Custom Gen2 Cup Holder

tixer

tixer

Lincoln Evangelist
That's a great little mod! Excellent work!

I thought it looked real good. And then I saw the backlit emblem.. :D Very nice..
 
M

mark0101

New member
Wow that looks amazing. Might loose one cup holder but gain a properly working one that you can actually use. How did you create the beige cover around the cup holder btw?
 
B

billcu

Head Moderator
Beautiful! That looks great!

You've combined the looks of the Gen 2 with the functionality of the Gen 1 cup holder.:D
 
L

Lownslowlsc

New member
Lvnmarks said:
Please take my money.
Click to expand...
If there was an easy-ish way to make one I'd gladly take your money. ;) I just can't think of one.

mark0101 said:
Wow that looks amazing. Might loose one cup holder but gain a properly working one that you can actually use. How did you create the beige cover around the cup holder btw?
Click to expand...
Thank you. The beige cover is oem material from a P. tan console.

billcu said:
Beautiful! That looks great!

You've combined the looks of the Gen 2 with the functionality of the Gen 1 cup holder.:D
Click to expand...
I can count on two hands how many times I used the oem cupholder over the last decade. I've already used this three times. :) No more holding onto it, no more sling-shotting of a hot beverage into the back seat upon hard acceleration or praying that it doesn't break every time I use it. It may not be perfect, but it does what it was intended to do.. Perfectly. :)
 
O

ONLYTONY

New member
Great job !!! 2 cup launchers for 1 cup holder. USB, voltmeter, and 20 amp service is a real plus. It's good to see you using "throw away stuff" to create something new.
 
L

Lownslowlsc

New member
ONLYTONY said:
Great job !!! 2 cup launchers for 1 cup holder. USB, voltmeter, and 20 amp service is a real plus. It's good to see you using "throw away stuff" to create something new.
Click to expand...
The parts list wasn't bad, I have maybe $20-30 into it. The only trouble I had was that it was surprisingly difficult to find a proper sized cup holder/port. If anybody tries this aim for 3"-3.25" internal width and anywhere from 3.25-4" deep. Anything less then 3"W is going to limit what you can fit in there. I had bad luck trying to find a aftermarket cup insert, they were either too wide/narrow/shallow or they were the type that fit multiple sized drinks that only work well 10% of the time.

To get a good base going all you need to do is strip the assembly to the frame. Now you'll want to cut the bottom half completely off making sure to keep all mounting points on the upper half intact. Depending on what you plan on putting in there, start trimming the inside bits. By the time it was done just the outside perimeter was left. At this point mount it back up to the center console and take some measurements for the top panel. Don't make it long because you'll still need to utilize the mounting slots for the rear part of the shifter "plate". I can't recommend the best sized thickness as I kinda just started hacking away.

I didn't make extra mounts to connect the the two together, I simply used the front "bow" on the frame and the ridges that'll be left at the back corners. A little bit of my special sauce and it's firm as can be. It'll be slightly messy If I need to ever separate them, some 90 fasteners would work better.

P.s. A dremel with various bits is almost mandatory.
 
Last edited:
tonybrooklyn

tonybrooklyn

New member
Lownslowlsc said:
The base is a modified gen2 assembly. I used a pair spare door bezel leds as the backlight. Subwoofer port cut to size (It'll actually hold a drink), oem console vinyl (?), generic usb/voltmeter and 20a outlet. I plan on shortning/modifying an oem cup holder cover to hide the outlets. I'm saving that for another day..


quick image upload


I also plasti dipped a worn out shifter panel-


free image host no sign up


how to upload a photo on internet
Click to expand...
That is really cool thanks for posting this!
 
B

BlackIceLSC

New member
This mod is SO cool, I'd consider buying another Mark VIII just to have this!
I am amazed at how creative some folks can be. I am with Jeremi...MODIFICATION OF THE DECADE.

I opened my Gen 2 cup holder the day I bought my car, just to confirm it was in fact broken. It was. I never opened it again. The ash tray was the "stereo remote holder" which I never used because I could reach/see the stereo better than a remote smaller than a key fob with no back-light.
I had to wedge my water bottle next to my right hip when driving...had it been equipped with your mod, I'd have been in a much better mood when bringing a beverage.
the 2 power sockets are just the icing on the cake as I am a iPhone 7 user so I never had to plug anything in when driving although it would be nice to have the USB tied in to the back port of an aftermarket stereo so the phone could be tapped right in like a mp3 player (although I always used the bluetooth method of playing music through the phone -to-stereo)

Nice work pal....Very nice. The back-lit emblem is amazing.
 
L

Lownslowlsc

New member
mark0101 said:
Wow that looks amazing. Might loose one cup holder but gain a properly working one that you can actually use. How did you create the beige cover around the cup holder btw?
Click to expand...
I misunderstood your question. In my case I used fiberboard(?) because I thought it needed it to be a tad flexible to fit right (wrong). Looking back, a regular old piece of wood would've sufficed. Below is one of the versions I experimented with , but you can see the general shape of it. The other is what was left of the oem cup holder assembly. I used the front bow and the ledges in the back corners to mount it (Much trimming was need for correct fitment). But that's pretty much how it ended up with the exception of the two little tabs on the back center. As I said before, some 90 degree brackets on the side rails would've been a wiser choice.


upload facebook picture




BlackIceLSC said:
This mod is SO cool, I'd consider buying another Mark VIII just to have this!
I am amazed at how creative some folks can be. I am with Jeremi...MODIFICATION OF THE DECADE.

I opened my Gen 2 cup holder the day I bought my car, just to confirm it was in fact broken. It was. I never opened it again. The ash tray was the "stereo remote holder" which I never used because I could reach/see the stereo better than a remote smaller than a key fob with no back-light.
I had to wedge my water bottle next to my right hip when driving...had it been equipped with your mod, I'd have been in a much better mood when bringing a beverage.
the 2 power sockets are just the icing on the cake as I am a iPhone 7 user so I never had to plug anything in when driving although it would be nice to have the USB tied in to the back port of an aftermarket stereo so the phone could be tapped right in like a mp3 player (although I always used the bluetooth method of playing music through the phone -to-stereo)

Nice work pal....Very nice. The back-lit emblem is amazing.
Click to expand...
Haha. I've done the cup wedge trick for my entire ownership until now. I'm still trying to get used to a functional holder and have caught myself going back to my old ways. :)

I hadn't thought wiring in my double dins usb to the console, but that's probably because all of my music is accessed through a thumb drive or BT. Great idea though. :thumbsup:

I'm just glad I could share this with the community to show that it is possible to make a simple, functional replacement with a bit of time, inginuity and not all that much money. Hope to see others experiment.
 
Last edited:
Lvnmarks

Lvnmarks

quandoomniflunkusmoritati
Unfortunately I can't put a cup holder there because it would interfere with the shifter. I love how factory it looks, I might have to do something with my Ashem8 there or some type of cell phone pocket.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top