BMW E36 Cup Holders - Ashtray replacement

Finally, a place for your coffee

If you own an E36 you already know the story. That ashtray in the middle of the console has been useless for years, and the original cup holders (if the car even has them) don't really hold anything. Cans wobble. Coffee spills. Bottles tip over the second you turn a corner.

This one drops into the ashtray slot and uses the same two screws that are already there. No drilling, no cutting, done in about five minutes with a screwdriver. If you ever want the ashtray back, unscrew this and pop the original part back in. Nothing on the car is modified.

I print these myself in a small workshop here in Lithuania. So far over 800 have gone out to E36 owners across Europe, the UK, the States and Australia.

What it fits

Every E36 built between 1990 and 2000:

• Sedan
• Coupe, including the M3
• Convertible
• Touring wagon

Works for both LHD and RHD cars. If you're in the US there's an extra piece included (I call it the US Console Kit) that adapts it to the American-spec console.

Cup size

Each hole is 69mm across, which comes out to about 2.72" in freedom units.

For anyone in Europe, that comfortably fits:

• 330ml cans, the usual Coke and energy drink size
• 500ml beer cans. Utenos, Švyturys, most of what you'd grab at a Maxima
• Takeaway coffee cups from petrol stations
• 500ml water bottles from pretty much any brand

For US customers it handles:

• 12 oz standard cans
• 16 oz tallboys like White Claw and Modelo
• 12 oz slim cans (Red Bull, White Claw slim)
• Starbucks Tall and Grande. The cup base is what matters and it sits fine
• Dunkin' Small and Medium
• Standard 16.9 oz water bottles, Dasani, Aquafina, Poland Spring

What won't fit:

• Yeti Ramblers 20oz and up. They're 74mm at the base, too wide.
• Big Gulp cups from 7-Eleven
• Full 1L bottles

Specs, if you care

• Material: automotive-grade filament, holds up to 80°C without going soft, which matters if you park in the sun
• Color: black
• Weight: around 120g
• Install: 2 to 3 minutes with a Phillips screwdriver

In the box

• The cup holder itself
• US Console Kit (only for orders shipping to the US)