What is the best way to remove the cowl grills below the windshield wipers?

In a word - carefully. 

 Each grill has eight pins which push into plastic retainers.  All of them have likely become very fond of each other in the last 45 years or so. 😕

 I suggest looping a piece of wire under some of the slats at one far end of the grill. Do not position that wire in the middle of the slats where they are the weakest .

  Next, apply sufficient protective masking tape around the grill and get a small putty knife;  this is a better tool to use for prying than a screwdriver that may more easily chip paint. 

 Use the putty knife to gently pry at the end of the grill while you are pulling straight up with the wire.

 If things go smoothly that should allow you to gently pry all eight pins loose. 

 If things don’t go smoothly continue the process,  re-positioning the wire and putty knife as required.

 Do not get frustrated and try brute force as the grills have been known to break. I believe they are just pot metal.

Good luck!

Larry 

The plastic retainers are the problem, as they have hardened and do not flex as they did 45 years ago. As Larry wrote, the grills are made of very soft metal, they bend (and crack) easily. The advice to push upward on the pins from below is good advice … as long as you don't bend a pin. I damaged one of the grills on 6018 during removal a decade ago. I was carefully (slowly) pulling up from above.

Perhaps using some spray lubricant on the pins prior to trying to remove the grills may help.

If the car is going to be repainted, then perhaps the application of some heat would soften the plastic retainers.

Also be aware that the '74 grills are different than the grills for all other years. 1974 Panteras park the windshield wipers on the opposite side of the window than all other years.

Mike M has replacement plastic retainers on eBay:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/DETOM...p2060353.m1438.l2649

BTW, using only a putty knife to lift out the grille worked ok for me, the wire loop idea should make it easy.

Silicone spray on the plastic and let it soak helps too.

Thanks for all the responses.  I'll start using silicone on it regularly and then give it a try.

FYI  I looped heavy  Zip ties , about 6 of them @ the reinforced areas Used a short 3/8 extension as a handle to carefully pressure/pop them up. A Couple pins were very stubborn, so I used a thin screw driver through the grille and twisted as someone pulled. No broken pins and all of the retainers came out intact. (  in my case it didnt matter but it didn't damaged the cowl paint except where I used a screw driver under the grille) Watch the elbow pressure

I wish I would have thought of using heat gun to soften the plastic , that method worked on many many other parts after the fact

On a related topic; does anyone make replacements in billet? With and without holes for the windshield wipers. 

Hall once sold a version without the wiper arm pivot shaft hole. Not sure if it was billet or cast or still available.

Larry 

The Hall "no wiper hole" grilles were cast. Bob Byars told me he hired a well known machine shop to duplicate the grilles in billet aluminum but the final price would have been too high for most people to jusify. It seems the grilles are quite complex items, in their shape and curvature.