I'm sure its been done before but I didn't see anything on it.
Just a quick write up for a center console lid.
When I bought my camaro it was missing the lid as many that I looked for were. For whatever reason its $100+ on ebay, so I figured I'd make something in the mean time to put my arm on until I can find one at a junk yard. I'm sure with a little more efford someone could make a nicer one, or if you can find vinyl which I couldn't...

Materials:
Min 12x9" 1" board
Jigsaw or dremel
2" foam
1'X1' piece of material
Glue
T-Hinge
Drill
Bolts for console, if yours are missing

Cost: Depending on what you have laying around it only cost me about $5 for the materal and a hinge to do this.


1. Trace the outline of the open area where the lid used to go with a piece of cardboard.

2. Cut the trace, lay it over a piece of 1" board, trace it out and cut it. I used a dremel with a base board and large bit to cut mine out, a jigsaw should also work.

3. Place a piece of 2" foam cut out to the size of your wood on top of the wood and use a little glue to secure it.

4. Wrap the piece in whatever material you decide on and staple it to the bottom. You now have your console

5. Mark the T section of the hinge where two of your bolts (the ones that bolt onto the inside of console) so you can drill a hole. More than likely the pre drilled holes in the hinge wont line up. Drill them out and make sure two of the console bolts fit and line up. Then hand tighten and secure the hinge to the console.

6. Place your lid on top of the console and mark the holes in the long portion of the hinge on the bottom of the lid, remove hinge from console. Use 3/4 screws to secure the hinge. Then secure the T side of the hinge back onto the console. You now have an arm rest that doesn't hurt to put your elbow on.

 

nice idea but sorry it look like it belongs in a thirdgen

 

Are you kidding??? lol...

 

Ha, I never said it looked good. But IMO it temporarily beats your elbow falling into the console.

 

I think it's great... obviously it's not pretty, but with some more time and work put into it, I think it would actually look better than the shitty stock one. And it REALLY beats the 250 for a gm replacement one.

 

 

It is kinda crude, but a nice alternative for nothing at all. With a little more elbow grease, that can turn out pretty nice.

I say, forget looking for a used one in a junk yard and put a little more time into another one of those and you're set!

 

Not a big fan of it being made of wood. Maybe do a sheet metal base and build it up with yoga mat foam. Then it will be comfortable. My friend builds cafe racers and makes all of his seats out of yoga foam.

 

I dont really have any way to cut sheet metal

 

ehhhhh.... Not sure what to say besides that is Redneck Engineering

 

Not bad for temp.

 

You could use some tin snips on the thin stuff.

 

Honestly, I would pay what ever price someone wanted for a lit before I would put that on my car.

 

Plus one.

 

Well the way I see it not everyone has $100 to throw around whenever they want, so this is a temporary fix until they can. But to each their own.

 

Where have you found one for 100??? Cheapest I've ever found was a bid for 180 lol

Honestly, the factory pieces are junk anyways. Mine has ripped half of the screws out of the pad so it just kinda flops around. You replace the junk with the same junk for what? Plus the factory ones look half-assed AF too.

If I were you, I'd reshape the foam to get it closer to the console on the front, and so it matches the lines of the rest of the console, then wrap it in some stretchable vinyl. Now that I've seen you do this, I definitely plan on doing one of my own instead of replacing mine.

 

I think you posted this a week early, April Fools is next Tuesday.

 

@OP, not a bad idea at all considering the foam usually wears down if its a DD on a desert city. I ended up buying a used one, but ill give this a shot once mine wears down again. All it needs is an armrest cover. Redlinegoods sells them

 

I must be one of the lucky ones to have a lid that still looks and works like new. But my dash pad on the other hand looks like the Hulk smashed it.

 

Sounds about right. Everything looks decent, except for my missing dash pad. (shattered like glass)