Installing a Storage Cubby / Extra Sunglasses Holder instead of your handgrip

avusblue · Nov 4, 2015

I never use the hand-grip over my Prius’ driver’s seat. A car I owned previously had a useful little cubby box up there, and I thought installing one in lieu of the handgrip would be a good idea for my 2015 Prius.

So I searched for a suitable part and bought this off eBay, even though the description said it’s meant for non-US market Corolla / Altis models. For less than $20 shipped, I figured if it didn’t fit the Prius I would either try and adapt it, or I wouldn’t be out much if I had to toss it.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231714270880

(Or, after this particular auction listing expires, just search eBay for the term “Corolla Sunglasses Holder” and you’ll find it.)

Seller’s pics:

It arrived, shipped direct from China, less than a week after ordering it (much faster delivery than promised by the seller). It fits! And the quality is good -- it has a spring loaded hinge, a nice foam insert, a nice little chrome trim garnish, and the light gray color is a good match. Sorry, I did not take photos of the installation job in progress, as it is literally so simple and easy that none are really needed:

Take a small flathead screwdriver and pry the covers off the handgrip mounts.

Our handgrips are held in by spring-loaded steel clips, that remove by pinching them with a needle nose pliers.

The holes in the cubby and the existing holes in my roof didn’t perfectly line up. It was close, but the eBay cubby is maybe an 1/8 inch too narrow to be able to reuse the existing snap-in spring clips with an ideal fit. I could force it, but it wasn’t perfect.

So instead, to attach the new storage cubby in the existing holes, I just used a couple of small toggle bolts from one of those “1,000 pieces of assorted hardware” kits I had on hand at home.

Voila! A handy extra place to put a set of sunglasses, or your gum & mints, or whatever! My pics aren’t as good as the eBay seller, but here goes:

Cheers, and enjoy.

Dave