Acura 1G CL Front Speaker Grille Removal and Fabric Cleaning

You need a foam-type fabric cleaner, something to agitate it, and towels to lift the dirt. An automotive carpet and upholstery cleaner such as Blue Coral, sold for around $3.50 at most stores, does the job for well under $4. For agitation, a stiff synthetic brush works, but the whole task can also be done with a soft brush or even an old toothbrush. Keep several paper towels or a couple of clean cloth towels on hand to scrub with and to blot up the loosened grime.

Each grille is held by hidden clips rather than screws. Get your fingers under the bottom edge and ease it outward, working it side to side so the clips let go one at a time. If you have removed interior panels on the car before, the feel of the clips releasing will be familiar. Take it slowly so you do not crack the frame, and set each cover aside without laying it face-down on grit.

Spray a coat of foam cleaner across the fabric face and lightly work it into the weave with your brush, brushing in a single direction along the grain of the cloth so you do not rough it up. The goal at this stage is only to drive the foam into the fibers, not to scrub. Once it is evenly worked in, leave it for about 15 minutes; by the time you return the foam will look as though the fabric has drawn it all in.

Now go at the dark areas with your towels and brush. You can press fairly firmly, but stop short of stretching or distorting the fabric, since a stretched cover never looks right afterward. As the surface dries out, mist on more cleaner to keep it wet and lathery while you scrub, this time without waiting for it to soak in. The fabric is tough and resilient; the only real risk is picking the weave by brushing too aggressively, so keep the brush strokes controlled. A community member reported the same success using an oxygenated carpet cleaner and a toothbrush, so the exact product matters less than the technique.

Let the grilles dry fully, which takes roughly an hour in decent conditions. Then examine them in bright, direct light, where any remaining shadows or missed spots show up that were invisible while the fabric was damp. If stains remain, repeat the spray-and-scrub cycle on those areas. There is no need to worry about disturbing the fabric's color, only about physically picking the weave.

Reseating the covers is the fiddly part, and the trick is that they go in top edge first. Confirm you have each grille matched to its correct opening by test-fitting it against the hole. Hold the cover at a slight angle with the top near the trim and the bottom standing off by roughly two to three inches. Push the top in until it sits flush, engaging the two hooks on the back edge, then hinge the whole cover downward and press the bottom until the remaining clips snap home. Once the top hooks are aligned and seated, the rest drops in easily.