% unaffected. This was by far the most straightforward step of the whole process and took all of 5 minutes.
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#9
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Nov 2021
Posts: 167
Likes: 39
From: Jersey
2019 E53 Cabrio, Lunar Blue. 2020 GLC 300
And how much? If you don’t mind. I actually thought I would just replace the insert part. I did not realize it was the entire grill. Bet that is pricey!
#10
https://www.ebay.com/itm/224551902874
Paid about the same price that it's currently listed for, just under $400. It was surprisingly good quality and fitment is spot on.
Note there's another version of this grill out there with chrome details on the leading edge of the vertical slats in case you may prefer that.
Paid about the same price that it's currently listed for, just under $400. It was surprisingly good quality and fitment is spot on.
Note there's another version of this grill out there with chrome details on the leading edge of the vertical slats in case you may prefer that.
Last edited by Drewsky00; 02-19-2022 at 08:53 PM.
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