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Thread: Radiator & condenser coil protection screen

  1. #1
    Senior Member AlphaMicra's Avatar
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    Radiator & condenser coil protection screen

    From my blog: http://mymicra.com/?p=367

    My theory works like this: The gaps in the grille are large enough to allow a large stone to pass through from the truck you’re following, and that stone becomes embedded in the condenser coil. Eventually, the coil leaks, and the air conditioning stops working. If it happens in the wintertime, you may be unaware that you’ve lost the refrigerant which also acts as a lubricant for your compressor, and next summer, it’s time to replace the coil, seals, and compressor.

    The mesh is gutter guard, cut roughly to the size and shape of the grille, then held in place with small black zip ties. From a distance, it’s nearly impossible to tell it’s there. I had this on my previous car, and the air conditioning never failed once in the 12 years it was in service.
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    Thoughts?



    In our culture obsessed with absurd excess, the Nissan Micra is my counterculture car of choice.
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    Senior Member en3rg1e's Avatar
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    Wow...those are large holes, good idea on the mesh, is this that flexible mesh u see on vegetables sometimes?

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    Senior Member AlphaMicra's Avatar
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    I don't know about using it on vegetables, it doesn't change its overall shape but it is flexible; it comes in a roll for a couple of dollars and is made for putting over your gutters to keep debris out. I have plenty left over if anyone would like to have some.

    I wonder if Darin has any thoughts on how it might affect aerodynamics and fuel economy.

    In our culture obsessed with absurd excess, the Nissan Micra is my counterculture car of choice.
    Be sure to visit my blog at mymicra.com!

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra SV manual: 6.4 L/100 km ... 44.3 mpg (Imp) ... 15.7 km/L ... 36.9 mpg (US) ...


  5. #4
    Administrator MetroMPG's Avatar
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    Joking, or not joking... I can never tell.

    Blocking the grille generally aids fuel economy. Grilles are sized for worst case cooling scenarios, which few people ever encounter (think: maxed out vehicle load, climbing out of Death Valley on a 120F day with the A/C on full blast, into a headwind). Cooling system drag accounts for a very large portion of overall aerodynamic drag.

    Which is why OEM's are carefully blocking more grille area, or installing automated shutters to improve aero & fuel consumption when cooling needs are low (moderate/low engine load).

    All that said, I don't think the mesh adds enough area to affect aero much.

    But I will say that the Micra would benefit from partial grille blocking!

    ---

    Aside from all that - good mod, Paul! Can't be too careful.

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.5 mpg (Imp) ... 20.0 km/L ... 47.0 mpg (US) ...


  6. #5
    Senior Member AlphaMicra's Avatar
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    Thanks, Darin. I asked because I noticed my fuel economy had dropped slightly, it got down to 6.2L/100km with mixed city, highway, and mostly backroad driving, then moved up to 6.3L/100km for a little bit during the drive after I did this. The economy did settle back down to 6.2L/100km. The fuel economy is way better than I used to get, it took 139 km of driving to see the fuel gauge drop one bar. That would've been a good quarter tank, possibly more, in the old Grand Am.

    In our culture obsessed with absurd excess, the Nissan Micra is my counterculture car of choice.
    Be sure to visit my blog at mymicra.com!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra SV manual: 6.4 L/100 km ... 44.3 mpg (Imp) ... 15.7 km/L ... 36.9 mpg (US) ...


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    Senior Member en3rg1e's Avatar
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    Hey alpha, did you have to remove the front bumper to zip tie the mesh?

  8. #7
    Senior Member AlphaMicra's Avatar
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    En3rg1e, I was thinking about it, but it was flexible enough to work it into place with the bumper intact after I cut it to size. I folded the tip of the zipties, pushed them through the hole and then hooked them back through and grabbed the tip with a pair of needlenose pliers. In retrospect, it might have been easier if I had removed the bumper, but once I was halfway into it, I figured I might as well finish it that way.

    In our culture obsessed with absurd excess, the Nissan Micra is my counterculture car of choice.
    Be sure to visit my blog at mymicra.com!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra SV manual: 6.4 L/100 km ... 44.3 mpg (Imp) ... 15.7 km/L ... 36.9 mpg (US) ...


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    Administrator Daox's Avatar
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    Looks like a good idea. Nice job Alpha, it looks good.

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    Senior Member aftica's Avatar
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    Yeah, that's a great idea AlphaMicra, where did you get that? The stuff at HD looks like crap. Turn the locking bit on the cable tie, around to the back of grill for an even cleaner install.

    EDIT:Ok, I found some stuff at HD that worked pretty good, but not as nice looking as the stuff AlphaMicra used. This is a must do mod in my opinion... even after just one tank of gas there are quite a few fins bent over from strikes. The bumper skin wraps around underneath, protecting the rad from bouncing rocks, but the grill openings are just too large to protect from direct hits. The holes in this screen are 1/4''x1/4'' which is a great size and allows maximum protection. Very easy to cut, even a good pair of scissors would work.

    1) The grill pops out quite easily using a small screw driver to pop the locking tabs from the outside of grill.
    2)I used some small screws into existing mount points and then added cable ties for good measure. The mount points in the grill suggest that there is a pre-made cover available somewhere for this application.(perhaps a winter front)
    3)Trim the bits around the edges flush to avoid skin irritation.
    4)The lower piece is 36'' x 7 1/4'' Roll it up and it pass through grill hole. Cable ties hold this in place. I drilled an extra hole on each side of license plate to hold the top centre section of cover. This would have been much easier if I had removed the bumper skin, but I couldn't be arsed.
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    Last edited by aftica; 06-05-2014 at 06:39 PM.
    Ten Grand Tin Can

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.3 L/100 km ... 53.2 mpg (Imp) ... 18.8 km/L ... 44.3 mpg (US) ...


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  13. #10
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    i did that already but by pulling almost the front part, the method above is the easiest i presume, the grill is priceless protection compare to the damage to the radiator which will eventually damage the transmission if the radiator break or leak without notice



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