Hey guys. I had a couple Fieros 2008-2013 that I had to sell for a move and missed them dearly so I recently bought an '85 GT with a 3800 NA in it. I forgot about the horrible lack of cupholders until I got some tacos and remembered that I had a neat cupholder in one of my cars that I can't seem to remember where I got it from. I could probably dig through my old posts to find the source but I suspect its not available anymore anyway after 10ish years.
I am taking inspiration from it though to 3d print something similar and I thought I'd document my progress here. I'm interested in any constructive criticism along the way please!
Here is what I used to have 10ish years ago. It was a sheet of an MDF-like material cut in the shape of the shifter plate (held on with double sided tape) which then had a couple angled risers to a smaller top plate with holes in it for a couple off-the-shelf cup holders to sit in. The automatic version had two holders but as I recall there was a manual version with only one cupholder as the second got in the way of shifting. It looks like something that a CNC wood mill would make quick work of but the main plate is awfully chunky and hides the shifter plate entirely. Forgive the crappy pictures but they're all I've got:
What I have rolling around in my head now is to have a smaller mount that replaces the passenger ash tray and door, which then has the risers and holes for cupholders. Here are a couple renders of what I've got so far:
And here is a tester printed and dropped into the ash tray. I need to tweak it a little and buy some longer screws but so far its close to what I want:
I have purchased some marine/RV style drop-in tiered cup holders that I plan on dropping into the top plate. I'll model the rest when I get the parts in and print out a test unit.
So far I have these potential changes in my head:
-Can I make it so the base holder doesn't overlap the edges of the shift plate or does the overlap look better? It has to overlap some into the passenger side so there is room to shift but how much? -I maxed out my 3d printer's build plate with the base so I definitely can't print the top plate in one part so I'll have to seam it. I do have friends with big printers. -This replaces an ash tray which I don't care about as I don't smoke but for those with intact tray doors removing them without breaking them to install a cupholder might be risky, I'm not sure if I can make a pocket of sorts in the bottom of the base to allow for the door to remain in plate and just hidden? -I also have a friend with a laser cutter who could cut the top plate plate out of acrylic with the FIERO text and/or Pegasus on it too and that would be hella sick so I may go that route -Laser cut top, black risers, black base with top painted silver to match shifter plate... yeah, that looks good in my head -Stainless cup inserts instead of black plastic? Stainless will last forever but I don't know if it matches the crappy plastic 80s aesthetic of the rest of the interior so meh?
Just some thoughts for you. When I had my Fiero, I wanted to incorporate a cupholder similar to the one you are suggesting. I think you might be able to take your mounting plate and incorporate the mount from this BMW cupholder. I always thought the mount would fit down inside the area of the ash tray, but didn't have the skill you have with the printer to make something that would look right.
The cup holder itself sort of sits to the right of the mount, so out of way of the shifter. It can be removed by simply pulling up- the bracket has a small chrome plate that springs into place to cover the hole. It sits up high enough that it does not interfere with the passenger in any way.
I've mounted two in my XK8 on the side of the console, and that is another option ( and the one I was going to try on the Fiero). This picture shows 1 installed, but I have now installed two of them in tandem on the passenger side.
------------------ '87 GT , '00 3800 Series II SC, 4t65e, Vue Power Steering. (SOLD)
You can match the paint used to be able to buy GM beige everywhere.
By "match" I mean have the spirit-of-the-style match (boxy plastic vs smooth/modern), not the specific paint color.
Anyway, work continues. My cup inserts came in. I suppose I could just 3d print those too but I want it look a little more manufactured. Eh, we'll see. I finished modeling the top plate and riser bar.
And here it is in my slicing software. The top plate is too large for my printer so I'm going to have to split it for now. If I have my friend with the laser cutter make me a top plate it will be in one piece. It should be printed by the time I wake up pending any errors and I should have all the hardware to install it and try it out tomorrow. Fingers crossed!
I got the idea to use the ash tray as a mount from that 3d print, but otherwise the actual cupholder intrudes into the passenger seating area too much.
The back in the day part is very similar to what I had! Not quite the same, it could just be a different version from the same vendor though.
Anyway, I assembled my first prototype. I didn't take into account that the cup holder inserts have a slight taper so the holes are a bit too tight so the inserts don't sit flush with the top plate like they should. Prototype problems so meh. I'll edit and print another version soon. So far, so good though.
Slight revisions made: screw holes enlarged, threaded holes tapered, cup holder holes enlarged, cup position scooted a hair over, etc. I also changed how I'm seaming the two halves together with a hidden support plate underneath. Hopefully it can still be printed full scale on a borrowed large printer or just laser cut but thats for the future. Assuming no printer related failures, I'll be able to test this version tomorrow.
[This message has been edited by Alibi (edited 03-09-2021).]
Very cool! looking forward to the finished product.
Yeah I agree with someone above who said if you could match the styling of the other interior components like beveled or rounded edges angles and what not.
Thanks! If I laser cut the top plate it will just be flat but I could probably sneak the FIERO text on it.
The bottom plate could have a bevel on it pretty easily though. I'll have to play with it and see what options look appropriate and would print nicely.
My print cooling fan died overnight so no part this morning. I have 4 printers though so I just moved the files to one of the others and will give it a go. I should have a working part tonight 😁
Success! Kind of. I made a mistake in CAD and extruded the top plate UP instead of down so my risers are too tall by the height of the top plate. I meant to make it so the bottoms of the cup holder inserts rests on top of the base.... whoops. Minor issue and I can just reprint the risers and it will be fine. Its functional though! I need to take my girlfriend out for a drive so she can be my guinea pig to try it out from the passenger seat.
Sorry for spamming my own thread... but its my thread so meh
I made some minor tweaks to the file such as reducing the height of the risers so that the bottom of the cup inserts *should* fit flush with the base plate, reducing the size of the cup insert openings a hair, and adding a bevel to the edges. I think the bevel really sells it so once I confirm my new height risers work I'll probably reprint and paint this (hopefully final-ish) version.
[This message has been edited by Alibi (edited 03-10-2021).]
The edited risers fit much better. I still need to have a passenger test it and then test it for vibration noises, but a bit of glue or self adhesive felt pads would stop that.
Here are updated photos. This is not the newest revision with the beveled edges but for the rest of the general fit I'm really happy with it so far. I wish I could print the top plate in one part but the seam really isn't that bad.... A thought I literally just had would be to have my clip holes go all the way through the plate and I can screw a "FIERO" text logo on the top plate to hide the seam more and give it more rigidity. I like it... hurray for "feature creep"!
Please tell me if you spot room for improvement. I will probably need to make some tweaks for a manual trans car but I'll worry about that when I get access to one. I'm not sure what direction I'm going with this long-term as in selling the file, selling completed units, or just sticking them up on thingiverse for free if there isn't demand for them.
[This message has been edited by Alibi (edited 03-10-2021).]
What do you think about putting hinges or pivots on the ends of the top platform, so that when it's not in use it could be folded down a little bit. You'd probably have to use different cupholders.
P.S. Hello from Oologah and downtown Tulsa. I live in Oologah but work in downtown.
[This message has been edited by Quadfather (edited 03-11-2021).]
What do you think about putting hinges or pivots on the ends of the top platform, so that when it's not in use it could be folded down a little bit. You'd probably have to use different cupholders.
P.S. Hello from Oologah and downtown Tulsa. I live in Oologah but work in downtown.
Thanks! Having it move would be a neat trick but I don't want to overcomplicate it or introduce another potential failure point. And its neat you're nearby! I'd love to do a meet-up sometime in the Tulsa area sometime post-covid and with nice weather, I know of 3-4 other people in the general area and I'm sure there are more.
quote
Originally posted by mmeyer86gt/gtp:
nice design just need to print that top piece on a larger textured bed?
If I release the files online I'm going to still include the split plate with coupler design since the smaller sized printers are still so common. I think it would look better as a full single piece but I don't have a big printer (yet). I'll see about having a friend print one for me or I'm going to have the top cut out of acrylic on a friends laser cutter. I'm not sure which route I'm going to go but for now the split top design seems to work fine.
It looks to me that your idea should work well. Years ago, I bought one from a vender on here that uses a slotted mount that replaces the cigarette lighter cover. Then the cup holder unit simply slides into the slot formed in the mounting plate. He sent me a double cup holder and a single holder as well, but only one mount. The one shown is in the V8 notchie. The single is in the 84 SC car. I made a mount for the single out of three layers 3/16 plywood, painted it to match. A good system, but the vendor wasn't around for very long. Good luck with your project.
And there are a couple pictures of the single holder, to my surprise.
Years ago, I bought one from a vender on here that uses a slotted mount that replaces the cigarette lighter cover. Then the cup holder unit simply slides into the slot formed in the mounting plate.
Thanks! From what I've driven around town a little its working great to hold my phone and spare screws but I still haven't had a cup in it or a passenger to ride and test it from their side.
Mounting a cup holder from the cigarette plate is really clever, but wouldn't the cups be awkwardly far back to reach? Shoehorning a cupholder anywhere into the Fiero is probably going to be awkward to some degree.
