The Most Popular Types of Toyota Grilles and the Difference Between Them

The grille on your Toyota is its most distinctive feature and one of the first things most people will notice about your car. A well-designed grille can make your Toyota stand out from the crowd, so if you’re looking to replace your generic-looking grille for an aftermarket one, you’ll find a wide range of Toyota car grilles that are made for your Toyota’s specific model, make and year. There are a couple of different grille styles, and the most popular ones are the following.

Mesh Grilles

These Toyota car grilles are simple, yet very elegant. They can be found as original equipment on a lot of sports and luxury Toyotas and are also popular in the aftermarket world. Mesh patterns can be either created by weaving or bonding separate strands of material together, or they can be cast in one piece. The material used in mesh Toyota car grilles can be ABS plastic, stainless steel or aluminium, and the finish can be powder coat, chrome plating or polished metal. Depending on the tightness of the weave pattern, mesh grilles can be heavy mesh or fine mesh.

Billet Grilles

Billet grilles are the most common style you’ll come across when shopping for aftermarket grilles. In fact, most aftermarket models are referred to as billet grilles – they consist of a series of horizontally or vertically stacked bars. You’ll come across billet grilles that feature many thin bars stacked closely together and billet grilles that have a few thick bars. Typically, billet grilles are made of stainless steel or aluminium and they can be powder coated, polished or chrome plated. There are also ABS plastic billet grilles that combine the rigidity and strength of styrene polymers and acrylonitrile and the ruggedness of polybutadiene rubber. These materials are chemical-, heat- and impact-resistant.

CNC Manufactured Grilles

These are made by machines controlled by computers, which results in precision-shaped metals being cut in intricate shapes and patterns, and machining irregular edges into smooth perfection. You can get complex, customized patterns like spider webs, flames and perforated holes, which wasn’t possible before CNC machining. These grilles are the most expensive ones you’ll come across, as the manufacturing process can be complicated and expensive.

As stated at the beginning of this article, Toyota’s grille does more to change its appearance than any other exterior part or accessory. The grille you choose will say a lot about how you feel about your vehicle, and you can combine different styles, materials, and finishes to make a unique statement about you and your Toyota.