I have a 2000 maxima (manual trans) and of course the drink lid cover was partially broke when I bought the car. I finished it off recently when I bumped it in very cold weather. Can the lid be replaced without removing the entire center console? Pics & instructions would be great.

 

Have you heard of junkyards?

 

Um, yes I have. I visit them all the time. My question was whether the lid can be easily replaced without replacing or removing the entire center console.

 

I have not had to replace the drink cover lid on my 2000, but I have removed the console. It isn't that big of a deal if it comes to that.

I did have to replace the cover on my 4th gen and it was necessary to remove the console in that car.

 

That cup holder lid has to be the worst designed piece on the entire car. It hangs up and gets stuck closed if anything gets behind it but if you remove it, it won't hold cups for crap.

I had to break mine open early on when I needed something out of of it in a hurry and none of my usual tricks to open it worked.

Looking at it with no pieces of the door left I still can't tell for sure if you'd have to pull the console to replace it. It looks like one side has a long peg(s) that slide in while the other side snaps in place. I know it doesn't come out easily so there might be come sort of snap ring or C-clip on the side that slides in.

 

Agree on "worst design ever" -- it's gotta be similar to the i30. I've had that door broken off three times already. Superglue has kept it together, but I've also been lucky enough to get a "clean break" each time.

It's usually passengers who manage to break it. Either they try to push themselves out of the car by leaning on the console, (and when the door is open, cracks it right off) or female passengers who insist on slamming their purse down on the console the minute they get in.

 

I was in the junk yard earlier and took a look at a broken one.
You're definitely going to need to pull the console. The lid has pegs on it that pass through the console and are held from behind with C-clips and maybe some other tabs.

 

You need to remove the centre console... It's pretty easy

Follow this guide
http://www.redlinegoods.com/Maxima2Kinstall.php