windyC6

Help !!!! I can't get my ash tray to stay closed. Just how much of the dash...if any...has to come out to have a look-see at the ash tray mechanism. Any help would be greatly appreciated.....thanks all.

RicK T

I'm posting this often used thread link but now I see the pictures are gone!

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-c...iy-w-pics.html


You don't have to remove any of the dash/console. The ashtray door can be popped out by itself. Maybe you can deduce the issue from the word descriptions in the above thread. If not, maybe someone else has some pics. Good luck.

su8pack1

I replaced mine in 2006 and haven't opened it since.

studiovette

The ashtray might be one of the cheapest POS parts in the Vettes interior. It was definitely made in China

MikeyTX

So is the antenna box and contents for OnStar

TarHeelDon

Its a brutally easy fix....Take the ashtray out take a small piece of hard plastic and super glue it to the tab that the clips grab to open close the ashtray...just take a dremil and make that plastic piece a little bigger and wider so the clips grab it securely...promise it will work...did mine a year ago and never had a problem since!

MikeyTX

Someone uses the ash tray ?

Z16chevelleguy

Glue the damn thing shut
Seriously someone needs to come up with an alternative use for the door. I'm sure plenty of Corvette owners would love to have something there besides an ashtray and lighter. I took mine apart and messed with it and it stays shut now.

Vet

Here are two photos that had been originally posted by member nhisfan:



First photo shows how to remove the ashtray door. Pry from the right side with a flat blade screwdriver.

Second photo shows the door striker which gets worn down, causing the problem. The striker head needs to be restored by adding some epoxy to it, then filed to shape.

Should be an easy fix, just make sure to prep the striker head properly, rough up the surface, clean it well with alcohol and then use a good epoxy like JB Weld or similar.

Here's the original DIY ashtray door fix thread by nhisfan:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-c...iy-w-pics.html

rayk

I can't believe someone got paid to design that POS.

thirtythird

They got paid to save 5 cents per Vette. Designed by beancounters is in effect here, I think.

Vet

This may not be the ultimate ashtray door design, nor is implemented with a high degree of quality.

However, we mustn't forget the absolute genius of the overall design of the C6: very low weight, 50/50 weight distribution, ultra low drag coefficient, loads of naturally aspirated horsepower and neck snapping torque, incredibly impressive MPG considering, ultra quiet, smooth, refined ride, killer handling, extreme comfort, I could go on and on.

The C6 is an all-purpose street car that you could drive to work each day or drive cross-country in great comfort, yet take to a track and spank the greater percentage of other expensive, respected high performance cars from all over the world.

And in my opinion, the C6 is one of the best looking cars ever made (except for maybe the C2 Corvette).

The C6 is quite an impressive package overall. And, in most cases, a C6 coupe is maybe 75% or 50% of the cost of other high performance cars that come anywhere close to matching the C6's overall combined abilities.

The point is, yes, the C6 has a few cheap, less than ideal designs / implementations (like the ashtray door), but I'm not thinking about the ashtray door while I'm passing a $100k Porsche on a twisty mountain road in my $50k C6 coupe, and then afterward getting 30 mpg on the hwy with my 400 horse, 6.0 liter V8 while riding in living room comfort in a car that is drop dead gorgeous.

I accept the minor "deficiencies" of the C6 as a trade for an absolute top-notch, ultra high performance car that does it all, and does it all WELL, at half the cost of much of the competition.

It'll probably take me about 30 minutes total to fix my ashtray door (minus epoxy dry time), a very small price to pay considering all. The ashtray door held up just fine for the first 5 years anyway. I can live with that. No need to kill the bean counters.

Mel 2001

my new 06 vert ashtray door was replaced under warranty the first year.
bad engineering. But the rest of the car

CarVids

would duct tape decrease the value

xcutter

I never use my ash tray on my 2008. The POS door will not stay closed. I had this happen on my 2005 and it was fixed under warranty. I have a GMPP, but my dealership told me is not covered. I did a search on this forum. There is a DIY to fix this, but all the pictures are gone. Is there a safe way to remove the door without having to remove the whole console? The mechanic at the dealership told me I must take the whole center console and bezel apart to fix this issue. GM should be highly embarrassed by the quality of this piece. I would of gladly paid $10 extra for my car to have something that worked as designed, especially if never used.

SUB VETTE

You have to remove the entire console bezel and then replace the whole ashtray assembly. Not that difficult if you are a DIY person. I had the same issue on my 06 and bought a new ashtray from www.gmpartshouse.com and put it in. If you have heated seats you have to swap the switches to the new piece too.

RicK T

Member 'Vet' resurrected those pics in this thread, post #9. No need to remove the console if you want to attack it this way.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-c...-ash-tray.html

xcutter

Seen this in my search and also contacted the original poster. The DIY would be great, if we had the pictures. He had a HD crash and lost all of it. Sadly, there are quite a few DIY's on this forum that have all the pictures missing. When I see a DIY that I think may come in handy, I copy it to a pdf. Too bad I didn't see this sooner.

I was able to release the right side, but the left side will not come loose. I do not want to break it.

6893Vette

I like the way you think

You can replace the entire assembly at a reasonible cost. While not ideal, it gets the job done.


FWIW, this is a poor design but I still love my C6!

xcutter

Might as well buy a few of these at $74.95. They tend to break if you look at them wrong.

FWIW, I love my Z06, but love it even more when every single thing on it is in perfect working order.