2002 Prius, Raising the console.

I decided that the center console had to be lifted 7", it's uncomfortable at it's OEM position. I also wanted it to work as an armrest. So, I went to work and got $6 worth of lumber at Home depot and $10 for some plastic. Here's the results. It turned out nicely, now I have

• six 12 volt power outlets,
• two USB power ports and
• a home for my HAM 2Meter transceiver.

Three 12 volt outlets and one USB don't show in the pict., they provide power to the back seat area. I figure I'll leave it this way for a while and see what I like and don't like and then reconfigure it again in a couple of months. My next plan is to embed my XM radio into the console and get rid of some wires strewn about the cabin. If anyone wants more info... let me know

 

The wood base is mounted using the OEM mounting points on the body. I used two 1"X3/16" metal straps across the bottom of the wood base. In these straps are holes that line up with the OEM holes. You can see the straps in the picts, if you look closely. The front strap was over thinking... the back strap was a better design.. no bending. You simply use the OEM bolts to bolt through the holes in the straps into the OEM holes in the body. That holds down the wood base frame.

The Console is held on top of the frame base using the OEM holes inside the console. I used some 3/4" plasterboard screws and washers. These are screwed through the OEM console holes into the base; its nice not to have to drill holes in the console to mount it. This makes removing the base easy... simply remove three screws and you have access to the inside of the wooden base.

The sides of the OEM console mount down over the wood frame. In the 2nd pic you can see where I traced the contour of the bottom of the OEM console on the sides of the frame. I used that line to cut/fit the clear plastic covering of the wooden frame. Since the plastic is clear, it's a very easy. Then the bottom of the OEM console will mate nicely with the plastic covering.

Then I dry fit the plastic on the sides of the console and drilled an screwed it to the wood frame. Once that was done and I knew it would fit, I removed the plastic. I used Fusion pain to paint the inside of the plastic panels. I painted the inside because, since the plastic was clear, the paint would not be affected by hits/scratches, etc. to the outside of the panels. I'll get a few more picts of the mounts and post them soon.

The next phase will be to re-run the wire from the back of the OEM 12 volt aux outlet under the carpet to a set of connectors. Right now it's hardwired. I want to be able to unplug the console if I have problems, or want to re-configure it. That'll be done next week.

I wish I was a good with wood, I'd make it a little less angular. I've been playing with the scrap plastic, today, trying to figure out a way to bend it. I've found that it bends when I heat it. I'll try using my Harbor Freight Heat gun to see if it will soften it enough to bend/mold over some nice curved wood. That would be nice to round the edges. But that's for another time.

 

I just recently moved 500 miles across the state; my project list has been shelved for a while. But, before I moved I picked up some trunk fabric at WalMart for cheap. It's going to be a better covering for the console than was the plastic that I've used. I'll use Masonite and the fabric over the wood frame; it will be easier with which to work. Once things quiet down a bit from the move I'll revisit this project and do a little better job (newer - better tools!) with making the frame. Then I can take better photos and plans for the forum.