About 3 am this morning, I got a phone call from António Guterres, the Secretary General of the United Nations. “Are you awake?” he asked, like an idiot. Of course I’m not awake, António, the hell are you thinking? “The world’s in crisis!” he slurred into the phone, clearly drunk, and then demanded that, to help this vague crisis situation, I “write something about how awesome the left cupholder is in this 2018 Honda Fit I just bought from the Ambassador from Misophonia.” I tried telling him I didn’t think Misophonia was a country, but by then he was going on and on about some cream he was putting on a rash and how it got on his genitals and felt kinda good and now he needs to score more but it’s prescription only and he’s wondering if he can fake a rash and by this point I just want to go back to sleep, but he is the secretary general of the UN, and he may actually have a good point about that cupholder in the Fit.
I hung up on Tony and tried to go back to sleep, but I was haunted by what he told me. The Honda Fit is one of a surprisingly small set of cars that has a cupholder specifically placed just for the driver’s use, outboard of the driver’s seat, and I can’t stop thinking about what a nice feature this is, and I’m baffled why it’s not more common.
Eventually I just had to give up on sleep and look into this a bit more. I got up, rubbed a bit of rash lotion on my genitals because it feels so damn good, grabbed the leftover Misophonian clam noodles from the fridge and heated them up, and set off to find out what other cars have this unique cupholderizing configuration.
I don’t believe for a moment that this is a complete list, but I think some of the more common cars to use the driver-specific cupholder arrangement include, aside from the Honda Fit, the Ford Transit, BMW Z4, Nissan Cube, Toyota Yaris, the 2011-ish Mitsubishi Outlander, the Mitsubishi i-Miev, the 2001 Chevy Malibu, Lexus RX350, Jaguar XF, and the Mercedes-Benz W163 ML.
That’s kind of an odd collection of vehicles to share such a specific feature! The Transit seems to make sense, as a commercial/cargo vehicle seems a likely home for a cupholder specifically for driver-only use. The Fit and Yaris and even Cube are all practical, entry-level Japanese commuter-type cars, and a driver-focused feature makes good sense there, too. Sure, the Cube is a bit bonkers, design-wise, but still. The Mercedes-Benz is a premium SUV, and the BMW Z4, well, that’s a sporty roadster. If anything, the breadth of this selection of cars should prove that driver’s-side cupholders can be an asset to pretty much any vehicle, no matter what.
What I do not understand is why this remains a relatively uncommon setup? We’ve established for quite some time that cupholders are expected features in cars; that battle is long over. People drink liquids while they drive, and they’re not going to stop anytime soon. Just like how cars once were expected to come with ashtrays and lighters to meet the demands of the default, expected vice of the people inside, so cupholders have become expected as well.
Generally, cupholders can be expected near the centerline of the car, between the seats, both front and rear. In the front, they tend to be set fairly low, on the central tunnel, and if you’re driving and actually interested in seeing what’s going on in that big window in front of you, the position isn’t always great, as it can take a glance and attention to find and get ahold of your drink.
The left-side (right for RHD vehicles, of course) cupholder very neatly avoids all this, placing the bracing beverage in an ideal spot for grabbing and quaffing, without needing to take eyes off the road. I’ve driven cars with this setup, and it’s genuinely a treat! The positioning is good, it feels good to use it, it’s overall a fantastic solution to the holding of and accessing cups while driving.
Why is this not more popular? Why isn’t it standard practice, even? It’s not like it’s any more expensive to design a dashboard with a driver’s side cupholder setup, really, especially in this age when carmakers seem willing to cram in as many cupholders as possible.
And, of course, you don’t have to use it for a beverage; many of these driver’s side cupholders can be used to hold pens or small sausages or Pocky or chili or a small, well-trained hamster or whatever you’d like. That spot, between the steering wheel and the door is generally a dead zone with, what, an HVAC vent and that’s it. Why not stick a cupholder there?
And, the HVAC vent could enhance the cupholding experience! Positioned properly, a driver’s side cupholder could be cooled or heated thanks to its proximity to the HVAC vent!
Yes, I get that this is a minor thing, but life is made up of minor things, and people care about these sorts of minor things. I care about minor things. And this minor thing, a cupholder placed just for the driver’s use and access, is a minor thing that is good and right and worth celebrating, in hopes that it may become more and more common, increasing the number of good, minor things in this world.
So there. Oh, I may have lied about the guy from the UN calling me, so please don’t sue me, UN. Otherwise I’ll have to seek asylum at the Misophonian embassy.
Had the 2001 Malibu. Kept the beverages cool. Missed it ever since. Not enough to get another Malibu though.
If you’re used to driving a stick, then your left hand is always on the steering wheel, which is why center console cupholders make more sense.
“That spot, between the steering wheel and the door is generally a dead zone with, what, an HVAC vent and that’s it.”
Really? I’m used to having, at a minimum, headlight controls there, and in smaller cars, sometimes that fills the entire space. In my Jeep J10, the entire climate control panel is also to the left of the steering wheel.
I picked up a 2005 RX 330 as my commuter/beach car from my wife’s uncle yesterday and the pop-out driver side cup holder was a thrilling development on the drive home.
Gee Jason, when there is an expiration date on your prescription, that doesn’t mean you have to take all the leftovers on that day.
And Misophonia is a bitch, even the thought of the sound of sweaty people unsticking themselves from upholstery can ruin a day.
I’ve never thought about a driver-side cupholder, but I have to admit that I can’t put ANYTHING in my center-console cupholders and not have it interfere with shifting to some degree, so now I really want one on the left!
Will that holder handle a double D-cup? That could be useful.
I have a 2015 Fit, and I use this cupholder for a phone mount and my phone. Perfect. And if my water bottle gets warm I can wedge it between the phone and the vent (I’m in Florida, heat doesn’t apply). Just another reason to love my car.
I’ve never used a cup holder in a car to hold a drink. I’m busy driving, plus I had a drink at breakfast/lunch/dinner.
I did have a Z4 though, and it had a drivers side cup holder on the dash near the door (on the right). I tried keeping an MTB water bottle in it and it rattled for a while, then broke.
You never stay hydrated on road trips? Or maybe you just don’t take road trips?
I’ve done 3,000 miles in the US, and I’ve driven across Europe, I frequently do 400-500 miles in a day. I do road trips.
I drink when I stop for a break, at the places you buy drinks from. I drink my drink, then get back in the car to drive.
See, I can’t do that—if I drink a lot at once I’ll pee in half an hour lol. I’ve gotta have my insulated water bottle that I just sip from all day.
Drive Coffee is delicious, easily top three coffee. I do use a coffee thermos that can be safely shot into space and re-enter unharmed.
Whatever medications you were on while writing that first paragraph, can I have some?
(Not the lotion, though. You can keep that.)
I like the idea, but see one fatal flaw (relating to LHD vehicles): most people are right-handed. I don’t often grab a cup with my left hand, but it’s noticeable for me, mentally. With the minor bumps of driving, I’d rather do that with my dominant hand, especially if it’s really hot or really cold.
Jason should write an entire article in mad-lib style:
“it puts the lotion on the ___________ or it gets the ___________ again.”
I haven’t seen many actual cup holders but back in the day I used the ones that stuck in a window channel and could hold a 12 Oz cup.
My cars have been a mixed bag, my main criterion is the ability to hold a bicycle water bottle since we have 2 dozen and they’re a useful size. Our late, lamented Mazda5 had a good setup with center cup holder and bottle pockets in the doors , center cup holders in the second row and third row cup holders in the side panels which were accessible from the tailgate and great for a spare bottle or empty thermal cup
Not only drinks, but a CupPhone phone mount fits perfectly there. The phone for your navigation or whatever other needs is now in your direct line of sight, not in a cave called the center console that you need to take your eyes off the road to use..
I saw your post after mine. Definitely.
That first paragraph is one of the funniest things I’ve ever read. The spirit of P.J. O’Rourke channeled through you. If that nasty liquid candy is going to slosh, I don’t want it near my dashboard. People I love are allowed to drink water in my car.
What about cup holders in the door pockets? Both my Ford Flexes had “cup holders” in all 4 door pockets including drivers door.
IME those are useful for closed bottles, but I’ve never seen one I’d trust with a fountain soda or cup of coffee. And TBH I don’t really like putting a bottled soda there: I feel like the opening and closing are shaking the bottle more than a proper cupholder.
Please inform Secretary General António Guterres that faking a rash is fairly straightforward and relatively easy and all you need is a hair brush. Simply take the hair brush and start striking yourself with the bristles. This works best on the inside of the lower and upper arm where the skin is more sensitive. Almost immediately you will begin to notice pink dots where the bristles are aggravating the epidermis. Pretty soon the pink dots will all blend together becoming an unbroken field of pink. At this point the affected region should also be beginning to swell, this is expected but do not stop! Continue striking the same area and the hairbrush bristles will now begin breaking the surface of the skin creating little white dots and skin flakes in the pink and swollen region. You can now cease striking yourself but keep the hairbrush handy in case you need to perform a last minute touch up on the “rash” before inspection.
From experience this is guaranteed to fool any school nurse so it should also work on the U.N. infirmary as well. It’s probably best if you don’t let Otto read this though.
The how-to we all need to know.
“This works best on the inside of the lower and upper arm where the skin is more sensitive”
I think António (and maybe Torch) had another sensitive area in mind…
I’m not letting them borrow my brush
The Yaris has a symmetrical dash. Perhaps it was a cost-cutting measure so they could use the same part for RHD/LHD and a driver-side cupholder was just a bonus.
IIRC, my 2002 Civic Si had such a cupholder. It was “hidden” so you had to push on it for it to pop out. I don’t remember how many years I drove that car before I “discovered” that cupholder.
I’m guessing it’ not more common because a full Mega Huge Gulp would probably tip over, and it can do a lot more damage from there than it can from the console.
I just got an Ioniq 5, and its cupholder game is weak. Just 2 in the entire car. There are those water bottle compartments in the doors, but that’s not a comfortable fit for my usual large insulated cup full of water.
I didn’t even bother doing a cupholder audit before acquisition because I just figured they would be there in suitable quantity. This thing can hold as many Super Mega Gulps as my Miata (A car not known for its convenience features).
In the US, IIRC only about 10% of people are left-handed. With the driver’s cupholder in the middle, 90% of drivers can pick up their drinks with their dominant hand.
you have it reversed. Lefties drive with their dominant hand on the wheel for the more important task and use the weaker hand for trivial activities like drinking. 😉
I find the opposite.
I can happily steer with either hand with no noticeable difference, as that task doesn’t require dexterity. I find that removing the cap of a bottle does require dexterity, and is therefore much easier with my dominant hand.
Opening a drink with my weaker hand causes much more of a distraction from driving than it should, so I always place drinks where my dominant hand can grab them.
If you can steer with your left, while shifting with right, you can drink with your left hand.
I use my left foot since it’s otherwise just resting on the dead pedal.
Do right handed people drive with their right hands? I guess I’ve never really paid attention.
Unless you drive an automatic transmission: your outboard hand is on the wheel. Whilst the inboard hand moves from the shifter-to-the-wheel and, as such, would allow you to take a sip of your beverage when not changing gears.
As a tip: you can quickly identify those people in sporty cars that rest their outboard arm on the window in-town as people who don’t shift their own gears.
Don’t be too harsh; there are plenty of sections where shifting isn’t necessary, whether cruising in-town or on the highway. It doesn’t take much to grab the wheel when necessary and it’s nice to have a wave at the ready if I don’t expect twisties or traffic lights.
This, except I’m a lefty so my dominant hand already stays on the wheel. While cruising it generally relaxes a bit and rests on the window with the wheel held in a few fingers, with muscle memory moving it back as I shift. It’s an evolution from having spent 90% of my driving miles cruising at highway speeds on mostly deserted roads at night.
Ha! For me it’s the opposite: a crowded beach street with a parade of cars idling in 1st (2nd if I’m lucky), only having to clutch in and coast for an occasional crosswalk. Plus my windshield slopes so steeply that I’ve actually bruised parts of my hand trying to wave in the the cabin/whip it past the A-pillar! A silly problem to have.
You can steer with your knee. At least that’s what a friend of mine who blew off his left hand in a home made explosives mishap did when he was shifting his TR4. Hell, he could do that and hold a bottle of kahlua.too.
He was lucky it was his left hand…
Uhh, I definitely rest my arm out the window while driving manual. There are many ways to do so:
If you won’t be changing gears for a while, not a problem.
In many cars, if you’re driving in a straight line, you can stick your elbow out the window and steer with your left hand at the same time.
If your alignment is good, you can just let go of the wheel for the half a second it takes to shift.
Or you can steer with your knee.
My 2014 Camry has bottle holders in both front door pockets.
I think the Amazon/Rivian van has drivers cup (pee?) holders as well.
Pure, uncut Torch. Gimme more!
Alas, there has been no “uncut” Torch since his recent chest-crackings.
Not to mention his bris.
Gonna need more “rash lotion”
Middle cupholders are better. Then the right hand can dance between sips of coffee and shifting. And the left hand can stay on the wheel at all times. What you’re espousing is some sort of tortured dance where the left and right hand are on and off the wheel at various different times. This could lead to both hands off the wheel if you got confused and were trying to sip and shift at the same time. If those things were limited to the right hand, then such a scenario would never happen.
A simple solution that addresses all your desires but doesn’t introduce such a serious safety issue is to move the center cupholders forward and up.
Think of the children.
In the words of the little girl from the taco ad, why not both?
Subaru Ascent has entered the chat…
A recent poll showed that 72% of Misophonians had spilled coffee from the moving door cupholder when exiting their Honda Fit. Perhaps that is why it is not done more often.
What am I missing, the Honda’s was part of the dash – not the door. Same with the Yaris.
One of my favorite features of my Honda Fit. I wish all cars had this. Also made a great phone holder, since my Fit didn’t have carplay.