2006 Coupe owners - help verify grille

[SatansVette]

Greetings;

Could a couple of you fellow 2006 coupe owners help me and verify the grille on my 2006 coupe. Mine has a black plastic "band aid" wrapped around one of the fins . . . could you take a look at yours and see if thats a typical part on all 2006 coupes?

 

[68Roadster]

Check her when I get home.....let ya know.

 

[SatansVette]

Thank ya sir, appreciate that! By the way... the wheels on your 06 look pretty polished... are they highly polished?

 

[68Roadster]

They are the polished aluminum rims and I honestly have to say that the polished alum rims on her 2004 looked better than these.....
I'm gonna try some Mothers on them (nothing done to them to date) and see if the brighten up a bit.

 

[68Roadster]

The horizontal fin, just inside the first vertical fin on the right hand side appears to be pieced, in lieu of a solid piece like the rest of the grill.
Not sure why they would have it like this, we need more C6'ers to chime in and I need to order Service manuals.

 

[SatansVette]

Thanks for checking that, at least now I know mine isn't some oddball out. I really don't know what the advantage is to having the grille like that. I thought at first it may have been the motor air sensor or I if it was just simply a defect in design that was compensated by this "band aid" . . . ?!

Yes indeed, I ordered the 3LT with the touted "Highly Polished" wheels and when I actually took delivery I was a tad taken back at how DULL they were . . . so much for "Highly" polished. I don't know but it appears that they powder coated the wheels . . . which pretty much eliminates any benefit of polishing one does to them. I wonder why, unless enough buyers that are too lazy to clean their wheels, complained and GM decided to powder coat them, which provides a pretty crummy polish and unlikely I would opt for that option in the future, or perhaps they decided that "semi polished is more of a "classier" look Regardless though, they shouldn't be labeled as "Highly Polished."

The wheels on my 2004 are VERY nicely polished wheels . . . makes the 2006 wheels pale in comparrison.

 

[68Roadster]

I agree....I know GM was having problems with their wheel vendor at one point in time and I don't know how long that has carried over.
I would give the wheels on the "04 an A- and the wheels on the "06 a D.

Even had the salesman tell me he could send them out and get them chromed.

I will keep digging into this grille situation and let you know when I figure it out.

 

[motorman]

Greetings;

Could a couple of you fellow 2006 coupe owners help me and verify the grille on my 2006 coupe. Mine has a black plastic "band aid" wrapped around one of the fins . . . could you take a look at yours and see if thats a typical part on all 2006 coupes?

my 05 has a "joint" in the horizonal bar on the passenger side

 

[68Roadster]

OK, we're 3 for 3.....anybody got a phone number for Dave Hill???

 

[68Roadster]

That little piece will pop off if you pull up the top and bottom, even has a little retainer string on it just so it doesn't depart the area.
Wonder if it has something to do with European C6's or the Z06??

 

[yellow_2002_germany]

That little piece will pop off if you pull up the top and bottom, even has a little retainer string on it just so it doesn't depart the area.
Wonder if it has something to do with European C6's or the Z06??

Part of European specs for a Vette is that it has to include a way to tow it from the front. On C5's there is a towing hook in the passenger-side front opening that is not present on the US-spec versions.

I would suspect that this pop-out section is an attempt to limit the number of different parts that have to be made for the different versions of the car. Out on the Euro-spec versions, in on the US-spec versions.

UPDATE:
I went and checked out a Vette at the dealership in Bitburg, Germany. Sure enough, there is a removable grill piece. It is the horizontal piece in the 2nd space passenger-side of the center upright of the grille. It is located right where the tow hook comes out of the front of the car and is also tethered so it won't get lost.

 

[Bernievw]

I have an '05 Coupe - nothing like this in my grill.