All:


I am the new (to me) owner of a 2013 G37xS sedan and am trying to mount the front plate without either drilling into the bumper or spending big $$ on one of the tow hook mounts (also don't much care for the offset look, BTW).


So far I have zip tied a plastic, universal backing plate to the center of the lower grill, using weather stripping between the backing plate and any place it touches the car. It fits snugly and actually looks pretty good in that position, so I'm inclined to keep it that way for now.


My question today is how harmful, if at all, is it to the performance of the car that my solution may be impeding air flow?


A little more background:

1. I did notice that my outside temp indicator was a full 12 degrees higher than actual last night after driving around for a bit with it in place (81 vs. 69 F actual); this morning the gap at start-up was even more pronounced (76 vs. 59 F actual), but the reading in the car came down by 10 degrees during my 7 mile commute. This makes sense as the car was garaged last night. Regardless, could my set up have some bearing on the outside temp sensor?
2. At no time has the engine temperature gauge gone above midline.
3. I did notice some heat on my right foot as I was driving last night (not this AM, though) which caused my concern in the first place.
4. Wouldn't the other aftermarket alternative mounting options cause the same problem, or are the overcome because they are not snug to the grill as in my application?

I do plan to keep the car for a long time and am hoping that a bill pending in my state (Ohio) will pass eliminating the front plate requirement, so I don't want to drill into the bumper if at possible.


Thanks for your feedback.

 

With all the worries and concerns I would just go spend a few bucks and get a tow hook mount

 

i just drive with the front plate off.

when i park, i hang the plate on where you have the plate ziptied

Doesn't fall out either if i ever forget to take it off before driving.


All in all, no need to worry if you dont mind how a plate looks and leave it mounted:
There are g's running around in texas [or some other hot state] in the middle of summer just fine. If you are tracking it hard around town in a 105*+ day, then just remove the plate for that time.

All the g's with an oil cooler mounted in front of the radiator have even more of this issue than you.