crazymex83

I've been looking around at various posts regarding all of the above and I wanted to share some things I've learned along the way. I drive an '88 Firebird Formula 350 so camaro guys may be able to gleam some info, but I'm not sure what.

As far as cupholders, I was thinking of the hole saw idea to the center console but I didn't want to ruin the original or buy one out of a 4th gen. I was in Advanced Auto and saw a 4-pack of black cup holders that hang from a door panel for about $2.50. I then took the upper bolt by the door handle out and saw that it's about 3.5" long. I saw that the cupholders have a keyhole to hang them just above the cup rim. I put a lock washer on the bolt and passed it through the keyhole. Then I placed an oversized nut in the recessed area of the door handle and ran the bolt back into the handle and tightened it up.
I don't have pictures at the moment, but I can post them later. I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. It will hold a larger 32oz Nalgene water bottle as easily as a 20oz soda bottle and does not hang like it's straining to hold up the weight. I can't turn on the headlights from 'above' so I have to reach under the bottle to switch them on. Plus, it touches my left leg a lot so be advised.

I was looking for the interior screws that hold the rear panels by the rear hatch pull down and got Dorman part number 45835 for the large black nylon screw and 45836 for the nut that it screws into. Only the screw is available through practically every vendor I've checked, Advanced Auto, Autozone, O'Reilly, and Rockauto. I know you could get them on ebay or even Hawks. I did find that the prices were about the same after you factor in taxes and shipping for the stores, but Rockauto wanted $1.29 for a pair and would ship 5 boxes to central Illinois for only $3 so I went with them and hoped to find the nuts elsewhere. After the screws arrived I went looking for something and talked with the guy from Advanced and he found Dorman Part number 961-380 which is a kit with 3 pair of screws AND nuts for only $3. I ordered them and they should arrive tomorrow. I will give an update after I receive them.

I have a fix for the headlight motors, but you can get that info from a different post. Basically, I found a nylon rod that I cut into correct sized pieces and put that in place. I read suggestions for using glue sticks, ball bearings, pieces of hardware, etc. I was going to use a piece of wooden dowel I cut to length, but the nylon rod was easier. I can't give a location to buy this, but I did see website zorotools.com has them for $0.79 a ft and $5 to ship. I've never ordered from them, so I'm not trying to sell it.

As a side note, my daily driver is a '10 Honda Accord and it's weird to go 'back in time' to when there were no cupholders, no steering wheel controls, no bluetooth, no satellite radio (I don't have that regardless). So as much as I like my Honda I enjoy this car just as much since I can get my hands dirty fixing things. I used to change oil when I put myself through college so to be able to do this stuff again is lots of fun. If anyone in Central Illinois is around I would like to know I'm not the only one here. Thanks for reading!