Toyota IST (JDM) armrest / center console in an xD
03-15-2008, 06:48 AM
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Toyota IST (JDM) armrest / center console in an xD
Well, I finally got the armrest that should be available as an option from Scion! A friend in Japan did the legwork, and after some minor hassles at the Toyota dealership there, he bought an Ist JDM armrest (10,500Yen = US$105) and shipped it over here. Shipping cost for the ~2.5kg armrest alone would have cost about $55, for 3 day "express/EMS" delivery. (Or about $30 for 2-3 month "surface" delivery). I got some other stuff too, so express shipping was $80 for a 5kg package.
So the package showed up today, and I got it installed this evening. To summarize, it looks very nice (clearly OEM), feels very sturdy, and is pretty straightforward to install. It took me about a half hour to install, but I was taking my time and snapping lots of pictures. It is held in place by sturdy steel brackets that mount to the seat rails, which seems much more durable (and cleaner to remove) than screws into the plastic. No drilling or modification is required; just inserting and tightening 8 screws. Based on my very limited experience so far, it is comfortable while driving, despite a lack of padding. So if you have any contacts in Japan, I'd highly recommend pursuing this option!
Scroll all the way to the bottom for pictures of the completed installation.
And now if you're still interested, I'll share some more detail and lots of photos of the installation process.
The box contained the armrest/console, instructions in Japanese, a plastic base, a piece of felt/carpet to line the bottom of the compartment, and various mounting hardware:
The console has a lid that slides back and down into the interior, and a cupholder that folds down from the back. This replaces the cupholder that's covered up when this is installed:
Even though the directions are all in Japanese, the pictures/diagrams are easy enough to follow:
The armrest/console screws onto a "saddle", which straddles the cupholder area, and in turn screws onto brackets which mount on the seat rails. The pictures show it better than I can explain it, so here is the driver's side seat rail before installation:
Same seat rail with bracket in place:
(BTW, the brackets don't interfere with movement of the seats.)
Same seat rail with the base of the "saddle" placed on top of the bracket, not yet screwed in:
(Note in the photo above that there is a second set of holes, so there are two placement options, about an inch apart forward and back. I slid the saddle back, and used the rearmost placement option as pictured below).
And a broader view of the saddle mounted in place, before the armrest itself was added:
There are 4 screws that hold the armrest compartment on to the saddle: (After these are screwed in, there is a little piece of felt/carpet supplied to line the bottom of the compartment).
And that's it! Once the compartment is attached to the saddle, it's done. Here's a view of the whole thing, with the seats slid all the way forward, so you can see the saddle:
Once the seats are slid back, you can't see the brackets or saddle at all - it's surprisingly unobtrusive. The sides of the saddle fit very close to the existing parking brake/cupholder assembly, so there's still room to store your road atlas or whatever, and still room to lose stuff that falls out of your pockets ;) .
And here's the final product!
The storage compartment in the console is small, but very functional, and I find it a VERY welcome addition to the limited interior storage in the xD. The compartment is just big enough to fit a few CD cases, or it definitely has room for an ipod, sunglasses, phone charger, and other odds and ends:
(Also, you can see that the little storage nook (where I keep some keys) is still accessible.)
Well, that's my description of the process - hope it was helpful or at least moderately interesting!
As for my opinions in use, I haven't taken this on any long trips yet (ask me after Easter), but after a brief test drive, it feels great. The height and placement is just right to rest my elbow while driving, and I can reach the shifter with my elbow rested on the front of the console. It's obviously not padded as well as the Zeta armrest, and that might become more noticeable after a long trip. But at least so far, it doesn't feel hard or uncomfortable at all.
The openings (main compartment and cupholder) both slide easily and feel solid, with little to no play or slop. There is no flex at all in the armrest itself - the mounting system is extremely solid.
It clearly looks OEM (and there's a reason for that...) - the plastic matches perfectly, and it lines up well with the parking brake and the little storage bin next to the parking brake. There is enough clearance to use the parking brake easily. Overall, a very nice system - why in the world isn't it available on this side of the world?!?
Please let me know if you have any questions or if you'd like more pictures,
Andy
So the package showed up today, and I got it installed this evening. To summarize, it looks very nice (clearly OEM), feels very sturdy, and is pretty straightforward to install. It took me about a half hour to install, but I was taking my time and snapping lots of pictures. It is held in place by sturdy steel brackets that mount to the seat rails, which seems much more durable (and cleaner to remove) than screws into the plastic. No drilling or modification is required; just inserting and tightening 8 screws. Based on my very limited experience so far, it is comfortable while driving, despite a lack of padding. So if you have any contacts in Japan, I'd highly recommend pursuing this option!
Scroll all the way to the bottom for pictures of the completed installation.
And now if you're still interested, I'll share some more detail and lots of photos of the installation process.
The box contained the armrest/console, instructions in Japanese, a plastic base, a piece of felt/carpet to line the bottom of the compartment, and various mounting hardware:
The console has a lid that slides back and down into the interior, and a cupholder that folds down from the back. This replaces the cupholder that's covered up when this is installed:
Even though the directions are all in Japanese, the pictures/diagrams are easy enough to follow:
The armrest/console screws onto a "saddle", which straddles the cupholder area, and in turn screws onto brackets which mount on the seat rails. The pictures show it better than I can explain it, so here is the driver's side seat rail before installation:
Same seat rail with bracket in place:
(BTW, the brackets don't interfere with movement of the seats.)
Same seat rail with the base of the "saddle" placed on top of the bracket, not yet screwed in:
(Note in the photo above that there is a second set of holes, so there are two placement options, about an inch apart forward and back. I slid the saddle back, and used the rearmost placement option as pictured below).
And a broader view of the saddle mounted in place, before the armrest itself was added:
There are 4 screws that hold the armrest compartment on to the saddle: (After these are screwed in, there is a little piece of felt/carpet supplied to line the bottom of the compartment).
And that's it! Once the compartment is attached to the saddle, it's done. Here's a view of the whole thing, with the seats slid all the way forward, so you can see the saddle:
Once the seats are slid back, you can't see the brackets or saddle at all - it's surprisingly unobtrusive. The sides of the saddle fit very close to the existing parking brake/cupholder assembly, so there's still room to store your road atlas or whatever, and still room to lose stuff that falls out of your pockets ;) .
And here's the final product!
The storage compartment in the console is small, but very functional, and I find it a VERY welcome addition to the limited interior storage in the xD. The compartment is just big enough to fit a few CD cases, or it definitely has room for an ipod, sunglasses, phone charger, and other odds and ends:
(Also, you can see that the little storage nook (where I keep some keys) is still accessible.)
Well, that's my description of the process - hope it was helpful or at least moderately interesting!
As for my opinions in use, I haven't taken this on any long trips yet (ask me after Easter), but after a brief test drive, it feels great. The height and placement is just right to rest my elbow while driving, and I can reach the shifter with my elbow rested on the front of the console. It's obviously not padded as well as the Zeta armrest, and that might become more noticeable after a long trip. But at least so far, it doesn't feel hard or uncomfortable at all.
The openings (main compartment and cupholder) both slide easily and feel solid, with little to no play or slop. There is no flex at all in the armrest itself - the mounting system is extremely solid.
It clearly looks OEM (and there's a reason for that...) - the plastic matches perfectly, and it lines up well with the parking brake and the little storage bin next to the parking brake. There is enough clearance to use the parking brake easily. Overall, a very nice system - why in the world isn't it available on this side of the world?!?
Please let me know if you have any questions or if you'd like more pictures,
Andy
03-15-2008, 10:08 AM
#2
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Thats Sweet! i've actually seen pictures of this armrest, i think for sale on ebay way back in Aug. It didn't look that appealing to me. But it seems really nice and i love how the plastic all matches nicely and how you dont have to screw it into the plastic. Thanks for the nice write up. Let us know if the plastic hurts your elbow over longer drives. Hopefully it comes to the states soon.
03-15-2008, 03:13 PM
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Thanks Benny! I'll definitely post a more thorough opinion after next weekend (~12 hrs in the car).
Also, to anyone who might be interested, I just heard from my friend in Japan, and he said he might be willing to get and ship a few more of these, for a significant fee. He couldn't do more than a few, so if you're seriously interested, send me a message through the board here and we might be able to work something out.
Andy
Also, to anyone who might be interested, I just heard from my friend in Japan, and he said he might be willing to get and ship a few more of these, for a significant fee. He couldn't do more than a few, so if you're seriously interested, send me a message through the board here and we might be able to work something out.
Andy
03-15-2008, 06:24 PM
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Wow that looks realy nice. Why the heck can't we have it over here?? Maybe it will be out for the '09 xD.. grr!
Do you have to move your arm differently when using the e-brake to clear the armrest at all?
Do you have to move your arm differently when using the e-brake to clear the armrest at all?
03-17-2008, 01:39 PM
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Thanks for the interest! I completely agree with those who have said this should be available here. Maybe if we all call our Scion dealerships and start bugging them, those requests will eventually get passed up the chain of command and get the thing here (or get it here a little sooner).
To answer a few questions:
Benny, re. the hard plastic, I've logged a few hours in the car with the armrest now. I'd say it's noticeable, but not too bad. The only time it's annoying for me is when the bony point of my elbow is resting directly on the top of the rest. In most situations, it's not too hard to shift positions just a little bit to take care of this, but it is an inconvenience. My wife has had a few ideas for some sort of padding - either removable with velcro, or thin adhesive film, or something like that. It just couldn't be too thick, or else the sliding door/lid wouldn't retract down all the way.
ChelsDS, yes, the presence of the armrest does force you to use a different motion when engaging the parking brake. You have to pull up more than back, and it's more difficult to put a lot of pressure on the brake. For normal parking, I don't think this is a big deal. But if you needed to use it as an emergency brake, it might be a little harder to grab it quickly and engage it forcefully. I doubt that's a common occurrence, though? Dunno.
Angelo,
The plastic matches very well. As you can see in this picture, It's not identical to the existing brake console. However, it matches the seatbelt covers, parking brake handle, and other smooth plastic trim pieces perfectly. I'd guess the difference from the factory console is due to a different type of plastic, or maybe just the different texture on the plastic. It certainly doesn't clash or look out of place.
HTH!
Andy
To answer a few questions:
Benny, re. the hard plastic, I've logged a few hours in the car with the armrest now. I'd say it's noticeable, but not too bad. The only time it's annoying for me is when the bony point of my elbow is resting directly on the top of the rest. In most situations, it's not too hard to shift positions just a little bit to take care of this, but it is an inconvenience. My wife has had a few ideas for some sort of padding - either removable with velcro, or thin adhesive film, or something like that. It just couldn't be too thick, or else the sliding door/lid wouldn't retract down all the way.
ChelsDS, yes, the presence of the armrest does force you to use a different motion when engaging the parking brake. You have to pull up more than back, and it's more difficult to put a lot of pressure on the brake. For normal parking, I don't think this is a big deal. But if you needed to use it as an emergency brake, it might be a little harder to grab it quickly and engage it forcefully. I doubt that's a common occurrence, though? Dunno.
Angelo,
The plastic matches very well. As you can see in this picture, It's not identical to the existing brake console. However, it matches the seatbelt covers, parking brake handle, and other smooth plastic trim pieces perfectly. I'd guess the difference from the factory console is due to a different type of plastic, or maybe just the different texture on the plastic. It certainly doesn't clash or look out of place.
HTH!
Andy
03-17-2008, 01:51 PM
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Andy:
Thanks for the info. Of course I'm selfish and don't want to see the factory armrest here. I also think that our armrest has a few advantages. Padded top and unexposed mounting hardware are two.
Thanks for the info. Of course I'm selfish and don't want to see the factory armrest here. I also think that our armrest has a few advantages. Padded top and unexposed mounting hardware are two.
03-27-2008, 02:29 PM
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Just an update - I spent about 12 hours in my xD this last weekend, and wanted to give an update on the comfort of the IST armrest. Overall, it improved driving comfort a great deal when compared to not having an armrest at all. The lack of padding wasn't as much of a pain (pun intended) as I expected - I really didn't notice any discomfort due to lack of padding. The little protruding lip that allows you to open the main compartment is occasionally annoying, but not a very big deal overall.
In conclusion, I'm very happy with this purchase. It fits perfectly, looks like it belongs, feels very sturdy, adds convenient storage, and offers much improved driver's-arm comfort.
I have no idea, but I kind of doubt it. There are a few things that are very specific to the xD, and I don't know whether the measurements in an xB would be the same. The seat rails would have to be exactly the same distance apart, and the e-brake/cupholder console would have to be the same height. Also, if the xB seats are a different height, the armrest wouldn't be as comfortable. Sorry - good luck finding an armrest!
Andy
In conclusion, I'm very happy with this purchase. It fits perfectly, looks like it belongs, feels very sturdy, adds convenient storage, and offers much improved driver's-arm comfort.
Originally Posted by TheDivineComedy
do you think it would fit in an 06 xB?
Andy
03-27-2008, 03:20 PM
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Originally Posted by zetaproducts
It will not fit an 06 xB. The xD has a round cup holder and the 06 has a square cup holder.
Andy
03-28-2008, 11:28 AM
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Originally Posted by zetaproducts
Andy:
Thanks for the info. Of course I'm selfish and don't want to see the factory armrest here. I also think that our armrest has a few advantages. Padded top and unexposed mounting hardware are two.
Thanks for the info. Of course I'm selfish and don't want to see the factory armrest here. I also think that our armrest has a few advantages. Padded top and unexposed mounting hardware are two.
Hi Zeta,
Do you have an installation guide available for your armrest? I didn't see one on your site.
Thanks
03-28-2008, 01:38 PM
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It's very simple to install - less than 5 minutes. Here are the install instructions...
http://zetaproducts.net/pageshtml/.X...st.install.pdf
http://zetaproducts.net/pageshtml/.X...st.install.pdf
03-31-2008, 04:55 AM
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Originally Posted by katchkillah
thanks andy for the update. is there a part number?
HTH!
Andy