I did it!!! I only had to loosen the center console and slide it towards the back of the car about an inch---i.e. without undoing the radio and all the switches (whew!)---to be able to pull the carpet in the side of the footwell. Had to pull the molded foam trim piece under the steering wheel, too, but that was comparatively easy.
I still didn't have much room to work, and so there was a lot of swearing and scraped knuckles, but I finally got the old vacuum pod out and the new one in. I hate those little white plastic "nuts". I had to break off the studs with needle-nose pliers to get the old pod out, and all the nuts (of course!) fell down into the bowels of the console, never to be seen again.
I decided to fix the new pod in place with a dab of epoxy instead, just enough between its body and the metal bracket to hold it in place (without interfering with the movement of the arm). I figure if the epoxy holds, great; if it doesn't hold, I can easily get at the pod through the climate control panel area next time and attach it in some more secure way; and if it holds until the next time the pod fails, I should also be able to remove it from the front just by prying between the pod body and the bracket. Anybody see any problems with this fix?
