The center console cover mechanism on my MY 05 C320 sports coupe is very cool. It permits opening the phone cover to one side or the other, or raise the whole cover to expose the lower compartment. Each action has interlocks, that prevent other actuations, when one action is active.

My cover worked fine until recently. It then had problems closing when the cover was opened from the passenger side. It would not close without LOTS of effort. I also heard a loose internal part at that point.

A putty knife was used to break the glue bonds and expose the internal guts. My plan is to use airplane glue to restore the glued halves.

The problem with my cover was the loose part. It retained the passenger side of the rear hinge pin sub frame. The torsion spring forced the passenger hinge interlock out of position, because of the broken part. My guess is I or a passenger pressed too hard on the cover and broke that internal part. I used epoxy to repair the broken part. The rear hinge pin sub frame now remains in place.

There are three main interlocks within the top cover. These all have visible parts when the assembly is complete. Two are the curved fingers near the rear hinge pins. These rotate out the small openings when the interlock is active and rotate flat when the interlock is free. The other is the interlock for the lower compartment. It is the small post at the front center. When compressed that interlock permits the cover to open side-to-side.

There are two lateral interlocks that prevent both sides from being opened.

That lower compartment interlock post also interacts with the interlocks in the lower compartment. The post compresses the lower compartment interlock, retracting the two side pins, permitting the lower compartment to open. Those two side pins need to extend into pockets in the lower compartment to satisfy the post, for the cover to open side-to-side.

If the top cover becomes detached, then the lower compartment interlock post needs to be depressed. The two rear hinge interlocks need to be rotated into the compressed position. Then the side pushbutton needs to be compressed, to retract the hinge pins. With the hinge pins retracted, the top cover may be repositioned into place.

 

wow nice photos, that thing is pretty complicated for a damn armwrest!

 

This image shows the motions for each component and the glue locations.

 

Let's try again...

 

Yup happened to me too... think it was a pack of cigs that got it stuck and of all things, i had this gold diamond ring my dad just gave me.... dunno how in the hell i got it to open, but glad i didn't have to go to the dealer to have it opened only to see my ring gone forever!

 

I think I've found the trick! No brute force is needed.

First push down the latch pin for the lower component (the light blue dot thing in wingless's pic) while pushing in one side of the button. Then, while the button is now able to be fully pushed in, turn open the hinge arm (dark blue in the pic) on the button side. The arm should be locked and the hinge pins should go inside the cover. Do not release the button! Carefully put the cover back onto the console on the side that's open. Close the cover, things should work fine now.

 

The mechanism has been working faily well.

There were two instances when the cover "messed up".

In both instances the cover could not fully close.

To correct the problem, the lower hinge interlock required manual actuation, rotating and holding it depressed. The lower compartment interlock is then also depressed halfway. With the third hand, the upper door pushbutton is depressed and held.

All those steps retract the upper hinge pin, permitting the cover to close normally.

It appears that closing the cover slowly causes this particular problem. It appears that closing the cover slowly actuates the upper hinge interlock, releasing the upper hinge pin, prior to the pin reaching the hinge hole.

It appears that closing the cover quickly, or slamming the cover prevents this problem.

 

What are the indents on the underside of the center console lid for? I searched but I cant figure it out. Is it just to make room for a cell phone to fit? Seems like it holds something with those little clips on the sides?

 

cards, supposedly

 

was wondering wat that was too...i can cards on it...insurance..etc

 

i always thought business cards

 

That was my guess also, but I figured that was just too weird and there would be a better explanation.

 

useless! They are meant to hold gas or other credit cards.

 

Ladies know instantly they are for holding your credit cards.

 

The arm rest (the part with the buttons on it) came completely off. I need to know if anyone knows how to put this piece back on. I tried to search the forum but couldn't find any solution.

 

The last paragraph in this reply in this topic has the requested information. The central lower compartment post is only depressed halfway.

 

Yeah cuz the i use the chrome card holder in the glove box for my business cards. I'm gonna see if a cc works in that slot under the lid.

 

Supposedly cards but mine always fall out so I don't even bother anymore.

 

Please use the Search. It's been discussed. These are card holders.

 

Those are for gates, electronic doors cards, at list that what I use it for, but the problem is that the cards start to bent.

 

Hey isn't that phone cradle useless also? lol

 

Somehow, the front armrest cover (which opens to the right, to the left, and to the top) came off, and for the life of me, I can't put it back on. Nothing seems to be broken, the front and side release buttons work, the two pins on each side are intact, and the two rear plastic hinges work. I see the openings for the pins in the compartment tray itself, but I can't fit the rear pins in the cover to align with the corresponding rear holes in the tray.

I thought I was pretty adept at fixing these kinds of things, so I'm really puzzled. Any idea what I'm overlooking?

 

you need to do one side at a time. slide the back into the hole then snap into place in the front. someone broke mine, and thats what i remember doing.. months ago though i also remember messing with it for a while and having as much trouble as you

 

This is a better description of how to fix the cover when it's stuck open or becomes detached.

The rear of the cover has a rotating spring-loaded protruding curved arm that is part of the hinge interlock, colored red or olive in the image. Press and hold that, against the spring, into the compressed position.

The front of the cover has a spring-loaded protruding peg that is the lower compartment interlock, the small light blue dot in the image. Press and hold that HALF WAY compressed.

While holding both as described, then press and hold the side pushbutton, the one used to open the cover, colored red or dark green in the image. Once the side pushbutton is held depressed, the other two components don't need to be held anymore.

Then, slam the cover shut. Open and slam it shut several times to get the parts properly seated.

This problem will always happen if the cover is closed slowly. The cover needs to slam shut. If the cover is closed slowly, then the lateral interlock releases the hinge pins, prior to alignment with the hinge pin hoes.


This procedure is also used for another common problem, a fully detached console cover. The hinge pins need to be retracted and held retracted, by defeating the interlocks. Once the hinge pins are held retracted, they may be aligned with the hinge holes, when the fully detached is replaced.

 

Has anyone had problems with their armest latches gettin stuck?

I have an 05' c230K sedan and the middle armrest locking mechanisms seem to be stuck or locked out as if it were closed regularly. Now that it's stuck, the driver side is higher than the passenger side and i can't find a way to solve this problem. This is the second time it has happened, I'm not quite sure how but i managed to fix it the first time.

Any help would be greatful. Thanks in advance!