How to Fit Mesh Onto a Body Kit

Body kits replace factory front and rear bumpers on cars to make them stand out from the crowd. Some body kits have openings that go with the flow of the shape of the kit. These openings should have some type of mesh or material behind them to allow the air to flow through, but to stop bugs and other debris from flying into the radiator or other parts. You can fit mesh to a body kit if the body kit is not installed on the car.

Things You'll Need

• Permanent marker
• Mesh material or kit
• Wire cutters
• Plastic gloves
• Body filler
• Hardener
• Plastic squeegee

Instructions

1. Lie the body kit facedown and place the mesh material on the back side opening of the hole. Use the marker to mark the mesh at least 2 inches outside of the hole opening, leaving 2 inches of extra mesh material around the opening.

2. Cut the mesh with wire cutters along the marks you made with the marker. Place them over the openings to make sure they fit and have the 2-inch overhang on all sides.

3. Scoop out about 1/2 cup of body filler and mix it with a dime-size amount of hardener. Mix the filler with the squeegee until the filler and hardener are a solid color and no longer marbled.

4. Place the mesh pieces over the openings and bend the extra material over the sides of the opening, from the back side. It doesn’t have to be perfect. From the front side of the body kit, you should only see the mesh insert and not the extra material.

5. Spread body filler where the mesh overlap and body kit meet. The filler shouldn’t be seen from the front of the body kit. The filler is used as glue and should be left alone to dry for several hours once it has been applied.

Tips & Warnings

• Wear plastic gloves to keep the filler from drying on your hands.

• Make sure the filler and mesh are in place before you let the filler dry, or it will be very hard to separate them and start over.