[kestrel]

Greetings,

My wife and I took a Sunday drive around Southeast Arizona this morning, about 85 miles total. It was a great drive and we had breakfast in Patagonia, but holy mackerel, the grasshoppers were everywhere. I about died when I saw the front of the car when we got back home.

To prepare for cleaning, I removed the splitter, splash guard, and lower grill just to get to all of the little buggers. Here are a few pics. Sorry, I didn't think to take pictures until I had the car apart and had half of the grasshoppers removed. At least you get some idea of the carnage. There were about 150 just in the splitter alone when I took it off! I can't wait to clean everything.

[mustang crazy]

kestrel, on Sep 20 2009, 09:55 PM, said:

Greetings,

My wife and I took a Sunday drive around Southeast Arizona this morning, about 85 miles total. It was a great drive and we had breakfast in Patagonia, but holy mackerel, the grasshoppers were everywhere. I about died when I saw the front of the car when we got back home.

To prepare for cleaning, I removed the splitter, splash guard, and lower grill just to get to all of the little buggers. Here are a few pics. Sorry, I didn't think to take pictures until I had the car apart and had half of the grasshoppers removed. At least you get some idea of the carnage. There were about 150 just in the splitter alone when I took it off! I can't wait to clean everything.

Wow what a job but that the way to clean before they dry. It a little work but you didit the correct way!!

[MY500SS]

I like how you go the extra mile to clean up the carnage.

[svtakach62]

I believe in driving my car but YIKES! I think I would have pulled over and waited for the plague to end or a flatbed truck to take me home.

SVT

[azmartin]

This is common most everywhere when there is a suffcient lack of rainfall and mild winters for a few years. The grasshoppers are now adults and they are everywhere down that way. Patagonia is more south central from us. Get more east towards Sierra Vista and there is a little less of them. Here in the far South East we have a few but due to fairly good rainy seasons and colder winters not a lot.

Make sure you get them off soon and rewax as soon as possible, the acidity in thier system will mar the paint finish. I can remember during dry seasons in Montana barely being able to stop when sliding across the grasshoppers on the highway they were so thick. They would eat the siding off of the houses.

Have you ever been up Mt Graham or the Coronado Trail over Safford way?

This post has been edited by azmartin: 20 September 2009 - 08:35 PM

[frank bullitt]

kestrel, on Sep 20 2009, 08:55 PM, said:

Greetings,

My wife and I took a Sunday drive around Southeast Arizona this morning, about 85 miles total. It was a great drive and we had breakfast in Patagonia, but holy mackerel, the grasshoppers were everywhere. I about died when I saw the front of the car when we got back home.

To prepare for cleaning, I removed the splitter, splash guard, and lower grill just to get to all of the little buggers. Here are a few pics. Sorry, I didn't think to take pictures until I had the car apart and had half of the grasshoppers removed. At least you get some idea of the carnage. There were about 150 just in the splitter alone when I took it off! I can't wait to clean everything.

How'd you get the lower grill off without popping off the whole bumper cover?

Thanks!

[kestrel]

frank bullitt, on Sep 25 2009, 12:52 PM, said:

How'd you get the lower grill off without popping off the whole bumper cover?

Thanks!

First of all, it helped that the lower grill on my car doesn't seat properly on the top left or top right, so those tabs were already out (not installed properly during installation). I worked the other ones out slowly by pushing up on the bumper just above the mounting tabs on the grill. To get the bottom tabs out of their mounts, you have to remove the splitter and engine splash guard. Then you can do those from the back side by pushing in on the retainers so they release the tabs. Sorry, but I didn't think to take pictures until I had everything apart. I just wanted the grasshoppers out of there.

I put the car back together yesterday, hoping that I could get the lower grill in properly, but something is causing the left and right sides on top not to lock into place. I'm going to the dealer tomorrow to have the broken/scratched/missing pieces in my trunk replaced and have that grill installed properly. On a good note, the splitter and splash guard installed with ease.