The lower shutters can be a real pain. Mine went out of adjustment and gave me a long and frustrating journey to get rid of the MIL light. I like your design, and I think you are on the right track. In fact I bet you would solve it with just one of the rows cut.
When you start the engine the lower blades are fully open, they then go through a 15 second check of closing and re-opening, then they close again and you are on you way. Once the sensors call for cool air they re-open. Be sure to clear all codes before you test your new design as the codes are quite persistant.