Dacia Sandero 2018 air vents phone holder - Updated!

UPDATE! the design of version 1 was a bit too brutal, also the air vent bracket clip was not very stable in case of a sudden turn… the new V2 solves both issues.

After several iterations I now added a version 2 which looks much better, and with a way more stable bracket which is also easier to print.

Version 1 stays online because it is easier to adapt to other phones and maybe other cars even, with less risk that the different parameters generating some weird geometry. The ball, nut and socket are mechanically identical, so it is possible to put a V1 cradle derivative, on the new and improved bracket too.

I have a 2018 Dacia Sandero and apparently the cellphone holder manufacturers hate me and my round shaped air vents… so I decided it would be a fun project to design one from scratch.

The bracket is made to enter the air vent and grapple the inner edge of the lower blade.

The V2 version improves stability with a tighter fit and a wider head to prevent sideways movement, this one stays in place also during aggressive roundabouts. Note that the thicker and wider head also means it is more difficult to insert in the vent and latch it, you have to look for the right tilt but it is worth the extra effort compared to V1.

The assembly is pretty straightforward but note that the 5mm socket on the ball shaft is because the 3d printed thread is quite stiff and with the nut in place you do not have any purchase on the ball to tighten it.

Insert the nut on the ball shaft, then give it half a turn by hand in the bracket, and close it all the way up using the wrench trough the hole in the back face of the bracket. Don't worry if you eventually strip the socket during the final tightening, it is supposed to be done only once anyways. 

The nut and socket should grip the ball decently well, and secure the cradle at the same time.

If it remains too loose for your taste, you can add one or two little squares of paper on the bottom of the socket, it makes the ball stiffer and give some space to tighten the nut or eventually replace them if they wear out.

The cradle is modeled for my own phone (google pixel 4A) in its current case, but I am adding the Fusion 360 file so that you can change the dimensions and cutouts to your needs (see update notice above)

The outer phone sizes are parametric, so if you don't need different cutouts, just adapting the dimensions is a breeze

Also, the ball is 17mm, which as far as I understand it is the standard-ish size of commercial phone holders, so there may be a chance that you can just use the bracket and ball and couple it with a commercially available phone holder.

Final note, this thing will stay in the car… hanging from a hot air vent… don't print it in PLA, of course.