Sunglasses Cubby Door Broken

[kevinkar]

Sunglasses cubby in the overhead compartment in my 2018 R broke. The right hand plastic pin broke off and that's that. It sort of works but basically falls out on the right side and the entire door just drops out. So it's useless now. Everything is made of plastic and little .12" diameter "pins" are not meant for the long haul.

I use it to store my garage door opener so I open and close it just about every day but the only thing in that cubby is the opener so there's not much weight to it but, the door itself is fairly heavy for what it is and I can see why the pins might wear out over time.

So, is the door replaceable as a separate purchasable item or do I need a complete upper console replacement? I could just leave the stupid thing off but it's now a large open area with no cover and is useless that way and looks unsightly.

Funny that, as I looked for another temporary location for the opener, I realized there really is not a good secondary location. I could clip it on the visor but that puts divots into the material over time. I could use the lower storage or the left under-dash storage compartments but those are similar plastic-pinned doors and would likely wear out over time as well. So I put the metal clip back on the opener and am currently hanging it on the driver's door compartment which is hard plastic so I won't be deforming any fabric. Not really the best spot for it though. I want it out of the way and unseen which is why the sunglasses cubby is best.

 

[tWiStEd-tORqUe]

You will need to to replace the frame and swap the electronics

https://www.jimellisvwparts.com/pro...g-Overhead-Console/11555624/5G086883782V.html

 

[Jose_Gti]

The pin that broke, belongs to the door that swings or to the overhead console?

 

[Thomas.brian23]

Any reason you haven’t upgrade to the Homelink rear view mirror? Then you can ditch the traditional garage door opener or at least put it somewhere where you don’t need to access it regularly.

 

[kevinkar]

Any reason you haven’t upgrade to the Homelink rear view mirror? Then you can ditch the traditional garage door opener or at least put it somewhere where you don’t need to access it regularly.

I think I looked into it years ago and thought it was more of a pain to install than I wanted to deal with but you do make a good point. I should revisit that as an option.

You will need to to replace the frame and swap the electronics

https://www.jimellisvwparts.com/pro...g-Overhead-Console/11555624/5G086883782V.html

Ahhhhh. Kind of a partial console deal. Not a bad price either. Thank you for that pointer!

The pin that broke, belongs to the door that swings or to the overhead console?

Yeah, it's on the door that swings down. The pin on the right fits into a hole on the console frame as does the left side but the left side also has the geared portion that makes it soft open. There's a spring on the right also that helps open the door but it really opens fine on its own without the spring.

 

[The Fed]

Hmm, on the older R's it just pulled out.

 

[kevinkar]

Hmm, on the older R's it just pulled out.

I think in a pinch you can maybe squeeze the sides in and possibly pop the pins out to let it drop out but they are pretty close to the back end and hinge point so the back "wall" of the door makes it pretty stiff back there and difficult to push the sides in far enough. Of course, in my case, the door is already out. The trick would be removing the new one from the new frame without breaking that one and hoping the sides can squeeze in enough to pop it into the old frame. And you know how plastic is. Probably break the new one...

 

[DarkArrow]

The storage on the lower left of the steering wheel is where I have my garage door opener. It's designed to be removable since it covers the interior fuse box. If you ever happen to break it, you just pop it off and it's a ~$40 part to replace. I've removed it multiple times to install my radar detector and my dash cam. After 40k miles of opening it every time I come or go, there's no sign of wearing out the hinge.

 

[kevinkar]

The storage on the lower left of the steering wheel is where I have my garage door opener. It's designed to be removable since it covers the interior fuse box. If you ever happen to break it, you just pop it off and it's a ~$40 part to replace. I've removed it multiple times to install my radar detector and my dash cam. After 40k miles of opening it every time I come or go, there's no sign of wearing out the hinge.

Yeah, that's an option for sure. If it's that resilient, it's worth a second look. I don't plan on getting rid of the car any time soon so there's no rush to get it fixed but it's now a big open area and looks unsightly.

 

[Urlik]

Before I did the Homelink mirror I took velcro and stuck the remote in the driver's door pocket, up high on the interior side. I could push the button without pulling it out of the pocket. It worked great, never got in the way, and you couldn't see it.

 

[KevinC]

Another option to get around the Homelink thing - something like this from Genie:

https://amzn.to/3q43Lr3

I would imagine other door makers have similar offerings. We have the Genie thing on our doors and it works well, has saved our asses at least once (was able to open the door from 3 hours away for a neighbor to get in once when needed). Logs opens/closes, alerts you if a door is left open for a set amount of time. Works with Alexa too so you could conceivably open your door with a verbal command. Disclaimer: I don't use it for everyday opening/closing (I have the Homelink mirror).

 

[kevinkar]

You will need to to replace the frame and swap the electronics

https://www.jimellisvwparts.com/pro...g-Overhead-Console/11555624/5G086883782V.html

Good call. Jim Ellis had the best price on the replacement and shipped it right away. Hopefully this is not going to be too difficult a remove/replace operation.