2018 Expedition center cup holder fell into car

[watkins]

I have 2018. The other day I put a water bottle in my center cup holder and the whole thing fell into my car. I’ve never seen anything like this. It’s a really crappy design and this should never happen. Not sure why this is in a million different parts. Unfortunately I’m out of my factory warranty and my extended doesn’t cover this….. so I went to Ford and the part alone is $220 and they said it’ll take a couple hours. So I’m looking at a $700-800 job. My husband was able to take the center console area apart and we saw the plastic ring that goes around both cup holders is broke. The part itself is fine. It’s just this little plastic part. That maybe should cost $5. Has this happened to anyone on here? If so how did you fix it? And does anyone know the part number to this piece or is it a whole part? I’m thinking of going to a junk yard and disassembling a 2018 expedition cup holder and pulling out that one little part. I’m so upset with Ford bc it seems this has happened to numerous people and this should be something they should fix. None of my other expeditions have this crazy cup holder design. Any help would be appreciated!!!!!

 

[Squark]

A few others on here have had the same issue. There are some solutions posted on page 4 of this thread: https://www.expeditionforum.com/threads/cupholder-fell-through-console-weird.47166/

 

[aporthole]

I had posted on the other thread with pics of mine. Apparently it is a known issue by Ford. The replacement clear ring piece has been updated to be thicker/more substantial for the replacement. Luckily mine is still under the original warranty.

 

[Calidad]

Just experienced this. The bottom of the holder is held in place by a rubber band that wraps around the retractable cup holder arms in the cup space. The center console lifts up via snap fittings. I had to take the cup holder door cover on the backside (4 screws) to get to one side of the cup holder band to re seat it. Pretty easy fix. Took me about 15 minutes that included figuring out how to get to it.

Looks like some folks pulled the clear light rings out through the top? Those just rest on the top of the bottom part and have simple led light fixtures that plug onto them.
See the clear rubber band in my picture? It popped out of the catch between the cups causing it to go loose. Just needs to be reseated and the bottoms snapped back in place.
Picture is the under side / back side of the cup holder. Those adjustable prongs have the band passing through two teeth on the back of each prong. Then the band gets hooked behind two prongs between the cups to hold it snug.

 

[Meeker]

Everything you say is correct, except that the clear rubber band isn't the only thing holding it in. That won't cut it for anything heavy. Originally you can tell that the bottoms were "spot glued" to the console on those plastic side tabs, and in the center. That's why we went all in and glued them back in, hoping for a more permanent fix...

 

[Calidad]

Didn’t see any glue spots but wasn’t looking that close lol. Probably will need to do it again in 20k. Got 20,000 miles on em before the first cup holder failure

 

[rob4092xx]

Mine also fell out and I removed the console but could not figure out how to disconnect the gear shifter plug. It wouldn’t pull out. How did you disconnect this connector?

 

[Meeker]

Mine also fell out and I removed the console but could not figure out how to disconnect the gear shifter plug. It wouldn’t pull out. How did you disconnect this connector?

OK, I found a video that will help you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQDQBVJOdwc

It's a similar connector - I don't have access to my Expy at the moment, but it should be a similar mechanism. I remember it was a lighter gray lever that you had to rotate to release the connector.

 

[Hssst]

I too was struck by the cupholder fiasco. My wife placed her keys in the cupholder and while driving they fell through. She couldn't find them and I found them inside the console but couldn't reach them. I discovered you tube videos explaining the removal process and had no issue. My rubber band was broke however and it felt dry so I don't expect my repair to last. I simply put all the pieces together and I used a steal crimp to join the band and placed it back over all the appropriate hooks. The drink stabilizers are what support the bottom of the holder and unless the elastic band slips away everything works fine. I removed only the short wired lights from the cupholder and the key checker wire. It is all working until the band splits again. Wish I could buy an OEM elastic band. Looks like I'm going to make my own next time it fails.

 

[wakeboarder]

I too was struck by the cupholder fiasco. My wife placed her keys in the cupholder and while driving they fell through. She couldn't find them and I found them inside the console but couldn't reach them. I discovered you tube videos explaining the removal process and had no issue. My rubber band was broke however and it felt dry so I don't expect my repair to last. I simply put all the pieces together and I used a steal crimp to join the band and placed it back over all the appropriate hooks. The drink stabilizers are what support the bottom of the holder and unless the elastic band slips away everything works fine. I removed only the short wired lights from the cupholder and the key checker wire. It is all working until the band splits again. Wish I could buy an OEM elastic band. Looks like I'm going to make my own next time it fails.

Check out the link in post#2 above. You will find that the band is only there to provide tension for the sides of the cup holder. The bottom is held in place by 5 plastic studs that break. There are also posts in that link for more permanent repairs.