cup holder broken after 3 months

[robbie31580]

awesome. i love the car but seriously BMW put a little more work into the cup holders. i can only use it to hold bottled water because if i put coffee in there then it just falls out or some how manages to spill out.

does anyone know of a product i can buy to hold my coffee? it's kind of annoying having to drive with my knee when i am fiddling the the idrive and holding my coffee since i can't put it anywhere.

[mryakan]

I am sure many will tell you to skip the coffee and stop fiddling with iDrive, but have you though about getting a beverage container that fits in the cupholder?
P.S. Some people got their cupholder fixed under warranty even though it was their fault.

[Mad Dragon]

P.S. Some people got their cupholder fixed under warranty even though it was their fault.

I've yet to see a broken cupholder that wasn't replaced under warranty.

[robbie31580]

I am sure many will tell you to skip the coffee and stop fiddling with iDrive, but have you though about getting a beverage container that fits in the cupholder?
P.S. Some people got their cupholder fixed under warranty even though it was their fault.

i can try to find something that fits perfectly inside the cup holder but i haven't seen anything yet. and great point implying that it is somehow my fault for the cup holder breaking. i clearly improperly used the cup holder by pushing it out to use it and then pushing it back in when i wasn't using it.

[Jhunter]

and great point implying that it is somehow my fault for the cup holder breaking. i clearly improperly used the cup holder by pushing it out to use it and then pushing it back in when i wasn't using it.

You probably tried to shove a 64 oz Big Gulp in it!

[mryakan]

i can try to find something that fits perfectly inside the cup holder but i haven't seen anything yet. and great point implying that it is somehow my fault for the cup holder breaking. i clearly improperly used the cup holder by pushing it out to use it and then pushing it back in when i wasn't using it.

Sorry didn't imply you broke it, but there have been several reported incidents of passenger knees busting the cupholder, and that is what I was implying.

[Blue Streek]

I must have the perfectly sized coffee travel mug, because it fits in there snugly and hasn't spilled yet. I drink my coffee every morning on the way to work while shifting gears, playing with the i-Drive and driving like it was meant to be driven (well, just a bit more than conservative I guess). If it were a narrower mug, it might move around a bit more, like my bottled water does in the afternoon and then it would surely get all over the place. You could use the cup holder in the center console if you have to, because that's a much deeper socket and may hold it more firmly in place. You'll just have to have the center arm rest folded all the way up past the locked position and it might get in the way of your shifting, but I bet you could easily get used to it.

We're lucky we even have cupholders in this car anyway. It's really just meant for serious drivers who enjoy the drive without any extra stuff like drinking coffee. It works for me though even though I wasn't expecting it to, so that's a big plus for me... especially in morning when I need to reduce the blood in my coffee stream to get back to normal operating levels.

[kaymax22]

Lucky to have cupholders? What's next, lucky to have floor mats or a glove box? Oh wait, floor mats are already an option.

[Blue330i2006]

If you are using your cupholders then you aren't driving hard enough!!

[mryakan]

Everyone seems to forget that grandmas grandpas and regular joes/janes buy these cars too not just us car nuts. So yeah for many of us cupholders are redundant, but for some they are mandatory, but I expect those folks complain about cup holders while this crowd complains about oil coolers and the like, but I guess picky crowds are just that, picky.

[neapolitan]

Yeah, I've only used the cupholders a couple times, to hold cans of soda (works perfectly) that have not been opened yet. What do you want to do, drink, or drive?

No eating or drinking in my car (well, not at least until 10k miles).

[robbie31580]

I must have the perfectly sized coffee travel mug, because it fits in there snugly and hasn't spilled yet. I drink my coffee every morning on the way to work while shifting gears, playing with the i-Drive and driving like it was meant to be driven (well, just a bit more than conservative I guess). If it were a narrower mug, it might move around a bit more, like my bottled water does in the afternoon and then it would surely get all over the place. You could use the cup holder in the center console if you have to, because that's a much deeper socket and may hold it more firmly in place. You'll just have to have the center arm rest folded all the way up past the locked position and it might get in the way of your shifting, but I bet you could easily get used to it.

We're lucky we even have cupholders in this car anyway. It's really just meant for serious drivers who enjoy the drive without any extra stuff like drinking coffee. It works for me though even though I wasn't expecting it to, so that's a big plus for me... especially in morning when I need to reduce the blood in my coffee stream to get back to normal operating levels.

good points. that i-drive is meant for serious drivers....good cup holders are for sissies.

[shelltox]

i can try to find something that fits perfectly inside the cup holder but i haven't seen anything yet. and great point implying that it is somehow my fault for the cup holder breaking. i clearly improperly used the cup holder by pushing it out to use it and then pushing it back in when i wasn't using it.

Hey Robbie:

My sales guy gave me a BMW mug and it fits in good. Have you thought about buying one of those? Also, my old thermos mug fits in without a problem. On top of this, my hard driving still find the mugs in their place afterwards.

Yes, many don't like the location of the cup holders. Perhaps this would be an improvment item in the next generation 3 series.

Enjoy your ride !

[greenie99]

"Cupholders" are an afterthought to the Germans. They spend their time DRIVING and concentrating on their driving. Thats why they can exceed their own speed limits and have a lower incidence of crashes. Its only here that we eat, drink and use cellphones etc. when we drive.

[mryakan]

Actually as I put a small bottle of water in my cupholder yesterday, I noticed how well designed the cupholder is. Maybe it is not sturdy and may not hold extra large containers, but I am not sure if anyone noticed the way it accommodates various sized containers by having a spring actuated piece of plastic adjust to the size of the container and hold it in place. Pretty clever I thought. Doesn't seem like an afterthought, but maybe they don't have the extra large big gulp 711 type containers in Germany.

[vkpope54]

In case any of you out there are still dealing with this issue....

I purchased a 328xi the other day from a guy who took out the cup holders, and removed the springs because he thought they were keeping the cup holders closed. SMH.

Anyhow, I can't fix the cupholder because they no longer have springs!

Cue solution....

I am pretty sure that this link below is to the "constant force spring" that is used inside of an e90 cupholder.

http://www.vulcanexpress.com/k3d14vs/

I hope this works!

[Mĩk€]

... because BMW had cupholders in mind when they were building a car for GERMANS not Americans.... Don't drop your hot dog while your driving your automatic there bud..

[cheech1]

... because BMW had cupholders in mind when they were building a car for GERMANS not Americans.... Don't drop your hot dog while your driving your automatic there bud..

Totally agree!

[Codes2]

Since we are mostly going over the top with opinions - I thought I'd share mine.

---

I love my cup holders.
I think they are sexy. (don't get me wrong, I love women too... my heart is big enough)

My passengers and I like to watch them open and close. Smooth.
I also like to watch my convertible roof open/close... reminds me of Terminator... such calculations and smoothness (I'm sure I'll complain one day when it leaks)

What I do NOT like is when people overfill my coffee - or when cup designers make lids like a preschooler would.
That is NOT necessary. Half the drive through cups work... the other half are in the dark ages still.

I've had 3 E9x cars and never a cup holder issue. The cup holders can last if you love them... but it's fair to say, they are not designed to take a knee...

[Pilgrim]

You can buy replacement cupholders in any number of places. They are quite simple to replace - YouTube it.

Any smart driver will use only containers that fit the holders, and are not too tall. If you corner hard with a tall container in a holder which grasps it low, physics dictates that the container will fall over. This is especially true of metal containers and full plastic containers.

In other words, suit the container to the holder and to your driving.