Temporary or DIY replacement for acrylic jaw on my 2020 Prime

From my playing with the parts, I am almost certain the acrylic part is purely cosmetic. Yeah, without it the car may suffer some drag that will reduce the mpg, but I don't think there is much protective function. How temporary are you thinking? If it's only a few days, I would not bother. But if you have to wait few months especially in snowy MA streets, I would just order the parts yourself and install them provided there are no other structural damages to the bumper and frames. Since yours is Limited trim you will need this part that accommodates front sensors.

5310147052 - 2017-2020 Toyota Prius Prime Grille Assembly (53101-47052) | Lowe Toyota Parts Center

Edit: After a second look at your photo, I realized that you have lost the front emblem as well. That emblem may have a protective function for the sensors behind it. At the least covering the emblem area with something transparent (otherwise it may hinder the functionality of the sensors) like plastic may be worth trying. But looks like the damage is beyond the acrylic piece. I see the wavy line on the hood, you may have to have the professional body shop to assess the damage and estimate the proper repair in this case?

 

Thanks for the info on the "gift that keeps on giving" to Toyota dealers and body shops.

On that account, I'll never buy one of these cars with a "glass jaw,"

 

The grille is not terribly expensive, comparing to many of Primes other parts anyways. That hole next to the center emblem looks nasty. Suggest painters or duct tape for that hole (but not the emblem area) while you are deciding on a course of action.

You might also want to get a 2 day subscription to techstream to double check exactly what needs to be done after replacing that grille and emblem. That way you'll know what else you might need to do or have done, and by who you want it done by, if not doing it yourself.

I wouldn't take the Prime out in the snow (that's supposed to be on it way), like it is in the pic, until you get that emblem hole covered with something that is going to let the sensor work half way decent from underneath it, like SalamanderKing mentioned above.

 

2016-2020 Toyota Emblem 53141-47030 | McGeorge Toyota Parts

 

The emblem in your link is $289 USD (discounted from $422 suggested retail)? Am I missing something, or is this just an plastic oval??

Also, regarding the smoked grey acrylic piece: is it easy to do that replacement? IIRC @jerrymildred attemped this and was thwarted by some plastic welding of this piece, to the main "bumper" piece.

 

That's when having the old part comes in handy, especially if it's a non-functional expensive plastic part.
Kinda after the fact now for the OP.
So far as I know, it's still here say about what's behind that emblem.
I'm sure techstream has more on what's behind the grille and how to approach the repair. https://techinfo.toyota.com/
Thanks for the link Georgina

 

It is a plastic, radar-transparent oval; see my previous explanation.

 

I didn't know how expensive the radar permeating emblem is but seems it is a very expensive plastic for sure. I hope the OP picked it up at the accident site. If it is still intact single piece, then it could still be used.

As for replacing the acrylic part alone, it is doable. I would not say super easy, though. You still need to take off the entire grille sub-assembly which is the black plastic part behind and around the acrylic part to do the replacement. It is held by clips and double-sided adhesive tapes. If you have an intact piece of acrylic part then placing it into the emptied black backing part is much easier than removing the piece from it. But all this discussion is a moot point since you can not buy just the acrylic piece alone. It always comes preinstalled onto the grille sub-assembly, and the most used grille parts I've seen sold online have this acrylic piece missing or already damaged.

 

I just realized that even though the OP's profile says he has 2020 PP Limited, the damaged front photo shown on the OP's comment is not Limited trim. For XLE and LE trim, you do not have front-facing sensors embedded in the grille, so you will need this part instead.

5310147041 - 2017-2020 Toyota Prius Prime Grille Assembly (53101-47041) | Lowe Toyota Parts Center

 

I took it off to try to weld or glue where the crack was but its location was such that I didn't think I'd be able to do a successful job. Here's the story starting at post #599. Jerry's Evolving Thoughts on "new-to-me" Prime Premium | Page 30 | PriusChat
I used the attached document that was in Japanese which I google translated. It was pretty easy.

I also noted, as did others, that something else is amiss as evidenced by the deformation of the panel between the grill and the hood.