(DIY) M5 Cup Holder Conversion

[B-1Pilot]

Originally Posted by mainly

no, no, im talking about the 4 collapsible springy things along the inside walls of the cup holders. they still look to be present here.(or is the pic of the old one?)

they're crap because they collapse UPWARD. and its impossible to get anything bigger than a can of red bull in them... FFS...

ahh, yeah those are still there and they suck... the stainless steel BMW coffee tumbler from the Welt is about the biggest thing I can get in there... I also had to buy a new one from starbucks.

Of course, if were fully up the Germans, there would be no cupholders -- cars are for driving, not drinking in.

[NlckyBlack]

Originally Posted by B-1Pilot

Of course, if were fully up the Germans, there would be no cupholders -- cars are for driving, not drinking in.

enough said...............

[kylek13]

Is there a new or updated cup holder for 6MT? 6MT cupholder is so much worse.....

[PhilT3]

BMW needs to do what Audi did on the S6... Build an angled pocket in the door for a bottle. PERFECT for my Nalgene water bottle! And doesn't get in the way of any driver controls.

[avlnch]

Ugh.. cup holder down.
How the F does this even happen..

[tmkhum]

Yep...I can confirm that this does not work on my car either...the console depth is different under the cup holder area.

My build date is 08/2012.

If I had to guess, BMW did a console change at the end of the year...so build date likely needs to be 2013 to get this to work

I was so pissed. I was really looking forward to getting rid of that turd cupholder.

Dremeling would be possible...but decided not worth the effort/risk.

Tom

[Spinny02]

I think both old and new designs are still flawed... my water bottles continually fly out of the LCI holder on moderate acceleration from a light.

[Spinny02]

Originally Posted by avlnch

Ugh.. cup holder down.
How the F does this even happen..

Oh no! Sorry to see this after all your hard work getting it in there.

[avlnch]

I just found out some interesting information from BMW.

A "high level update" was made to all M5/M6 produced from 03/2013 onwards - to prepare them for the carbon ceramic brakes option. Additional changes include:
- Smaller torsion bar in the hydraulic steering system. This affects how the hydraulic steering system responds, giving it a better on center.
- Programming for the steering system.
- Stiffer front bushings to better deal with the increased brake forces from the optional carbon ceramic brakes.

The above (mentioned by BMW) are key LCI mechanical updates. Not mentioned was interior and miscellaneous updates.

Other LCI changes include a slightly larger center console storage space, a newly designed cup holder, etc.

I was able to install the cup holder in my M5 because my build date is 03/2013. In other words, my car has the "high level update" needed for the install.

I can't be 100% sure about this, but it makes sense. Unless your M5 is a 03/2013 or later build, there is a good chance this conversion will not be possible without modifications for fitment.

[ImpetuousRacer]

Had a new born baby come early, so didn't get time to do the work myself, but took it to Signature Audio. They dremeled out the area with no adverse effects and the cup holders are now installed without any problems.

[Hoopumpers]

Thank you for this thread! Ordered!

I hate that damn thing.

[SEWELLGT]

Originally Posted by avlnch

Ugh.. cup holder down.
How the F does this even happen..

Same exact thing happened to my pre-LCI cupholder. Dealer replaced it under warranty.

[Hoopumpers]

Boy - sure wish I had read the ENTIRE thread before attempting this mod. I have a late 2012 build date and the LCI cup holder does not fit in the console. Brilliant.

The directions were magnificent avInch...until it didn't fit. Ha. Thanks anyway for the awesome write up.

Anyone want to buy a LCI cup holder?

[ImpetuousRacer]

Originally Posted by Hoopumpers

Boy - sure wish I had read the ENTIRE thread before attempting this mod. I have a late 2012 build date and the LCI cup holder does not fit in the console. Brilliant.

The directions were magnificent avInch...until it didn't fit. Ha. Thanks anyway for the awesome write up.

Anyone want to buy a LCI cup holder?

I had same problem. It's hollow underneath the plastic, just cut plastic with dremel. Mine fits in with no adverse effect.

[PhilT3]

Wish BMW would do what Audi does and put angled bottle 'slots' into the door storage areas. GREAT solution for bottles. Then just use the cup holders only when you have something not in a bottle. I'd bet most peeps would prefer this method.

[ImpetuousRacer]

How my prebuild looks after being modified to fit:

[cwpray]

cant open the link.....

[Gdmerc]

Can the link be fixed?

[mcvaughan]

Originally Posted by ImpetuousRacer

I had same problem. It's hollow underneath the plastic, just cut plastic with dremel. Mine fits in with no adverse effect.

Aww rats. I was hoping it was going to be easier than this.

[Spinny02]

.

[avlnch]

@cwprey
@Gdmerc

Yeah go ahead, you can access it now through the link.

[avlnch]

Originally Posted by mcvaughan

Aww rats. I was hoping it was going to be easier than this.

Yeah unfortunately we found out it's model year dependent.

03.13 is the build date when BMW began prepping builds for competition package. So it includes slightly better steering and design differences.

Those who don't have the right model year for this to be an easy install were able to do it with a little dremel work. someone posted about it with photos.