Driver's Door Won't Open from Outside

It will open from the inside and the electric door locks are functioning correctly. This is the aftermarket metal door handle purchased through Amazon.

I removed the door panel and the door handle, and found the hinge points in the frame are broken. I bought these in Nov 2020 because the plastic ones kept breaking.

Who is the supplier and how well do they stand behind their products? Am I unreasonable to think it shouldn't break with ~ 4.5 years of usage?

Edit: This is a T1A “oem upgrade” metal handle.

 

Agreed on the warranty and good luck... if you clean and lube the door latch assembly it will unlatch with 1 finger.

 

You're not wrong but I doubt any part supplier is going to warranty that part for more than 30 days.

 

I went ahead and ordered a replacement from Amazon for $32 that should deliver Friday. I'd still like to voice my displeasure to the manufacturer but not going to spend much time concerning myself with it.

 

The quality of auto parts has been in decline for a while, even from the dealer, who ever their supplier is. If you are a tech and you diagnose down to the component and you replace it and that part is bad you question your diagnosis. now you have to replace the part twice but you only get paid once.

 

They still have the same flaw in the same area....metal or oem

your best bet is to have a spare(s) already on hand

when I have an amozon order I always check for the open box doorman's
that are like $7 or $8..........if I meet the min...they're free shipping

my tail is just as bad.....i'm always gentle there

 

A carefully drilled hole and a long sheet metal screw and It'll keep on working for a while longer.

 

Smart Taco owners always gave spares for all doors on hand AND plenty of cans of white silicon spray

 

Nice repair! Looks very solid, should last quite awhile.
was/Is the door handle by chance a Dorman? I had my original break on me-driver’s side of course, about 7 winters ago.
Combo of cracked handle and -18F, I ordered a Dorman replacement. After a few days of crawling over the console, and some warmer temps( above 0) I installed the replacement lasted about 3 months of babying it as it felt pretty fragile after a few weeks.
I scoured the web and found a Toyota OEM, not quite a color match, but still going strong. I still buy OEM replacements when I can find them online.
Funny thing I still a have a machine screw repaired tail gate latch that has lasted around 10 years.
You can both good/even OEM parts on eBay and you can get some cheap crap same as any other vendors.

Good luck

 

Yeah let us know if it’s one of those T1A “oem upgrade” metal handles.

My OEMs have lasted since the truck was new. When my passenger front finally gave way I switched it with a Dorman to save some money, that piece of junk took some force to open. Will never buy Dorman parts after that.

 

This is a T1A “oem upgrade” metal handle. The metal part is solid, the frame is not.

 

if you have the exterior latch out, spray the visible pivot points inside the door for the latch mechanism with WD40. Also the latch itself and work both a bunch of times. they can get gummed up and put additional strain on the handle that makes it more likely to break.

I just did this after breaking my last handle and now it works so smooth I can open the door with my pinky lol. FWIW I tried some white lithium sprays with no luck prior to the WD40

 

Hmm... WD40 isnt what you want to use here, it attracts dirt and debris, white lithium is what should be used.

 

for sure, in the ideal scenario. wouldn’t hurt to start there if things are in good order.

I was breaking handles regularly because mine was extra crusty from exposure to the elements to the point the white lithium just piled onto the crud without working its way into the pivot points

 

In that case I would recommend spraying out all the old crud with brake cleaner and starting fresh with white lithium grease

 

very common for these taco to break the driver door handle ive replaced my door handle like 4 times lol

 

Well, this morning the repaired door handle broke again, in a different place. It seems these metal door handles are more solid in the metal part, but the frame and hinge areas are weak.
The broken one I installed Nov 2020 so it has lasted almost 4.5 years. I replaced it with the one I had bought a few weeks ago.

 

A lot of the problem is monkeys and drunk girls yanking on the handles