Vehicle fascia and grille assembly
View Patent ↗Vehicle fascia assembly includes a plastic fascia panel and a grille frame. The fascia panel has a grille opening defined by a flange extending rearward from the show surface toward the back side of the fascia panel. The flange has a plurality of flexure fingers at spaced intervals along the flange. The grille frame has a forward facing show surface and has a C-shaped channel molded around the outer edge of the show surface. Upon the assembly of the grille frame onto the backside of the fascia panel, the spaced apart channel legs fit onto the flange and the flexure fingers are biased and then engage with an abutment face on the grille frame, thereby attaching the grille frame onto the back side of the fascia panel without exposing the show surface of the fascia panel to injury by the grille frame during the assembly operation.
1. A vehicle fascia assembly comprising:
a plastic fascia panel having a back side and a forward facing show surface having a grille opening therein for receiving a grille frame, said grille opening being defined by an integrally molded flange extending rearward from the show surface toward the back side of the fascia panel at a peripheral edge of the grille opening, said flange having a plurality of flexure fingers molded integral therewith at spaced intervals along the flange, and
a grille frame having a forward facing show surface and having a C-shaped channel molded integrally around an outer edge of the show surface and including a base leg and spaced apart channel legs; one of said legs having a plurality of abutment faces provided thereon at spaced intervals and registering with the plurality of flexure fingers of the grille frame so that upon the assembly of the grille frame onto the backside of the fascia panel the spaced apart channel legs fit onto the flange of the fascia panel, the flexure fingers are biased by the one leg and then engage with the abutment face to attach the grille frame to the back side of the fascia panel without exposing the show surface of the fascia panel to possible injury by the grille frame during the assembly operation.
2. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 1 further comprising one of the spaced apart channel legs having molded thereon a plurality of locating ribs that project toward the other of the channel legs to narrow the effective width of the spacing between the channel legs to guide the C-shaped channel onto the flange of the fascia panel.
3. The vehicle fascia of claim 2 further comprising locating ribs being provided intermediate the abutment faces.
4. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 1 further comprising the plastic fascia having the plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
5. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 2 further comprising the plastic fascia having the plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
6. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 3 further comprising the plastic fascia having the plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
7. The vehicle fascia of claim 1 further comprising said abutment faces of the one leg of the C-shaped channel being provided by a slot that receives the flexure finger.
8. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 7 further comprising the plastic fascia having the plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
9. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 7 further comprising the grille opening in the fascia panel being generally rectangular in shape and having a plurality of flexure fingers provided along each of the sides of the perimeter of the grille opening, and the grille frame being generally rectangular in shape and having the C-shaped channel extending along each of the sides of the perimeter of the grille frame.
10. A vehicle fascia assembly comprising:
a plastic fascia panel having a back side and a forward facing show surface having a grille opening therein for receiving the grille frame, said grille opening being defined by an integrally molded flange extending rearward from the show surface toward the back side of the fascia panel at a peripheral edge of the grille opening, said flange having a plurality of flexure fingers molded integral therewith at spaced intervals along the flange, and
a grille frame having a forward facing show surface with an opening therein for mounting a grille and having a C-shaped channel molded integrally around the outer edge of the show surface and including a base leg and spaced apart channel legs; said base leg having a plurality of slots molded at spaced intervals along the base leg and defining a plurality of abutment faces, said slots of the grille frame registering with the flexure fingers of the fascia panel so that upon the assembly of the grille frame onto the backside of the fascia panel the spaced apart channel legs fit over the flange and of the fascia panel and the flexure fingers are accepted into the slots of the base leg and the flexure fingers engage with the abutment faces to attach the grille frame to the back side of the fascia panel without exposing the show surface of the fascia panel to possible injury by the grille frame during the assembly operation.
11. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 10 further comprising one of the spaced apart channel legs having molded thereon a plurality of locating ribs that project toward the other of the channel legs to narrow the effective width of the spacing between the channel legs to guide the C-shaped channel onto the flange.
12. The vehicle fascia of claim 2 further comprising the locating ribs being provided intermediate the flexure fingers so as to not register with the slots and the slots fingers.
13. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 10 further comprising the plastic fascia having a plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
14. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 11 further comprising the plastic fascia having a plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
15. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 12 further comprising the plastic fascia having a plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
16. The vehicle fascia of claim 10 further comprising a plurality of locating ribs located on the channel leg not having the abutment face that is engaged by the flexure finger, said locating ribs narrowing the effective width of the spacing between the channel legs to guide the C-shaped channel onto the flange of the fascia panel.
17. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 16 further comprising the plastic fascia having a plurality of flexure fingers along at least two opposed edges of the grille opening.
18. The vehicle fascia assembly of claim 16 further comprising the grille opening in the fascia panel being generally rectangular in shape and having a plurality of flexure fingers provided along each of the sides of the perimeter of the generally rectangular opening, and the grille frame being generally rectangular in shape and having the C-shaped channel extending along each of the sides of the perimeter of the generally rectangular grille frame.
19. A vehicle fascia assembly comprising:
a plastic fascia panel having a back side and a forward facing show surface having a grille opening therein for receiving the grille frame, said grille opening being defined by an integrally molded flange extending rearward from the show surface toward the back side of the fascia panel at a peripheral edge of the grille opening, said flange having a plurality of flexure fingers molded integral therewith at spaced intervals along the flange, said flexure fingers including a ramped surface projecting from the flange and into the grille opening and an abutment face facing toward the show surface of the fascia panel;
a grille frame having a forward facing show surface with an opening therein for mounting a grille and having a C-shaped channel molded integrally around the outer edge of the show surface and including a base leg and spaced apart channel legs adapted to fit onto the flange of the fascia panel upon the assembly of the grille frame onto the backside of the fascia panel, said base leg having a plurality of slots molded at spaced intervals along the base leg and registering with the plurality of flexure fingers of the grille frame, said slots being defined in part by an abutment face on one of the channel legs that becomes engaged by the abutment face of the flexure fingers to attach the grille frame to the fascia panel, and a plurality of locating ribs molded on the other of the channel legs to narrow the effective width of the spacing between the channel legs and guide the C-shaped channel onto the flange of the fascia;
whereby the grille frame is attached to the back side of the fascia panel without exposing the show surface of the fascia panel to possible injury by the grille frame during the assembly operation.
20. The fascia assembly of claim 19 further comprising said locating ribs being provided at spaced intervals along the C-shaped channel between the spaced apart slots.