I have recently purchased a White 1998 S70 (so you will most likely see me here frequently..:)
It has a broken cupholder - one of the two cupholders that pull out of the console is broken. From what I understand this is very common (and from seeing the way it is designed I am surprised that the other one is not broken as well).
The dealer wants $90 to replace it.
I have been trying to locate some type of aftermarket cupholder that will fit in its place, but have had no luck. The only thing I have found are the screw-onto-the-door cupholders from IPD that are designed for the 850s. It looks as if I am going to have to buy one from a Volvo dealer. However, judging from past experience I know that this dealer tends to overcharge on most everything. I was wondering if anyone reading this had purchased one of these from a dealer and if so, what the price was. Also, do you know of a way I can purchase the parts online?

Any information would be appreciated!
Allen Beddingfield
allenb@sa.ua.edu

Husco Engineering (www.husco.com) sells aftermarket Volvo cup holders and arm rests. I don't see anything on their webpage for the S70 but you can try calling them at :

17 Calvin Road
Wilton, CT 06897-3207

Phone: 203.762.3181 or 1.800.752.3181
Fax: 203.762.3427
E-mail: husco@att.net

Good luck

Ranger

I pad about $45 for Volvo OE cupholder at Precision Volvo.
--
(98 S70 T5SE misc mods, mostly lighting) (92 940GLE)

Hmmm,

I personally broke mine by tossing a flight bag full of crap into the passenger's seat while my insulated coffee cup was still in the holder. I was quoted a similar insane price for replacement and laughed at the dealer. When he continued to probe for the answer to his question I continued to laugh and hung up. Needless to say the cup holder was not replaced when I picked up my car. One example of good communication I have had with my retailer.

Allen:

I have a '98 V70 with same problem. One was broken when I purchased (used), and second broke within 3 weeks. I made a bunch of calls/emails to Volvo parts places (check links from here and do search from google (or whatever search engine)).

I received best price (from 2 or 3 places) of low $40's for replacement.

I thought that was too much for lame design, so I took apart using Torx driver set and performed a simple fix. I had to drill hole in 'track' and then insert (screw) a short #6 sheet metal screw in place of the plastic pivot pin that broke. Both now work fine. If they break, and I can't fix, then I will spend the $40 and start process (use, break, fix, buy) over again.

If you don't have a Torx driver set, it will be worth the investment ($20 for a good set) as there are other parts on the car that will give the Torx set some use!!

Good luck!

PW

If all that's wrong is the little arm that pops down to support the cup from below is broken (at the hinge pin) there is a fix for that. I saw the tip here and used it myself. Involves drilling out the molded hinge pin in the arm and replacing it with a nylon bolt with the head cut off cut to just the length of the old hinge pin and epoxied in place, then just snapping the arm back into place in the holder. The repair held up for me for about 6 months, now I need to adjust the bolt. But if the plastic "hoop" part is cracked, I can't help.

Allen,

Are you at MSU now? My neighbor lady sold hers, maybe you bought it.

If you are still in the area, the BEST service is from Mike Williams at H&H Mobil at the corner of Haslett Road and Abbot. He used to be at Brookfield Shell until it closed the service deparment.

Anyway, Mike is hard to see. You may have to wait up to four weeks for an appointment.

Let me know if you need additional information. Welcome to the tribe.

Bryan

My son broke both of mine in one day. If my indy can't help me with a replacement part, I'm going to mount something elastic along the open edge.
--
(98 S70 T5SE misc mods, mostly lighting) (92 940GLE)

The front map pockets in the door can also be used
to hold a tall cup (one with a lid) or soda can. Look
close and you see they even have a curve shape to them.
This works for me (but I am tall and can easily reach
anything in the pocket).

I've broken mine, fixed it with epoxy, then it finally wore out and so I replaced it. Flimsy design, plus I have a stick, so I keep knocking into it when I shift. It's easy enough to replace, tho. There is an "improved" Mark II design which is harder to break, but doesn't hold the cups very well!

For parts, look under the above pull-down menu "features", then "shops" then "new parts". I've had good luck with Nils Sefeldt Volvo - now Volvo of Houston. Verrigni Marine also gets good reviews.

You may want to try and locate an independent Volvo shop in your area, my Volvo dealer has spawned TWO indy shops, PLUS my neighborhood Porsche/BMW indy has a bunch of customers who are refugees from the Volvo dealer!

Good Luck, and Welcome!

-Bill the Cat

Allen, the cupholder in the S70 is junk from both design and implementation points of view. Don't waste your money on the replacement, it will not survive for long. If you do choose to waste your mone on the thing, at least try to waste a little less and go to www.volvoparts.com, look up a phone number and call there on the phone, ask for Dan and tell him what you need. Chances are it will cost you about $40 and you can put it in yourself in about 10 minutes on lunchbreak using a torx screw driver. I let both holders in mine expire and have actually considered replacing it, but after hearing the price I figured it's not worht the money. In perfect working order the thing does not work very well, so paying hard-earned money for something like that makes no sense to me.

Good luck.
--
Vladimir. 1998 S70. Base, 5-speed manual.