...it won't return on its own spring loading.

Anyone any idea how to get it to slide shut again - I've applied "reasonable" force but don't want to force and snap or break anything to do with the spring loading / damping.

Failing that, anyone know where there are instructions to remove the top bit of the centre console so I can see if it is repairable or god forbid, have to replace it.
thanks

It’s on a click stop. You push it forwards slightly to close it. There is nothing that can't be fixed with a hammer😜😜
FFRR 4.4 SDV8 Autobiography Santorini Black.
Fiat 500x 1.4 multiair Lounge 2015
2010 LR D4 Commercial 2.7 TDV6

thanks. I know that The problem I’m trying to explain is that when you push it forward to release it stays in the open position. It won’t slide shut and just returns back to the open position. The damped spring loading is clearly still “on catch” . I can’t see anything visibly blocking its return to the close position. 😟

I had this problem, it was one of the wooden stirred sticks had slipped under the side and stopped it sliding back

Right. An afternoon of nice weather and fixed it. Here's what I found.

If you look on the 2 pictures there is a spring. This spring catches the slider when you push it open, and releases when you push again. What had happened was this spring had swung left in its mounting hole and trapped the slider when pushed open. I put it back and glued a piece of plastic to the side to prevent it from spinning in its hold again. All put back together and job done....and shouldn't do it again. Bad design really and could happen to any early(ish) L405 owner. I know later models the design was changed - not sure which year.

I have to admit is was a faff of a job getting the centre console out and took lots of faith pulling and poking bits of expensive plastic, and that nothing was going to break. A few hidden screws here and there but take your time and you can work out what needs to be done. Took me about 3 hours to work out how to get things off, and 30 mins to put all back together in one piece. There is a video on Youtube for a 2019 model which was a big help but there are some differences.

on the plus side - it was a great opportunity to clean up all the food crumbs that had accumulated down there over the years!

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Hi Fleagle, I know this is a older post but I am having the same problem with my wife's 2014 and my 2016. Slider cubbie doors are both not working. Mine sometimes returned but i tried spraying some silicone on sides where rails are and it just made things worse. What I was wondering, after looking at your pictures, is that the spring is mounted on top of the assembly not the bottom so I am wondering if I remove the climate panel if I can see down underneath it to get to the spring?? I am a little afraid to try and take apart the console. Thx! Mike

Hi Mike.
Unfortunately that won’t work because the sliding door when trapped in the open position is over the spring/guide pin so you wouldn’t be able to get at it from above or below. I’m afraid the only way is to remove the centre console. It is a faff to do I agree but take your time and it’s not really too bad. Just remember which screw came from where and use the videos on YouTube as a guide. It’s also worth buying a set of interior trim removal tools off Amazon. They’re cheap and don’t cause damage when prying plastic lugs like a flat screw driver would.
Good luck!

Thanks Fleagle, after you repaired it, did it work smoothly? Before I tried lubing the sides with silicone, you would push it from the open position and it would very slowly close even stopping a few times before reaching the full closed position. I believe they changed the mechanism in 2019 eliminating the sell close on the console cubby and also removing the side pocket doors on front and driver doors, one of which i replaced.Thx! Mike

Yeah from 2019 they cheaped out and removed the soft close mechanism and made it a manual close. Yuk!! - presumably because of the number of fails they had had with the poor design.
The video I used as a guide was helpful only in as far as removing the centre console. The repair to stop the pin dislodging again was my own innovation.

Once it was all done and back together it worked smoothly - no lube required.

Mine started acting up after my phone fell from the vent and landed on the sliding door. I took out the lower climate control and it doesn’t help much. So I was frustrated and smacked down on the door…partly bc I was frustrated and partly bc a drop on it caused the issue…””so another shock would fix it right?? Hah. Well I heard something drop that sounded like a screw. Now it opens and clicks/holds…but when you push it to close it shuts like a damn guillotine. I’ll take it apart one of these days 2014 FF Autobiography 5.0 SC
2008 FFRR (sold)
2008 BMW M5

So I’ve fallen prey to the dreaded sticking cup holder. My problem stemmed from spillage of a sticky drink (Long mountain climb, leg cramps, Lucozade, drink bottle too small to be held properly in the cup holder + an emergency braking stop….. never Lucozade in the car again!).

I’m really grateful to Fleagle for giving me some of the confidence to approach what I regarded as a daunting job. I did also use the video Fleagle referred to on YouTube - “2019 RR Autobiography center console removal” and additionally made my first proper use of the WM found on this site - the relevant section called “INSTRUMENT PANEL AND CONSOLE - STANDARD WHEEL BASE FLOOR CONSOLE UPPER SECTION”.

To get this fixed from start to finish I worked over three days - really to make sure I wasn’t rushing to finish when tired and risking breaking something. Been there, done that.

I did get a set of trim removal tools but to be honest didn’t really use / need them. The only tools I found absolutely necessary were an 8mm socket and a Torx T20 driver.

Once I eventually got to the sliding mechanism for the cup holder cover it took a bit of fiddling to disassemble and work out. I needed to thoroughly clean out the rails on each side of it which were gummed up with what was now a dried out sugary drink.

In the disassembly I did mistakenly pull apart the two metal flat springs which provide the tension and force which closes this lid. If you do find these come apart they will reassemble but take care not to let go of them as I found that they are happy to fly away quite a distance.

Apart from getting a problem fixed, I guess it was an interesting exercise to see how the various components of the RR interact. I’m still amazed at how much of the car needed to come apart.

So, all back together again now and cup holder lid slides as intended.

By the way, having done this and now knowing what goes where, I’d guess that everything could be taken apart and put back together in an hour. However I did need to redo most of the reassembly when I found that a few clips in the console had not reinserted cleanly with the end result that the cubby lid would not click shut afterwards. Just take a patient deep breath and don’t rush it! 2016 SDV8 AB

This thread was tremendously helpful for me when I did this job so let me add a few pics of the screws and bolts that need to be removed. There are also a lot of clips and some of these fell deeper down under the console than my magnet on a stick could reach. Buying some spare in advance could be a good idea, but losing a few doesn’t matter. I have also added a couple of pics of my solution to stop the spring from moving too much sideways.

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge