Poll: Do You Use the Driver's Door Armrest?

Problem: the center console arm rest is significantly higher than the door arm rest. This is innocuous for short runs but becomes a big problem for interstate long-haul trips. I used to hold my left arm in my lap - comfortable but kind of limiting on long drives.

It bugged me enough that I cut a 4-inch wide pipe insulation 4-foot-long black rigid foam section I had laying around into three lengths, and then S-hooked two of them into each other through their lengthwise slits, then used 3-M double-sided tape to hold the foam assembly on the arm rest against the vertical and horizontal surfaces of the arm rest.

Funny thing is, although I was worried that a four-inch rise is too much, it actually worked out perfectly. Now, both my elbows are resting comfortably and I control the wheel at 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock position with fingers of both hands. I drove from Northern Virginia to central Kentucky and back twice in the last six months and my arms never got tired anymore. Shows how low that OEM arm rest really is...

Note: I mounted the Cusco strut tower brace (STB) in Fall 2012, which has made the steering effort both much lighter and much steadier. Now, with elbows comfortably braced, the PiP responds to light finger pressure inputs from either hand on the steering wheel.

The only problem is the 3-M tape lost its holding power during the recent cold snaps. I plan to slightly carve/shape the foam rolls to better conform to the curves of the door arm rest nook and re-glue the rolls as soon as it gets warmer. For now, I just put the double-S foam rolls onto the left dashboard whenever I get out, where they're handy to emplace onto the arm rest as I get back in and latch my seat belt to drive again.

 

Picture of your setup, please?
(A little OCD here--what happened to that third piece? Visualization failed!)

You, cycledrum and I prefer the 4-8 driving position , which may make a critical difference in armrest preferences. I think arm length also plays a role--I'm a 35-inch sleeve length and am satisfied with a 2-inch increase in height but the 4-inch works for you and cycledrum will try a 3-inch increase in height. Those differences suggest A system with easily adjustable heights for different drivers would be optimal.
High temperatures were the problem for my armrests. Initially I used the industrial-strength Velcro with interlocking plastic nubs to affix my armrests, but that slowly failed during the extreme hot days of summer. I finally used very small wood screws into the plastic of the original armrest to mount mine, and that method seems to hold up to both summer heat and winter cold. Good luck with shaping and mounting yours this spring! (Pic?)

 

Thanks for pics!
If I remove mine, I will have two small screw holes in the bare gray plastic at the very rear of the armrest and two more right up in the front at the back edge of the door handhold. Your method leaves no holes, which is nice.
Will you make your next generation longer?
We found that very petite DW (5' 2") uses different area of armrests, so having the whole armrest elevated seems to work best for us.

 

Pix tomorrow with daylight to make things clear.
Oh, that 3d piece is still lollygagging around in the basement from whence it came

 

I have the leather (i guess) on the door panel not fabric. and it almost seems to be loose... like the adheseve behind the leather that attaches to the door panel is giving way...

 

Here are the pix. BTW - I'll correct the record - the pipe foam is 2.5 inch diameter as one picture attests. Regrets for my error.

 

Actually, after looking at your picture I decided to try your 3M Command tape solution (which I had used previously in several home bathrooms). Hope it works with my double-roll foam insulation armrest... Much appreciate the idea.