Retro fitting a facelift center console (with cup holders) to a pre-facelift Porsche

[CharlieChalk]

​Can a later centre console / air vent (with cup holders) be retro fitted to an earlier (pre-facelift) 986 boxster?

My car is a 2000 plate Porsche Boxster 986 - and i'm fed up with not having a coffee cup holder! 🤣☕

Porsche added cup holders in the facelift refresh (so both images are 986 Boxsters).

I'd love to know how/if it's possible to swap/retro fit the newer 986 central vent to my pre-facelift 986? Is it a simple swap, or would the dash need to be modified?

Cheers, Tom.

[paulofto]

I don't know if the swap can be made but I have a 2003 S withe the pop out cup holders and quite frankly it is a nice design but not as sturdy as it could be. Also, with a cup in there in blocks the vents. With 2 cups in there it seems quite fragile like it might break off.

[boxxster]

Would probably be less work to put one of these optional cupholder sections up top then put the a/c controls down near the shifter, like this: (sorry for the huge pic)

[stantheman1]

If your goal is simply to add cupholders, as an alternative you might consider an Ultimate Cup Holder. A little pricey, but they look good in a Boxster and work well; they don't block the center console.

[clickman]

I had the full size cupholders and ditched them. Please do yourself a favour and stay away from the Porsche cupholders. They are in a horrible position and ridiculously flimsy.

[outsidetheboxster]

Originally Posted by stantheman1

If your goal is simply to add cupholders, as an alternative you might consider an Ultimate Cup Holder. A little pricey, but they look good in a Boxster and work well; they don't block the center console.

Mr. Man
Any chance you have a link? My dual cup holders SUCK. I use tall thermal cups to transport my morning latte from home to the office and there is NO way they would stay in place. Lately I've been getting up early so I can finish the coffee before I leave home. Of course that allows me to drive the S to work for the day....

[Stroked & Blown]

https://www.ultimatecupholders.com/

Boxster pic on the homepage. I have mine on the passenger side so I don’t accidentally kick it, but it’s easily within reach.

[rick3000]

The two different dashes are not interchangeable without a serious facelift (ie - changing almost the entire dash). I agree with everyone else, the dash mounted cupholders are trash (the slide out one under the air vents and the ones that take up a full DIN below the AC). The slide out ones don't fit many glasses, and the pop-out ones aren't tall enough which means lots of spilled coffee on your radio, shifter, and yourself.

Get a $30 Ultimate Cupholder and call it day. They work a lot better than you would expect.

[jcp]

Another vote for 'The Ulitmate cupholder'.

[1PorscheBoxster986]

Rick is correct that it is not interchangeable. The entire dashboard will need to be swap out from a 03-04 to drop 03-04 cupholder kit in.

[Deserion]

Pretty sure it's doable. Look at the innards between the early (red) and late (gray) dashboards. Nearly identical if not exactly a match.





One would need the inner metal frame, central air vent, main frame, outer trim...



Personally the biggest reason not to is the cost of the cupholder cartridge is ridiculous, and resellers of broken ones still want far too much for them.