That pop-out is also good for having a bottle of water when the front cup holders are occupied with hot and spillable drinks. My 9 year old Outback has this pop-out, but it holds two bottles. (Gone in the new models, but if you have long arms you can reach a bottle from the pull down armrest/cup holder.) I rarely have anyone in the back seat, so I am free, FREE!, to use the pop-outs.
Believe it or not, Toyota has some of the best cupholder designs in the industry, at least with the compact, fold-out ones on the back of the center console for the rear passengers. I can't tell you how amused my feeble mind was kept flipping them in and out on the various Matrices I've had the unfortunate pleasure of sittign in. It's possibly the most overengineered parts on the car.
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