Cup holder

[wagonis]

I shamefully use the hang-on-door cupholder. I know this is a thread for the MKI but the word cupholder caught my attention...although I'm one of those who is looking for the JDM cupholder. Okay, now I'll shut up and leave the thread that has nothing to do with me.

[traintech86]

i tried that whole hang on the door thing. the ones i had didn't fit right so i tossed them.

[Kent]

I put in a cup holder in my 91 MR2 that fits indash just below the radio. I purchased it on ebay for just over 20 dollars, it comes from a 80 Ford Taurus. I will post a link to a current one being sold below.
Console Cup Holder Ford Taurus F150 Mustang Explorer:eBay Motors (item 380167671098 end time Nov-12-09 01:49:15 PST)

[RC MR2]

i wish my mk2 had a cup holder

[wagonis]

Not bad, I just wanted the JDM model because it has a curve to it and will look factory since it's OEM. I may just go to the junk yard and see what I can find. We have a self pull that has acres and acres of cars, so I can browse until I find something that looks like a perfect fit.

[YellowJacket]

Here is the underside of the seat



Here is a side view of what it looks like:



Mount location:

[YellowJacket]

Bolted on... just able to use one self tapping screw due to the contour of the seat... I think it will be sufficient for my coffee.



Side view:



Other side:



Other other side:

[YellowJacket]

Look ma, no cup holder - Its installed, you just cannot see it...



So in the photo above its there, but its back far enough you have to go looking for it to see it.

Now in the photo BELOW you can see it clearly from that angle... the trick to placement is you have to mount it far enough back so its hidden as it can be BUT it also has to be able to allow the top of a cup to sit in there when its popped out. I would have liked to have it farther back but then the cups would be pushing against the front of the seat.
Where it is now is the best balance between tucked back and yet still allowing cups to sit in there level without pushing against the seat.

The front edge of the cupholder when it is closed is just flush with the top edge of the seat... I had to LEAN forward and look under the seat a little bit to get this shot.
You have to try and look for it as it is now... your eyes dont see it from drivers side or passenger unless you look under the seat. The view below is looking under the seat so thats why you see it.

Thats a 9/16th socket by the way.

[YellowJacket]

TA DA!!!!!!




TOP VIEW



Driver




In action


One more:

[muffinman]

i don't know why you are willing to risk putting coffee in there when your interior is so nice.

[YellowJacket]

Originally Posted by muffinman

i don't know why you are willing to risk putting coffee in there when your interior is so nice.

LOL. Thanks for the compliment. One might argue that having a cupholder would decrease your chances of a spill... but I understand your point which I think to be that I should mitigate the risk and avoid a spill completely by simply implementing a don't drink and drive the 2 at the same time rule... period.

[scottohno]

or you could crotch it. thatll give you an incentive not to spill your screaming hot coffee on your lap. by the way, love the floor mats- twosRus? and where did you get those seats? i want black and purple...

[RuzzTMan]

Nice interior there!
Looks like you only have two screws to hold it on. Do you think that's enough?

[surfer8]

Other other side:
[/QUOTE]

Nice pictures, excellent interior. How much space is there between the front mounting hole and the seat sheet metal (looks like an inch or so)? I would feel more comfortable if you put the front screws in it. Send me the measurement and I'll try to come up with some kind of spacer. Is the cupholder level when extended?

This is why I didn't want to sell any of the brackets to mk1 owners. It took me six revisions to get the final design for a mk2.

[lsgheero]

One of your hog rings is out lol.

[YellowJacket]

Originally Posted by lsgheero

One of your hog rings is out lol.

hog rings, eh. Never knew what those were called! You learned me sumthin' new. Good catch. Next time I have the seat out I will fix em.
Thanks.

So, Surfer8, yes, it is level as the cup holder is light by itself. Also, I only put one screw in for obvious reasons. A spacer would definitely work... but I could have also probably just drilled at second hole near the first screw and put two of them there for more rigid support of the bracket.... but let me point this out:

Here is a new development that happened since. The cup holder has been rattling during driving as it has been bouncing a little and I think its been clacking on that seat slider release wire that is running under it..as well as the fact that the bouncing shakes the loose plastic folding arms that go in the cup holder when it is retracted inside the casing and they make a little clicking noise as well.

I looked up under there to see what my options are to resolve this issue as if I can stop the bouncing, I can stop the rattle.

There is a hump that goes across the floor perpendicular to the seat tracks. That hump is what the two front seat bracket bolts go into. This hump JUST clears the cupholder itself after the mounting. The hump clearance is only about 1/3" below the bottom of the cup holder and the top of the hump.

here is a pic:


With that said, when a drink or anything of any weight is placed in the cupholder, it bows down that 1/3 inch and rests on the carpet hump. Since the clearance space is so small, it still looks level and the cup holder's little plastic arms that unfold do not touch the ground either... so it all works out....sorta...

Except that there is too much bounce, and it rattles when the cupholder is not in use.

Yesterday, I looked around my stash of stuff and I had a piece of pipe insulating foam like the kind that might wrap around a 1" pvc pipe on your water heater to insulate it... its about 1/3" to 1/2" thick and comes sliced length ways so you can wrap it around the pipe and subsequently tape it up... Its gray and flexible foam but firm.

I cut a length of that just a bit longer than the cupholder and opened it up and slipped it over the hump between the cupholder and hump. So it is 'hugging' the hump and stays in place and the thickness is filling the gap between the cupholder and the hump so the cupholder is just perfectly resting on the foam piece and stays level with no bowing as well.

No more rattle and the cupholder functions perfectly and the hump serves a purpose now as well... dont really need a second screw or spacer. However, I would be happy to measure that if you wanted to pursue that still.

If I had the seat out again, I will just attached a piece of this foam to the bottom of the cupholder permently so it rests firmly and level on the hump... and add a second set of screws for good measure like so...




Keep the comments coming!
And thanks again, Surfer8!

[scottohno]

it looks like you could just use the second set of holes for the screws. is there a way to use the very front holes and use some.... say fuel line for a spacer between the seat and the cupholder? or maybe a spring or something? some thing soft enough to where if your stupid passenger kicks it (and it goes up by some miracle of god) there is no damage to the screw holes?(stripping) or is there a way to mount it to the floor, somehow reversing the bracket to go down? i just wouldnt trust the sheetmetal with my coffee and, in turn, my interior

[scottohno]

or upt the second set of screws in and us rubber washers like you use on the hose. that would stop a rattle. dont get me wrong yellowjacket, you did great job im just thinking it can be supported better. somehow this can work.

[mmarookiejoe]

Nice work, both to Surfer for creating the brackets, and Yellowjacket for adapting them to his car!!!

[surfer8]

Originally Posted by scottohno

it looks like you could just use the second set of holes for the screws. is there a way to use the very front holes and use some.... say fuel line for a spacer between the seat and the cupholder? some thing soft enough to where if your stupid passenger kicks it (and it goes up by some miracle of god) there is no damage to the screw holes?(stripping) i just wouldnt trust the sheetmetal with my coffee and, in turn, my interior

I think a spacer made of fuel line is a great idea. If my interior was that nice I would be nervous about a single set of screws (even though the floor ridge and pipe insulation would give some additional support).