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2020 Hybrid Broken cup holder spring?

15917 Views 27 Replies 17 Participants Last post by  galloway2839, 
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An odd thing just happened - I was trying to unscrew the cap from a bottle that was in the cup holder and I guess I applied a little too much downward force... That specific holder seemed to detach and sink an inch or so. One of the 3 spring 'clips' that grasp the cup slipped back inside its hole. I'm guessing that something broke inside the holder but I don't have a clue how to fix it. Any suggestions?

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ralph7up
buddhasuncle said:
An odd thing just happened - I was trying to unscrew the cap from a bottle that was in the cup holder and I guess I applied a little too much downward force... That specific holder seemed to detach and sink an inch or so. One of the 3 spring 'clips' that grasp the cup slipped back inside its hole. I'm guessing that something broke inside the holder but I don't have a clue how to fix it. Any suggestions?

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Dealer?
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B
That's probably what I'll have to do - I'll wait for the next scheduled maintenance.
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jpohlman
Might want to do it before then.
Ford has specific rules on what it will replace in what time period under the 3/36 warranty.
The first 12/12 they will usually not fight too terribly (although we did have a fight over my daughter's Focus' glove box door that couldn't be aligned correctly even though you could see it in the dealer pics online, they wanted to claim owner damage).
So as an example, brake pads and rotors are full coverage to 15k, after that pads are treated as consumables.
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B
Good advice. It will be my very first 10k maintenance. I bought this in August. I'll hit 10 in about three months. But, I will call them and see what they say.

jpohlman said:
Might want to do it before then.
Ford has specific rules on what it will replace in what time period under the 3/36 warranty.
The first 12/12 they will usually not fight too terribly (although we did have a fight over my daughter's Focus' glove box door that couldn't be aligned correctly even though you could see it in the dealer pics online, they wanted to claim owner damage).
So as an example, brake pads and rotors are full coverage to 15k, after that pads are treated as consumables.
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C
buddhasuncle said:
Good advice. It will be my very first 10k maintenance. I bought this in August. I'll hit 10 in about three months. But, I will call them and see what they say.
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Yup same problem in my back cup holder center console. There are 3 spring loaded keepers and the rear most one is completely stuck inside the hole and the front two are not coming all the way out. Feels like the whole mechanism has sunk down about half an inch. I wonder if there is an assembly that is clipped or held on by screws to the plastic beneath the cup holder itself. Perhaps something lets go too easily in there. I'm sure if I pop off the center console I can remedy the situation in one way or another. It's such a minor thing to try and fight with Ford to get fixed under warranty. And who managed to convince Ford to put a middle cup holder that can't actually hold anything but looks cute in there? Maybe a red bull can but nothing else. Personally I'll fix it and forget the warranty. it's not worth the hours or days of my time to fight with them, take the vehicle in, have it sit there for the day or several for such a minor thing. It shouldn't be broken, but it's basically one of the cheapest made parts of the car and so no wonder it breaks easily.
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Colin M said:
Yup same problem in my back cup holder center console. There are 3 spring loaded keepers and the rear most one is completely stuck inside the hole and the front two are not coming all the way out. Feels like the whole mechanism has sunk down about half an inch. I wonder if there is an assembly that is clipped or held on by screws to the plastic beneath the cup holder itself. Perhaps something lets go too easily in there. I'm sure if I pop off the center console I can remedy the situation in one way or another. It's such a minor thing to try and fight with Ford to get fixed under warranty. And who managed to convince Ford to put a middle cup holder that can't actually hold anything but looks cute in there? Maybe a red bull can but nothing else. Personally I'll fix it and forget the warranty. it's not worth the hours or days of my time to fight with them, take the vehicle in, have it sit there for the day or several for such a minor thing. It shouldn't be broken, but it's basically one of the cheapest made parts of the car and so no wonder it breaks easily.
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This is actually an easy fix... as I just fixed mine today. The front part of the center console “up where the shifter is” has two clips, simply pull up the two clips release, then gentle lift up the rest, I was able to fix it without unplugging and harnesses.. and it’s not a spring that holds those three triangle grippers in place, but a rubber band the stretches around all of the grippers.. yeah I was pretty surprised when I saw it.. so reroute the rubber band and put the console back on.. I was able to do everything in under two minutes..
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oceanjoehmb
Same problem happened with mine. I’ll first try to get the dealer to make the fix as it is just under the 30k mark and ill bring it in soon. If no work, then I’ll try the fix mentioned in the last post. Thanks @m17grace 👍
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Fredo
m17grace said:
This is actually an easy fix... as I just fixed mine today. The front part of the center console “up where the shifter is” has two clips, simply pull up the two clips release, then gentle lift up the rest, I was able to fix it without unplugging and harnesses.. and it’s not a spring that holds those three triangle grippers in place, but a rubber band the stretches around all of the grippers.. yeah I was pretty surprised when I saw it.. so reroute the rubber band and put the console back on.. I was able to do everything in under two minutes..
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What year is this you are talking about I have a 2020 escape and don’t see clips
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L
Having the exact same problem. Could somebody kindly elaborate on the process of removing the top of the center console? I don't see any clips either.
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oceanjoehmb
Larry Dart said:
Having the exact same problem. Could somebody kindly elaborate on the process of removing the top of the center console? I don't see any clips either.
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it is not too difficult. You kind of press in onthe front and the right side and then lift it up. I’ll see if I can take a photo to show. But snaps out relatively easy with some force. Then snaps back in with the rear of it sliding into place.
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L
Thanks, I figured it out this morning and fixed it. That is some 1/2 assed design under there. I was shocked.
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Rorosdad
As others have pointed out, that’s why you bought a new vehicle, let Ford fix it.
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L
Rorosdad said:
As others have pointed out, that’s why you bought a new vehicle, let Ford fix it.
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"Let Ford fix it" means driving to the dealer (10 miles one way), dropping the car off for the day, renting another car from Enterprise, and then driving back to get it.

Using the suggestions above, I fixed the issue in my own driveway in about three minutes, for a total cost of $0.00.
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Rorosdad
Larry Dart said:
"Let Ford fix it" means driving to the dealer (10 miles one way), dropping the car off for the day, renting another car from Enterprise, and then driving back to get it.

Using the suggestions above, I fixed the issue in my own driveway in about three minutes, for a total cost of $0.00.
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I have a loaner in my service contact. Most of the dealerships also have a shuttle that will take you to where you need to be and pick you up when the car is ready but glad you did it yourself.
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khab
oceanjoehmb said:
it is not too difficult. You kind of press in onthe front and the right side and then lift it up. I’ll see if I can take a photo to show. But snaps out relatively easy with some force. Then snaps back in with the rear of it sliding into place.
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Do you have any pictures or additional details? I have a 2020 ford Escape SE and I believe i have those two clips off in the front and its loose now but theres no way this center console is coming out unless I put all my weight into it and rip it out, clearly i feel im doing something wrong.. Thanks
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M
Once you pop the front clips you pull up a little and then slide the whole piece slightly forward. It’ll then come out. I’ve had to take mine out twice so far. Im sure it’ll happen again so when it does I’ll take a video clip.
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Rileyh
Fredo said:
What year is this you are talking about I have a 2020 escape and don’t see clips
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Trunk Bumper Automotive exterior Auto part Machine

Automotive lighting Flash photography Automotive design Camera accessory Font

(please disregard the mess)
I just took this apart to fix it. Here are some pics to try and help others. (Top: from above. Bottom: the console upside down)

I used a flathead screwdriver to pull the plastic up enough to use my fingers to pull it up, then you have to slide it forward a bit to pull the unit up. Then I saw the band and the cupholder clips were not in place so I adjusted it and put it all back together. Fingers crossed I don’t have to do this again soon.
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aimeemariehead
Larry Dart said:
Thanks, I figured it out this morning and fixed it. That is some 1/2 assed design under there. I was shocked.
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Mine has the same issue. I was just out of warranty, and the dealer wouldn’t cover it. Now that I know it was a rubber band, it makes me even more mad at Ford.
oceanjoehmb said:
it is not too difficult. You kind of press in onthe front and the right side and then lift it up. I’ll see if I can take a photo to show. But snaps out relatively easy with some force. Then snaps back in with the rear of it sliding into place.
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did anyone post pictures?
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aimeemariehead
All, sorry I noticed pictures after my last question. After figuring out where the clip were, this was a super easy fix that took less than 10 minutes with cleaning and replacement.

I am posting pictures with areas circled in yellow to show both 1) exact location of clips - first three pictures and 2) where the rubber band seems to come undone - last two pictures.

Use a flat head (standard) screwdriver under the front right section of the cup holder assembly to release the clip. Gently pull up the front of the assembly while releasing the clip. Do the same thing on the left front. Then, gently push the whole assembly toward the front of the car to release the back of the assembly. Lastly, pull up front the right side (wiring is attached on the left. To make it easier to rerun the rubber band, you can release the wiring clips by pressing the release buttons. If the rubber band is not threaded correctly, it won’t be taught enough to keep the cup holders in place.

This is awful engineering design. A rubber band should not hold things in place on a car. After retreading the rubber band, I added duct tape to keep the cup holders and rubber band in place. The local dealership charged me $75 to fix this once, and the tech didn’t even fix it correctly… it fell within five minutes of leaving the dealer. So, make certain to retread the rubber band correctly. This is clearly a known issue. Ford should be fixing this with a lasting correction. A rubber band that will naturally have less strength over time is not reliable.

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