Many of the customer service people are not very aware. It really depends on who you talk to. Some seem knowledgeable and other are clueless. I know what you mean about the rubberized caulk. When I reinstalled the my upper grill I didn't bother to recaulk and there are no ill effects. If removing the lower grill lattice solves the noise problem, then I wouldn't waste time and money buying new ones. It's a question of airflow through the lattice. I don't think it has much to do with faulty screws hold down tabs.
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