Armrest vs Cup Holders
Greetings,
On scale of 0-10 where 5 is meh and 10 is love, I give the armrest either a 4 or 5 depending on my mood.
I debated a long time whether or not to install an armrest. Decided I'd rather have an armrest and use center console for storage.
Awkward to use cup holders. And breaking my shoulder to grab my coke finally tipped me towards getting the armrest.
Storage space is a big plus, and armrest is rather comfy (rate 6 for this part of it). But the lack of multiple cup holders is rather irksome. So, until I figure out something suitable, the lost cup slots lowers rating to a 4.
Equip:
Gt86 OEM full armrest from
http://www.ft86speedfactory.com/toyo...rest-1899.html
- Star screw driver size 20
- drill 5mm 8mm (~SAE 3/16, 5/16)
- courage
Foreword:
- .. Template is... Yuck.
.. Too flimsy. Printed it out. Trimmed in all right places. Even tried using heavier construction paper.
.. But alignment was too much guesswork. A small wrinkle or lift or twist in paper and holes could end up anywhere. (Just use base of armrest instead)
- two mounting screws on passenger side are inaccessible.
.. I was concerned with breaking the plastic pivot to disassemble the armrest top piece to access the screws. So skipped them. Seems okay without but would have liked to screw that side down too. Nothing flat on underside to use 3M mount tape on either.
- Ultimately ended up just using rigid bottom piece as the template (again wishing came as separate pieces) and leather punch for marking drill hole placement. Far far far easier to align than paper.
Installation:
- Used armredt bottom as template and leather punch to mark
- Drilled with 3/16, checked alignment (spot on), used 5/16 to enlarge holes
- Push in the rubberized nuts
- Screwed in assembly
Total time: 1hr... Note: 40 minutes was spent messing around with paper cutout. Skip that and it is just a matter of align bottom, poke starter points, drill, screw, admire.
Pros:
- I admit it is much better having padded armrest during commute, driving in general.
- okay amount of storage
.. Store sunglasses, tissues, gum, pen and notepad, plug in phone to charge, a few bucks for fast-food drive thru, etc.
- Less visibility for tempting passing thievery.
Cons:
- "loss" of the cup holders
.. Usable if keep the armrest open (Can close lid with cup holder piece inside but then lose lots of storage space)
- drilling isn't reversible
Conclusion:
- Armrest itself is nice addition.
- Losing cup holders is annoying.
.. And to make matters worse. As a smoker, I use door holder slot for an ashtray (cheap ashtray cup insert). Consequently, I now drive around either chilling or warming my nether regions (sometimes this is in the pro category). I do have the cup insert in the back shelf for when I need it - tossing other items on passenger seat and fuming the whole time.
Meanwhile, I'm looking around for an ashtray insert for center console (will probably get Euro model)
Open to suggestions on where might place / mount alternative cup holders.
Yeah, could stop smoking too and win back a slot. Or toss butts out window like everyone else. But I prefer not seeing a brushfire along my commute and being left wondering.
The armrest is just nice enough that I don't want to remove it. But...
sigh