It took all of 9 days of owning the car: I removed the front plate holder from my 2013 Fusion Titanium today.
The holder was riveted on with large headed aluminum rivets. I'd purchased a variety of plastic plugs at an Ace Hardware prior to starting as I wasn't sure what size would work and they were inexpensive, and prepped them by sanding (I used 1000 grit, but you could probably use something a bit coarser), spraying with (in order) Adhesion Promoter, Sandable Primer, Touch Up Paint, and Clearcoat. (I stuck the plugs in an old sheet of corrugated board, which made painting them easier.)
Then I drilled out the aluminum rivets with a 1/4" bit, cleaned up the surrounding area, and figured out which set of plugs would work best.
Whole thing took maybe 45 minutes or so. Looks great... I just hope the local cops agree!!! Worst case, I have to put it back on. My Porsche doesn't have a front plate and I've never been pulled over, despite the fact that I've driven by police officers numerous times.
The holder was riveted on with large headed aluminum rivets. I'd purchased a variety of plastic plugs at an Ace Hardware prior to starting as I wasn't sure what size would work and they were inexpensive, and prepped them by sanding (I used 1000 grit, but you could probably use something a bit coarser), spraying with (in order) Adhesion Promoter, Sandable Primer, Touch Up Paint, and Clearcoat. (I stuck the plugs in an old sheet of corrugated board, which made painting them easier.)
Then I drilled out the aluminum rivets with a 1/4" bit, cleaned up the surrounding area, and figured out which set of plugs would work best.
Whole thing took maybe 45 minutes or so. Looks great... I just hope the local cops agree!!! Worst case, I have to put it back on. My Porsche doesn't have a front plate and I've never been pulled over, despite the fact that I've driven by police officers numerous times.