F-015: Heavy vs the arm rest.

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Old 06-30-2010 | 04:25 PM
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F-015: Heavy vs the arm rest.

Okay guys as promised I tackled the hated arm rest "pleather" peeling issue.

Here is my situation before, I am just shy of 85k on my 05 and these are the original parts.








Now I pulled the armrest off and here is the back side:



Old 06-30-2010 | 04:28 PM
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And the shitty pleather removed...





With that out of the way, I had a local shop that used to do my stereo installs wrap it with real leather and added a little piece of foam.





Note this is NOT the original junk nor a dealer solution... this is actual leather off of a roll used to do head rest and custom stereos.
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Old 06-30-2010 | 04:31 PM
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Nice job
approx cost?
Old 06-30-2010 | 04:41 PM
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Now the install pics, there are a few screws on each side that have to be taken out in a particular order.

Note that they are all the same so no worries with mixing them up:



Insert the metal frame on the bottom and line it up, start with 4 screws and mount it to the hinges



Then pull up the plastic cover and install the lock/release






line up the plastic bottom and start the screws



tighten the screws and install the cover (it pops on and off)



Now install the other 3 screws. I didnt reinstall these little caps, but with some glue its an easy thing to do if you care to have them on.



All done, now rinse and repeat



Note the plastic cover stays on because I did not remove the hinges, just the top cover.
Old 06-30-2010 | 04:43 PM
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And viola!





Hope this helps you guys, if you have access to the glue gun and material you can easily do this yourself.

I went to the shop because they had everything I needed and after the $$$ I've spend there this was a hook up.
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Old 06-30-2010 | 04:44 PM
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Originally Posted by getakey
Nice job
approx cost?
Thanks.

They said someone off the street would be 50 bucks, material depends on what you use this was prolly 20-25 in material.
Old 06-30-2010 | 05:03 PM
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cool - so for less than $100, I can get repaired with real leather
maybe this should be promoted to the garage
Old 06-30-2010 | 05:18 PM
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Indeed. That looks like a wiser course of action, and a better quality end product than paying north of $300 for the entire upper console lid assembly which Acura forces you to buy.

If mine does that again, I will go the upholsterer route and replace with real leather.
Old 06-30-2010 | 05:18 PM
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Oh absolutely! If you are proficient with the glue and working with the material you could do this yourself.

Otherwise I would take the lids off yourself and call a few upholstery shops to do the wrapping.
Old 06-30-2010 | 05:22 PM
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Excellent job! I went the $500 dealer part replacement, installed it myself, and after on 20K I'm starting to get wrinkles on the left pad.

I still have my old console unit. I may carry it by a local shop and see how much they would charge to do the whole thing. Replacing the console itself isn't that big of deal.
Old 06-30-2010 | 05:24 PM
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But you know Acura really should just sell the top pad replacements.
Old 06-30-2010 | 05:26 PM
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Thank you, I couldn't agree more Professor, I've found with things like this and the power outlet door its much cheaper to fix it yourself.
Old 06-30-2010 | 05:52 PM
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I am really impressed. Awesome!
Old 06-30-2010 | 09:36 PM
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nice...mine ripped not to long ago!!
Old 06-30-2010 | 09:43 PM
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Thanks Bob.... Blazin I know you've got people that can do this for you.
Old 07-01-2010 | 10:00 AM
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Looks Good! I will be tackling this myself shortly. Thanks for your efforts.
Old 07-02-2010 | 08:24 AM
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Originally Posted by neuronbob
I am really impressed. Awesome!
bob,

I think this is a Garage worthy DIY! I think it is worth considering when you update the ServiceNews this month! Just my
Old 07-03-2010 | 12:36 AM
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sad to lose the pretty little stitchings around the edges of the armrest though...
Old 07-06-2010 | 08:10 AM
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Originally Posted by Richbum
sad to lose the pretty little stitchings around the edges of the armrest though...
If you wanted to pursue it I'm sure that any upholstery shop could put stitches in the new leather.

That wasnt a huge concern for me.
Old 12-12-2011 | 11:07 AM
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Anyone here use the covers from this seller on eBay?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-ACURA-RL...#ht_2063wt_958

I am thinking of buying those, where would I get the foam, my arm rest is actually not nearly as bad as the one Heavy has, mine has no rips just the vinyl came lose from the foam, but I would rather replace everything with new foam and new vinyl, looking for feedback, also if anyone knows a good cheap upholstery place in NYC area that would be useful.

Thanks
Old 12-12-2011 | 05:53 PM
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I've never seen this thread before. I am well aware of the armrest issue and it should have been a recall issue. I'm one of the few lucky ones who hasn't had it happen to them yet, but I also only have about 24k on my car. It is, however, flat so it is only a matter of time. I had no idea it was pleather though. I've always been surprised that the dash trim is plastic and not leather. My S2000 has a nice leather console.

I guess you can't win them all but for a 50k car, you would expect more.
Old 12-13-2011 | 07:11 AM
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Originally Posted by DeadLock
Anyone here use the covers from this seller on eBay?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-ACURA-RL...#ht_2063wt_958

I am thinking of buying those, where would I get the foam, my arm rest is actually not nearly as bad as the one Heavy has, mine has no rips just the vinyl came lose from the foam, but I would rather replace everything with new foam and new vinyl, looking for feedback, also if anyone knows a good cheap upholstery place in NYC area that would be useful.

Thanks
Honestly, that is going to be cheap vinyl that probably isnt as good as what we have now. I didnt go that route because I actually wanted to upgrade to something more durable.

The foam can be bought at any craft store or you might even get a piece from an upholstery shop.
Old 01-17-2012 | 08:51 PM
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I followed the instructions for taking off the arm rest pads....THANKS a bunch because it save me the headache of having to remove the entire center console!!

Took it into a local trim and upholstery shop on Monday.

On Tuesday picked them up and put them back on.

Total $80 and they even stitched the edges to make it look like the original!
Old 01-17-2012 | 09:03 PM
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good deal, congrats.
Old 09-02-2012 | 08:11 AM
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Thanks for posting this up! I haven't had this happen yet, but it's good to know there is a cheap, solid fix out there. Seems it's a common enough problem I just might get it done for the extra foam padding you can add
Old 09-02-2012 | 09:48 AM
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Originally Posted by DeadLock
Anyone here use the covers from this seller on eBay?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-ACURA-RL...#ht_2063wt_958

I am thinking of buying those, where would I get the foam, my arm rest is actually not nearly as bad as the one Heavy has, mine has no rips just the vinyl came lose from the foam, but I would rather replace everything with new foam and new vinyl, looking for feedback, also if anyone knows a good cheap upholstery place in NYC area that would be useful.

Thanks
I have a set sitting in the garage. I am fairly handy but am hesitant to do this myself. They offer an install option for $20 but you have to send them the armrests ( obviously). I may just find a local shop to replace with the leather. The replacement off ebay are the not the highest quality but you get what you pay for.
Old 09-03-2012 | 12:08 PM
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Great job HEAVY on the repair and write up! Nice pics too!
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Old 09-12-2012 | 12:11 PM
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[IMG]<a href="http://www.freeimagehosting.net/4xhhb"><img src="http://www.freeimagehosting.net/t/4xhhb.jpg"></a>[/IMG]Thanks Heavy. Here is my result. I paid $38 total at a local car upholstery shop here in PA. The nice lady cut me a break because she had similar vinyl in stock so while it's not an exact match it looks wayyyyyyy better. I also opted for no stitches because at her $35/hour rate it would double the cost for something I don't really care for. Very happy with the end result. Now, the driver side arm rest is left, but I'm opting to just let that go.

Last edited by pimpjuice; 09-12-2012 at 12:15 PM.
Old 08-12-2013 | 05:27 PM
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Just joined great site
Old 08-12-2013 | 05:40 PM
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sweet, do you have an acura or bootleg DVDs for sale?
Old 08-12-2013 | 06:12 PM
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Can someone please post those instructions for removing center console arm rests....thanks
Old 08-12-2013 | 06:43 PM
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try this

https://acurazine.com/forums/2g-rl-2005-2012-76/heavy-armrest-892076/
Old 03-05-2014 | 04:42 PM
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Wanted to let you know am making good use of your awesome tips on the center console arm rest lids! Many thanks!
Old 03-05-2014 | 06:29 PM
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congrats!
Old 10-17-2014 | 09:15 PM
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I can't open a pictures in your posts HEAVY_RL...
Old 10-18-2014 | 10:17 PM
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cause facebook sucks as a host.




















Old 11-03-2014 | 12:45 AM
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hey Heavy how did you remove the top lids im not able to see the pictures
Old 11-03-2014 | 07:46 AM
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you cant see the pics above your post?

Can anyone see them?
Old 11-03-2014 | 10:23 AM
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The pics are visible
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Old 11-04-2014 | 06:38 PM
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I did mine last night. Thanks for the pics heavy. I added some extra foam. Turned out pretty good. The corners were the hardest as the real leather is much thicker, so harder to get perfect.

-D


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