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Azzin

macrumors 603
Original poster
Jun 23, 2010
5,433
3,742
London, England.
Hey all,

As per title, I’m looking for a small mount that I can attach to the dash in my car For my 13 Pro Max.

I can’t use the traditional vent mounts, as the vents on my car are the circular type, that move sideways.

So I’m looking for something I can attach between the vents that I can slap my phone on when I get in.

All suggestions welcome.

4ADC6041-B96B-46D2-9335-15B7E8C4BA4A.jpeg
 
I don't understand what you mean about the vents. Just because they're circular doesn't mean you can't use a mount that clamps to a vent fin. This i the one I use, and it's far superior to the ones that clamp vertically:


But if for some reason you still don't think that would work you can maybe look into one that mounts to the cupholder. And if that doesn't fit the bill, then the only other kind I know to suggest would be one that comes with a double-sided adhesive disk to mount the base to the dash, but I have a feeling that wouldn't work so great because 1. there may not be enough room between the vents for the base of the mount to fit, 2. the surface between the vents might not be flat enough, and 3. even if 1-2 are not an issue, the weight of the mount/phone will be pulling away from the adhesive contact point, which may cause it to fail over time if it's not a SUPER strong bond.

And it seems that any of those choices is going to leave you with your view of the on-board navigation system and AC controls partially blocked by the phone/mount. There's another vent on the other side of the steering wheel, right? Maybe see if you could mount it there.
 
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I don't understand what you mean about the vents. Just because they're circular doesn't mean you can't use a mount that clamps to a vent fin. This i the one I use, and it's far superior to the ones that clamp vertically:


But if for some reason you still don't think that would work you can maybe look into one that mounts to the cupholder. And if that doesn't fit the bill, then the only other kind I know to suggest would be one that comes with a double-sided adhesive disk to mount the base to the dash, but I have a feeling that wouldn't work so great because 1. there may not be enough room between the vents for the base of the mount to fit, 2. the surface between the vents might not be flat enough, and 3. even if 1-2 are not an issue, the weight of the mount/phone will be pulling away from the adhesive contact point, which may cause it to fail over time if it's not a SUPER strong bond.

And it seems that any of those choices is going to leave you with your view of the on-board navigation system and AC controls partially blocked by the phone/mount. There's another vent on the other side of the steering wheel, right? Maybe see if you could mount it there.
The vents being circular isn’t the issue, it’s the fact that themselves swivel sideways.

So I can easily attach a vent mount, but the vent (and therefore the phone) will swivel from side to side while I’m driving.
 
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I’ve just found this which may well do the job.

If I could attach a small piece of 3M tape to the bottom section to keep it attached to the dash (and there fore stop the vent from swivelling), it may just stay in place.
 
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I’ve just found this which may well do the job.

If I could attach a small piece of 3M tape to the bottom section to keep it attached to the dash (and there fore stop the vent from swivelling), it may just stay in place.

Or the one that I first linked. As I said, I much prefer the way it clamps to the way the kind you linked clamps. I've had issues with the ones that clamp to the top/bottom of a fin falling off over time, whereas this one hooks around the back of the fin and clamps horizontally.

Screen Shot 2021-12-22 at 3.33.10 PM.png


And, yes, I was going to suggest finding a way to immobilze the vent. You might also try wedging something (thin piece of rubber, foam, etc.) between the vent and the "ball joint" it swivels inside of.
 
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I’ve just found this which may well do the job.

If I could attach a small piece of 3M tape to the bottom section to keep it attached to the dash (and there fore stop the vent from swivelling), it may just stay in place.
Thanks for linking this. I am not the biggest fan of vent mounts and this is exactly what I’ve been looking for!

Edit: here’s the link for anyone in the US. Seems it’s actually on sale! Limited-time deal: ESR HaloLock MagSafe Car Phone Mount, Compatible with iPhone 13/13 Pro/13 mini/13 Pro Max/12/12 Pro/12 mini/12 Pro Max, Dashboard and Air Vent Phone Holder, Does Not Support Charging, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B092MNV6ZL/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_dl_WK5P4NFDHGDS3JGVRF08
 
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Hey all,

As per title, I’m looking for a small mount that I can attach to the dash in my car For my 13 Pro Max.

I can’t use the traditional vent mounts, as the vents on my car are the circular type, that move sideways.

So I’m looking for something I can attach between the vents that I can slap my phone on when I get in.

All suggestions welcome.

View attachment 1932292

Look at the Belkin MagSafe Vent Mount. A little pricey, but works superbly on my circular vents. Back of mout does an outstanding job at directing airflow around the phone chassis .
 
Look at the Belkin MagSafe Vent Mount. A little pricey, but works superbly on my circular vents. Back of mout does an outstanding job at directing airflow around the phone chassis .
I’ve already got the Belkin mount, but the circular vents in my new car move sideways as a whole, so while the mount stays attached, it moves sideways when the vent moves with movement of the car, due to the weight of the phone and mount (vent doesn‘t move without phone & mount on).
 
I’ve already got the Belkin mount, but the circular vents in my new car move sideways as a whole, so while the mount stays attached, it moves sideways when the vent moves with movement of the car, due to the weight of the phone and mount (vent doesn‘t move without phone & mount on).

Can't you rotate the vents so the directional slots move up and down versus left and right? That did the trick for me?
 
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Try a ProClip base mount specific for your car. Highly recommended, does not damage the dash. Vent mounts are garbage in comparison. The ProClip system is expensive but worth it - I have wasted far more money trying cheap mounts from Amazon.


not sure if this is your exact car, but you can enter your specific model:


I think this is the ProClip MagSafe holder that attaches to the ProClip base mount:


Looks like you are in UK, so check this out for UK reseller:

 
Last edited:
Hey don’t know if this is still a problem for anyone, but I found a semi solution on another forum and wanted to share. I used a business card (any thicker piece of paper will do) that’s bent a few times and cut up to look nicer, and jammed it in between the opening of the side of the vent and the holder. This allowed it to stay in position and with many test drives it has not had any issues. I have the belkin mount and an s560 for reference. I left the paper exposed just slightly so that in the event that I wanted to remove it, I could. It is also completely obstructed by the mount so really no one knows it is there but me. Hope it helps!
 
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I don't understand what you mean about the vents. Just because they're circular doesn't mean you can't use a mount that clamps to a vent fin. This i the one I use, and it's far superior to the ones that clamp vertically:


But if for some reason you still don't think that would work you can maybe look into one that mounts to the cupholder. And if that doesn't fit the bill, then the only other kind I know to suggest would be one that comes with a double-sided adhesive disk to mount the base to the dash, but I have a feeling that wouldn't work so great because 1. there may not be enough room between the vents for the base of the mount to fit, 2. the surface between the vents might not be flat enough, and 3. even if 1-2 are not an issue, the weight of the mount/phone will be pulling away from the adhesive contact point, which may cause it to fail over time if it's not a SUPER strong bond.

And it seems that any of those choices is going to leave you with your view of the on-board navigation system and AC controls partially blocked by the phone/mount. There's another vent on the other side of the steering wheel, right? Maybe see if you could mount it there.
I have that very same mount and it’s perfect. Highly recommended.
 
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