Just a FYI-----

I know that others have had this problem, caused by the faulty design of the molded door panel armrest. My '09 Sport only has 15K miles, but my left elbow is now sinking into the hole that has somehow been made in the horizontal plastic surface underneath the cloth covering.

Others have used mouse pad foam to cover the broken-away area, but I just ordered a "universal" door armrest pad from Zeta Products. The pad is a flat-black color polyurethane foam that attaches to the door panel cloth with the hook side Velcro strip. The pad is 2" wide, 8" long, and 1/2" thick.

Zeta advertizes these pads for dozens of cars, but all of the pads are exactly the same.

I was given a sample of these pads years ago for my wife's Scion XB, but she didn't like it and I foolishly threw it away (wish that I had kept it for my present need). This material will keep elbow pressure from continuing to enlarge the hole in the door panel plastic, and prevent the cloth cover from splitting and ruining the look of the door panel.

If your GE is starting to show signs of the door armrest surface weakening and breaking away under the cloth, you might want to visit Zetaproducts.net and get this pad to stop further damage.

 

The passenger side on mine has already collapsed a little. So these pads are like this?

http://www.zetaproducts.net/Mercedes...--Present.aspx

The Zeta armrests pads are a good alternative to a DIY below.

https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/2nd-...rsion-3-a.html

 

blassty-

Your post comes at a coincidental time. I have been working with Angelo Marzullo, CEO of Zeta Products, to develop a cure for this quality failure from Honda on the GE8 Fits.

The pad that I originally posted about would work, sort of, on GE8s except for the fact that it uses Velcro strips for installation. Velcro will not stick sufficiently to the armrest surface with its synthetic cloth covering, especially in summer heat.

So I made a pattern for an exact fit on the driver's door of my GE8 and sent it to Zeta. Angelo sent me samples of a bunch of different foam pad materials and I experimented with these materials cut from my pattern. We talked back and forth for a week, and then yesterday, I received a trial pad, cut to my pattern, that has a special acrylic adhesive covering the entire underside-- not just a 1" strip running down the center that you get with Velcro.

I will shoot some photos today and do a trial installation to test the new adhesives strength. Will post the results later.

Our objective here is to produce an inexpensive, "peel & stick" pad that is very long-lasting, good looking, will permanently repair already damaged door armrests, will prevent that damage if the pad is installed before the damage occurs, and will provide extra comfort in all applications.

The key is the effectiveness of the adhesive in bonding urethane foam to the armrest. We need a "bandage" that keeps the hole in the armrest from continuing to widen from elbow pressure.

I assume from your "join date" that you own a GD3? If so, the piece that I am working on with Zeta WILL NOT WORK. The armrests are completely different between the two Fit generations. However, the pad in your link and my OP could possibly be modified by you to fit the GD, but the problem remains, how to get a reliable bond to the armrest?

The GE8 pad will fit perfectly, from the pointed area just behind where your elbow rests, and will cover everything right down to the bottom of the finger-well pocket behind the door switches. This full coverage will prevent the front, cut-edge of the foam from snagging on shirt sleeves and being pulled away.

I will add photos to this thread later today, but remember that this is not a market-ready product yet. Angelo has a CAD-operated laser that will be used for repeatable, accurate cuts of the foam material, so production time and labor cost will not be an issue. He does not stock the required acrylic adhesive-covered foam material, so getting that will take some time before production can begin. All of this will depend upon the results of my tests of the sample today.

More info. on this later---------

 

I actually have a GE. I was going to get a GD but they didn't have White and I decided to wait and save some money for a downpayment. =)

This is really good news that there is a solution being sought to remedy this problem I have on my GE door rest. I don't rest my elbow on mine but obviously some of my passengers do and my passenger door is already cracked. I need to make sure it doesn't get any worst. Thanks for the update I'll be subscribed from this point on.

 

Good! Stay tuned- we are close to an answer. Got a cure for uncomfortable GD armrests in the works too.

 

Here are the photos with explanations:

The pattern was made with a piece of white cloth duct tape, 2" wide X 8" long, placed over the armrest area to be covered by the pad.


The outer periphery of the pattern was outlined with a pen and the tape was removed and placed on cardboard, then cut out with shears. A copy of the pattern was sent to Zeta Products to see if they could accurately cut the foam pad material.

The black foam pad on the right is the one that I cut with shears using my pattern, and the pad on the left with white liner paper protecting the acrylic adhesive is the prototype sample that I received back from Angelo at Zeta, which was laser-cut.



The long, slightly rectangular depression in my armrest is the damage that we are trying to repair and/or prevent altogether,


The damaged area is covered here by my trial foam piece (with no adhesive), and the prototype with the white liner is placed next to it on the armrest area.


Here are three views of the finished, installed armrest pad.










Feel free to post comments. This is still in the research stage, but I like it so far. The foam pad is very comfortable without being too "squishy". We need structural strength for a permanent repair of damaged armrests. The foam is flat black with a slick skin so as not to stick to shirtsleeves. That makes it appear shiny in photos, but that is not the effect in normal light. As with most rubber or plastic items, even though this is flat black in color, it looks grey in photos.

 

That looks pretty good! May I add a suggestion in terms of design? Just nit-picking really but it's in the nature of my profession. My issue is the lines at the bottom of the front end. I have provided an edited image to illustrate better. If you nip the the tip it would blend in more with the pre-existing lines. Just a thought. Thanks for the updates!

 

I was in a similar profession, and I agree with the need to match the angle at the bottom of the well. This will be done in production pads. Thanks for the comment, but it would have been done anyway.

 

Current status of this fix-

Zeta Products can laser-cut exact copies of my pattern for this pad from sheets of 1/4" thick polyurethane foam. The pads are extremely comfortable, and are structurally strong enough to keep existing holes in the plastic armrest, under the cloth covering, from continuing to get wider and longer.

However, Zeta cannot provide the pads with an adhesive that is strong enough to make installation reliable. Also, Zeta does not use cloth fabric for any of their other products, so cannot offer armrest pads with cloth coverings.

Cloth covering the foam pad will have to stretch to allow the pad to compress in use without stressing the glue bond to the top of the armrest. I found some black synthetic, stretchy woven cloth made of 65% Rayon, 30% Nylon, and 5% Spandex that suits this project perfectly.

I will post a future DIY showing how the inexpensive Zeta Products pads can be covered in cloth and permanently glued with silicone sealer/adhesive to the driver and passenger side armrests.

For the folks who found this design flaw from Honda soon enough to get the door panel replaced under warranty, guess what? Your replacement door panel will have exactly the same problem.

A permanently attached armrest pad will prevent, and will repair, this problem.

Stay tuned.

 

I have read all the posts about this issue after having both front seat arm rests in the door panels break and replaced under warrenty only to happen again. The driver's door one was so bad that when I took off the panel, and looked at the plastic moulded part that it was broken in several places. (It looks like the plastic has seams in it that are weak points and when flexed under weight). I wasn't about to pay $200 a panel for replacement because it is out of warrenty. So I visited a couple of collision repair places with the panel in hand to ask for advice. This is what he said and it worked like a charm...

I went to Canadian Tire and got two tubes of JW Plastic bonder epoxy and some replacement screening for a window (rubber/plastic, not aluminum). Put a layer of epoxy on the seams and let harden (about 1 hr). Then coated the entire area under the elbow and reinforced by embedding it with the screening. That used 1 tube. Then mixed a second tube of epoxy and repeated with embedding a second layer of screening. All of the remaining epoxy was then spread into the screening. Whole job took about 30 minutes with about 2 hours of drying time. Total cost $20. It has been 2 months and is still rock hard.

 

Thanks for this tip (thought the post is old this issue is not) on JW Plastic bonder epoxy and window replacement screening. $15 and 30 min of work and it's fixed!