Topic: The Best (and Worst) Cupholders

[AutoTrader.ca]

Because coffee is for drinking, not wearing.
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[ChaosphereIX]

That ancient one in the Saab is indeed fairly useless under anything but the most sedate driving.

The one in mine actually works, not that I use it often.

[Firm]

My Sonoma has a fantastic setup; two HUGE rubber lined cupholders in the center console capable of handling a large 7/11 Bug Gulp, and two more nearly as large units in the door pockets. For a 2 seater truck...awesome.

SLK and 96 Firebird are both pretty bad....SLK pull-outs drip condensation onto the center stack:


Firebird is too shallow to actually hold anything securely, and creates elbow interference:


Also weird with the Firebird is that it has a nice deep cup holder in the passenger side door pocket, but none on the Driver's side....wtf.

[dkaz]

That ancient one in the Saab is indeed fairly useless under anything but the most sedate driving.

The one in mine actually works, not that I use it often.

Cupholders lead to automatic transmissions. 

[Fobroader]

My moms 95 Legacy had some shitty cupholders, held nothing securely and if the cup indeed runneth over, it went all over the stereo, HVAC controls and center stack



The Monteros are also utter crap, nothing is secure but at least they come out easily for cleaning, something like this

[ChaosphereIX]

That ancient one in the Saab is indeed fairly useless under anything but the most sedate driving.

The one in mine actually works, not that I use it often.

Cupholders lead to automatic transmissions. 

Yes, they do. Hence why my Alfa has zero cupholders. None. Italians have an espresso, drive, then stop at another cafe for another espresso. Repeat 10 times for a typical Italian day. NO liquids are to be consumed in the car. And...what's behind me, is not important. 

[mlin32]

That ancient one in the Saab is indeed fairly useless under anything but the most sedate driving.

The one in mine actually works, not that I use it often.

Cupholders lead to automatic transmissions. 

Yes, they do. Hence why my Alfa has zero cupholders. None. Italians have an espresso, drive, then stop at another cafe for another espresso. Repeat 10 times for a typical Italian day. NO liquids are to be consumed in the car. And...what's behind me, is not important. 

I was going to say, French cars are the same way. If a cupholder shape is moulded into the centre console, it is really intended just for storing coins or keys, as it's far to shallow to hold anything more than 8cm tall.

My Peugeot 308 doesn't even have a cupholder. You can flip a hidden small round tray out in the bottom of the storage cubby behind the shifter, but no one ever has a beverage while driving, unless it's a bottle of water- which is stored in the door bin.

I can't think of the last time I had an open beverage in the car. Most people finish their cup of coffee at home or at the restaurant before hitting the road anyway, I don't see the fuss and the point of wasted dash space.........

[tortoise]

I don't see the fuss and the point of wasted dash space.........

How often do Europeans go on 4+ hour road trips?  For me, that's a regular occurrence and having a cup of coffee/water to sip on is nice. 

The VW cup holders are similar to the Lexus ones, minus being able to raise and lower.  There's also an indent in the door for a bottle of water.  Thankfully VW lined the door pockets in a felt like material so the bottle doesn't rattle around.  That said, I think they got rid of that with the mk7.5 refresh.

[Fobroader]

I don't see the fuss and the point of wasted dash space.........

How often do Europeans go on 4+ hour road trips?  For me, that's a regular occurrence and having a cup of coffee/water to sip on is nice. 

The VW cup holders are similar to the Lexus ones, minus being able to raise and lower.  There's also an indent in the door for a bottle of water.  Thankfully VW lined the door pockets in a felt like material so the bottle doesn't rattle around.  That said, I think they got rid of that with the mk7.5 refresh.

In 4 hours you can cross a few countries....you are better to fly.

[mlin32]

I don't see the fuss and the point of wasted dash space.........

How often do Europeans go on 4+ hour road trips?  For me, that's a regular occurrence and having a cup of coffee/water to sip on is nice. 

Quite a lot. No, really.

Like I said, multiple bottles of water fit in the door bins. So you stay hydrated. A 1,5 L won't fit, but a 1 litre bottle will, and a couple smaller 50cl ones too, along with the obligatory high-vis jacket. I think that amount is sufficient to last one 2h or so, at which point you should stop at an aire / rest stop to take a break. There are plenty of coffee/expresso/cappuccino/latte vending machines there, and you can finish your beverage there before returning, refreshed, to continue on your journey.

[Fobroader]

I don't see the fuss and the point of wasted dash space.........

How often do Europeans go on 4+ hour road trips?  For me, that's a regular occurrence and having a cup of coffee/water to sip on is nice. 

Quite a lot. No, really.

Like I said, multiple bottles of water fit in the door bins. So you stay hydrated. A 1,5 L won't fit, but a 1 litre bottle will, and a couple smaller 50cl ones too, along with the obligatory high-vis jacket. I think that amount is sufficient to last one 2h or so, at which point you should stop at an aire / rest stop to take a break. There are plenty of coffee/expresso/cappuccino/latte vending machines there, and you can finish your beverage there before returning, refreshed, to continue on your journey.

What the hell do you need PPE on a roadtrip for??

[mlin32]

I don't see the fuss and the point of wasted dash space.........

How often do Europeans go on 4+ hour road trips?  For me, that's a regular occurrence and having a cup of coffee/water to sip on is nice. 

Quite a lot. No, really.

Like I said, multiple bottles of water fit in the door bins. So you stay hydrated. A 1,5 L won't fit, but a 1 litre bottle will, and a couple smaller 50cl ones too, along with the obligatory high-vis jacket. I think that amount is sufficient to last one 2h or so, at which point you should stop at an aire / rest stop to take a break. There are plenty of coffee/expresso/cappuccino/latte vending machines there, and you can finish your beverage there before returning, refreshed, to continue on your journey.

What the hell do you need PPE on a roadtrip for??

Most countries require a high-vis jacket if you step outside a moving vehicle onto the highway. If you have a flat tire, run out of petrol, break down, etc......it's not like I've ever opened my sachet and I never hope to. But you must have one, just like a warning triangle and a first-aid kit. I implemented this myself in the US 8 years ago as well.

If you leave your high-vis in the boot/trunk and you have a flat tire, you have to then get out of the vehicle to retrieve said jacket- which means someone might hit you (remember most roadways are unlit). Some do stow it under the cargo floor, but it's better to just have it in reach.

[Firm]

I don't see the fuss and the point of wasted dash space.........

How often do Europeans go on 4+ hour road trips?  For me, that's a regular occurrence and having a cup of coffee/water to sip on is nice. 

Quite a lot. No, really.

Like I said, multiple bottles of water fit in the door bins. So you stay hydrated. A 1,5 L won't fit, but a 1 litre bottle will, and a couple smaller 50cl ones too, along with the obligatory high-vis jacket. I think that amount is sufficient to last one 2h or so, at which point you should stop at an aire / rest stop to take a break. There are plenty of coffee/expresso/cappuccino/latte vending machines there, and you can finish your beverage there before returning, refreshed, to continue on your journey.

Nothing I find more annoying than having to stop on a road trip....hammer down. Toronto to Montreal or Ottawa are non-stop trips provided Mrs.Firm isn't in the car and the vehicle has enough range. Cup holders are a must. Even when we took the T/A on a road trip to the US, it doesn't have cupholders and I eventually got sick enough of it that I stopped at an Autozone and bought one of those wedge style ones that go between the console and the seats to get us through the rest of the trip.

You would've laughed...The other week, on the way to Ottawa I had 3 of the 5 cupholders in the front of the Ram filled with drinks, and a bag of Doritos on the back seat (left home at 3am...caffeine and junkfood was necessary).

[dkaz]

What the hell do you need PPE on a roadtrip for??

Most countries require a high-vis jacket if you step outside a moving vehicle onto the highway. If you have a flat tire, run out of petrol, break down, etc......it's not like I've ever opened my sachet and I never hope to. But you must have one, just like a warning triangle and a first-aid kit. I implemented this myself in the US 8 years ago as well.

If you leave your high-vis in the boot/trunk and you have a flat tire, you have to then get out of the vehicle to retrieve said jacket- which means someone might hit you (remember most roadways are unlit). Some do stow it under the cargo floor, but it's better to just have it in reach.

That's actually a really good idea.

[Fobroader]

What the hell do you need PPE on a roadtrip for??

Most countries require a high-vis jacket if you step outside a moving vehicle onto the highway. If you have a flat tire, run out of petrol, break down, etc......it's not like I've ever opened my sachet and I never hope to. But you must have one, just like a warning triangle and a first-aid kit. I implemented this myself in the US 8 years ago as well.

If you leave your high-vis in the boot/trunk and you have a flat tire, you have to then get out of the vehicle to retrieve said jacket- which means someone might hit you (remember most roadways are unlit). Some do stow it under the cargo floor, but it's better to just have it in reach.

That's actually a really good idea.

Yes it is.....especially if you frequent dark back roads.

[Gurgie]

No issues with the cup holders I have in the JGC, they work well for all different sizes and I also have the ones in the doors as well. The ones in the 323i suck, they come out of the dash... and the ones in the 951 are non-existent 

[dkaz]

What the hell do you need PPE on a roadtrip for??

Most countries require a high-vis jacket if you step outside a moving vehicle onto the highway. If you have a flat tire, run out of petrol, break down, etc......it's not like I've ever opened my sachet and I never hope to. But you must have one, just like a warning triangle and a first-aid kit. I implemented this myself in the US 8 years ago as well.

If you leave your high-vis in the boot/trunk and you have a flat tire, you have to then get out of the vehicle to retrieve said jacket- which means someone might hit you (remember most roadways are unlit). Some do stow it under the cargo floor, but it's better to just have it in reach.

That's actually a really good idea.

Yes it is.....especially if you frequent dark back roads.

I had a flat tire on the QEII years ago and it was a scary experience being on the side of the highway trying and replacing that tire, even though it was the middle of the day.

[draghon]

Love the cupholders in my civic! They are deep, square shaped and have spring loaded "fingers" that hold just about any shaped container tight. Bonus, it has a retracting lid to cover them when not it use.

[Serniter]

What the hell do you need PPE on a roadtrip for??

Most countries require a high-vis jacket if you step outside a moving vehicle onto the highway. If you have a flat tire, run out of petrol, break down, etc......it's not like I've ever opened my sachet and I never hope to. But you must have one, just like a warning triangle and a first-aid kit. I implemented this myself in the US 8 years ago as well.

If you leave your high-vis in the boot/trunk and you have a flat tire, you have to then get out of the vehicle to retrieve said jacket- which means someone might hit you (remember most roadways are unlit). Some do stow it under the cargo floor, but it's better to just have it in reach.

That's actually a really good idea.

Agreed.

[Weels]

The holders in MX-5 are pretty clever.  Location ain't the best, but what are you going to do. You will bump your elbow into it occasionally.
Holds stuff securely, even with 'sprited' driving.