Has anyone tried to remove that over sized cup holder? It just looks so cheezy having that cup holder right there in the way at all times. It really ruins the interior look, in my opinion.

I would really like to remove the entire thing without leaving any trace of the mounting. Has anyone tried that or heard of someone being able to do that? TIA

 

there are two torx bit (I forget what size, but I seem to remeber they are T-30 - not positive on that). The first one is obvious, the second one you need to open the glovebox to access as I recall. It's an easy removal - undo the screws, remove the cupholder, reinstall the screws.

 

Question is...has anybody left it in?

Yes it's very easy to remove.

 

So the cup holder that comes in the '06 (picked mine up last Friday) is the same as in earlier years? Somehow it looks like there's a piece that's bonded in place to that right vertical post which has the hinge supports for that swivel unit. ... Will have to take a look when I get home to see about those screws. Hopefully it won't leave the mounting holes exposed.

 

I still have mine in (just over a month since I picked up my MCS). Before I got it, I figured I'd take it out right away, but I haven't. It's kinda goofy looking, but it does do a really good job of holding cups. Also, passengers always get a kick out of the "no wine glasses" icon on it.

 

I yanked my out. It just BUGGED the hell out of me.

 

Ouch! Did the pillar come off with with from all that force.

 

Red Hot,

On mine, there was a piece of double sided tape that held the cup holder mount in place. Just pull a little and it comes right out (after removing the torx screws of course). If you're concerned, you can use dental floss to saw between the mount and the down tube to cut the tape, but it's really no necessary.

Phil

 

Yeah, that's what it looks like. Thanks Phil. And thanks for the suggestion to use a piece of floss to "saw" it off to make it less of an effort to remove. I appreciate that.

 

Well, actually I ripped the whole head unit and climate control!

lol

 

I hated the cup holder too, so I turned it into my GPS mount!

 

Here's a pic showing where this strip of double-sided foam adhesive tape is located for anyone else wanting to know where to use the dental floss to cut away the tape.

One thing that I noticed is that once the bracket is removed the long screws no longer secure the pillar in place snugly, so what I intend to do is make washers out of the protruding nubs you see here by sawing them off with a hacksaw and sanding them down to the thickness of the plastic in order to take up the slack and make the pillar installation snug again.

 

Maybe I'm missing something since I haven't (yet?) performed this mod, but here are a few alternatives you might consider:

1. Buy shorter screws
2. Buy actual washers or plastic spacers
3. Use a dremel to shorten the existing screws down a bit until they are snug

Seems easier and less destructive to me than taking a hack saw to the cupholder, although perhaps there's something therapeutic about that.

Just a thought.

 

Good points. And I did think of those alternatives you suggested.

But, for one thing, the bracket is of no use anymore since it's contoured to fit the pillar and only the pillar, so it's either the trash can or being recycled to make the needed plastic spacers.

1. Buying shorter screws is an easy alternative, provided you can easily buy just 2 torx head black oxide screws, shorter by about a 1/4 inch or less. Usually you need to buy a small pack of them.

2. I doubt there are actual washers or plastic spacers of the exact OD and thickness required. That was my first thought, but then I realized how difficult it would be find a spacer that would replicate this custom piece.

3. Grinding the screws down a bit is a good suggestion. You could measure the thickness of the plastic and mark off how much to grind off the tips of the screws.

I just don't happen to have a grinder nor a dremel tool. But I do have a hacksaw and sandpaper! And maybe there'll be something therapeutic in hacking away at this piece of crap.

 

Are you sure the screws will not tighten down enough? Mine did. A lot of the fasteners are threading into plastic, and the screws will cut their own threads. You may just be bottoming out on the existing threads, and need to tighten the screws to cut more into the plastic. Careful not to go too tight and strip them. Keep testing if the pillar is still moving, and if it is, gently tighten the screw a little more.

 

I removed mine in my '06 and replaced it with the MiniFini cup holder. The MiniFini holds your drinks much more securely and I was able to mount it down low saving the upper downtube location for a future cellphone or GPS mount. As mentioned above, there is double sided tape on the bracket - my screws tightened back done just fine. My wife is happy with her flimsy cup holder on her '05.

 

Well, I was afraid of stripping the plastic by overtightening. I tightened as much as reasonably possible without overdoing it and there was still this excess play. Did you then tighten beyond this point and the plastic held up okay without getting stripped?

 

How much play is there? I would expect 1/8 or 1/16 of an inch, the thickness of the cup holder bracket isn't that thick. With the thread on those screws, it should only take an extra quarter or half turn to take up that slack.

As you are putting the screws in, is the effort to turn the screw relatively constant for most of the travel, and then quickly gets hard to turn? Or does the effort required increase with each turn? If the former, I wouldn't turn it more, if the latter, I would try turning it more, a little bit at a time.

Adding a washer, or cutting your bracket to make spacers, is a safe option.

The plastic did hold for me, but you will want to only go as far as necessary until the slack is just gone.

I did strip the plastic for one of the screws holding the radio head unit in. The wierd thing is, I was adding a panavise bracket, so the screw should have had less to travel before tightening. I might have put the screw in at a slightly different angle, and ended up messing up the plastic.

 

Yep, that's why I didn't try to force them in. The gap is small and the play is not much, but I certainly wouldn't want to leave it as is and have a potential rattle, even though it's not visually noticeable.

I'll see if I can shorten the screws by using my neighbor's grinder. At the very least I know I can make spacers out of the bracket to take up the slack. Thanks for your help.

 

It must be the ugliest thing on the darn car. We've had ours for 4 wks or so and it was so ugly I almost took it our before I drove it out of the showroom.

It's still there because there is nowhere else to put a darn coffeecup of any size. We also got the Mini cups, but I consider those "demi tasse" size.

I should find a suitable replacement for function, but something not as ugly.

Griff

'06, MCS, CR/W, Sport, Premium, Cold Weather
CROC #126

 

Get the MiniFini:



At outmotoring.com or morristownmini.com. I love mine - very stable and matches the anthracite nicely.

 

Finally got around to going over my neighbor's yesterday to use his grinder. Ground the tips of the screws about an 1/8th of an inch (the approximate thickness of the plastic) and that did the job! I was able to snug up the right pillar just like the left one.

For anybody else wanting to do this minor mod, this is my recommended method. Another advantage to not using spacers is that the screw heads seat deep inside the recesses for a more hidden look.

 

The wire portion of the cup-holder is spring loaded so just pull from the top and bottom to get rid of the wire portion.

 

I guess I'm in the minority....I like the cupholders.... added 2 to my 2003. To each his own. Be gentle with the bashing...!!!!

retroom

 

retroom, you can add me to that list. I actually just got rid of the MiniFini that was in the car when I bought it and got the OEM cupholder.

The MiniFini get's in the way when I have to scoot the seat up to get my 6yr old son in the back seat. The new one is up high enough that it doesn't interfere with anything, including the passengers legs.

Also, the OEM hold my 20oz. coffee mug nice and snug. Even during my usual spirited commute in the mornings.