Auto Tech: California Company Has 'Jewelry' for Your Jeep

Jun. 13--Editor's note: Auto Tech periodically looks at the latest vehicles, accessories and components -- high-tech and otherwise -- available from the factory or on the automotive aftermarket.

Looking for some bling for your Jeep?

Don't laugh. Staring down seven vertical black holes in the grille of a Jeep might not be stylin' enough for some owners.

For them, Fountain Valley-based Gaffoglio Family Metalcrafters Inc., or GFMI, is offering polished stainless steel grilles for assorted 2007 Jeep models -- Wrangler, Wrangler Unlimited and Grand Cherokee.

The company also refers to the grilles as "jewelry." And the stainless steel does more than look good; the company contends it protects the radiator -- a claim that dovetails with Jeep owners' history of taking their vehicles on some of the most rugged off-road trails.

"We call it the SYR system for 'Save Your Radiator,' " said GFMI chief executive George Gaffoglio. "The best part about this grille is that beyond looking great, it protects your car."

The SYR system basically adds shine behind the seven-hole front end of a Jeep. Instead of blackness in the grille holes, GFMI fills them with brightly polished, stainless steel mesh that's easily visible at all angles.

Company officials said the mesh is effective at deflecting flying rocks and other debris that might pierce a Jeep's radiator and render the vehicle helpless within minutes.

While some might consider the SYR system an offbeat aftermarket reach, GFMI takes it seriously. That's not surprising, given the other special projects GFMI has taken on.

The California firm has produced the signature, oversize grille on the current version of the Chrysler 300 sedan. The company also is supplying glass products for the PPG Aerospace Glass Division and Boeing Co.

GFMI's Jeep jewelry, introduced in May, is a comparatively tame project compared with the task of stretching a Lamborghini Gallardo 12 inches for client and National Basketball Association superstar Shaquille O'Neal. The stretch job on the ultra-exotic, nearly $200,000 Lamborghini sports car was done to accommodate O'Neal's 7-foot-1, 330-pound frame.

GFMI and Jeep have a long-standing relationship. GFMI has built numerous concept vehicles for the automaker, including the Icon, Jeepster, Commander, Varsity, Hurricane, Gladiator and Trailhawk.

Since it was founded in 1979, GFMI also has built concept cars for other automakers.

Other company projects have included specially outfitting cars appearing in movies and fabricating aluminum parts for various forms of transportation.

The specially made grilles for 2007 Jeeps range in price from $295 to $349.

For more details on the company and its products, call (714) 444-2000 or visit www.metalcrafters.com.

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