Cracked door handle

My 2003 regular cab 2 wheel drive Tacoma with 306,000 miles has a driver side outside door handle that’s cracked I’m guessing from so much use. A piece of the plastic handle has cracked at a corner underneath where I put my fingers. I can’t open the door with the usual grasp but if I reach way in with my fingers I can pull the latch/handle and open the door.

I’d like to see if I can replace the handle myself. I have little repair experience though and I'm guessing I’d have to remove a lot of stuff to get to it.

I’m wondering if anyone knows where I can find some instructions or video on how to do this.

Thanks,

Tom

 

This has manual windows but pretty much the same either way, its pretty easy and a common issue with these years

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seGIDtE3ldI

 

You can do eeet!

Seriously, they are not hard to do. Just use a good flashlight so you can see what's needed.
Take a picture of inside before stating if you think it will help, be careful with old plastic rod clip. (I think they new handle will have new ones though)

edit: Just watched video, if you have manual windows, the rag trick is something i never have seen or thought of. Looks like it works well enough but I never thought it was that hard to just depress the panel by hand and grab the clip with a hook. Homemade bent anything (paperclip) usually works fine.

i usually get the panel started with a wide scraper...like a plastic windshield ice scraper would work fine. Some clips will hang up in the door, some will come off with panel. Put them all back to the panel before reinstalling.

 

You can buy them on Amazon. Someone will be along shortly to tell you to only buy OEM.

Here's a video of how to do it. There are others, this is just the first I found.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqtO9fNj3WI

It can be done. It just takes some patience to get that one nut threaded on. And, maybe, a magnet to retrieve it when you drop it. You'll drop it.

 

I will be the one to tell you buy only OEM unless you live in Florida or Texas where there is no such thing as winter. I bought a Dorman, put it in and first time I used it last winter to drive over to Montana it wasn't even that cold- around 0F damn thing broke. Spent the rest of the winter crawling over the console from the pass side. Probably about $60 but maybe I just got a bad one.
Although when I replaced the inner handle on the driver side it crapped out in 2 years, so.....

 

Thanks to all!

 

I live in Montana and mine just broke yesterday. It's been a little chilly so I haven't bothered to mess with it yet. The plastic handle didn't break though. It flops up and down like it's not connected to the spring anymore. Definitely the last time I ever have my wife touch my pickup

 

I replaced mine driver side very easy an got the oem on ebay for aboth $39 free shipping just shop around Or check with gunny too

 

@gunny1005

 

I replaced one for my brother when he still had a 1st gen. It’s easy man

 

ask Ben or Monte

 

That's the symptom. It breaks a just under the handle. There's a little plastic bridge built into the handle that connects to the rod inside the door if I remember correctly. You can still open the door with a pair of needle nose pliers.

 

Don't be too hard on others for 15+ yr. old parts breaking.

It's old, it's plastic and it was cold. I know I kind of cursed everytime one broke on the Sienna's passenger doors.....'til I broke one.

I used a YouToob vid to try and run a screw into the broken ear of 1 of mine to save it......not worth the effort on brittle old plastic. Once in there, just put a new one. I even rec'd OEM for this.....UNLESS they're plastic and you see a pot metal replacement. Had good luck with those so far.

There is the 'creep' factor of Chinese pot metal though. No telling what's in it.

 

As a Texan I believe this belongs in WTF since this makes the inside of my freezer sound warm.

 

OEM all the way. Not only cold but heat destroys the eBay ones. Replaced two in one year. Did OEM still good two years later.

 

X2. When I bought my truck the handles had all been replaced with aftermarket ones that the last guy color-matched, but the passenger side front door had already failed and had a mismatched black one. I replaced all four with the Dorman ones from RockAuto - far from the cheapest available, and within a month both front ones broke. I sucked it up and ordered some OEM ones. I would never have guessed how much variance there can be. The quality of the plastic on the OEM ones feels much tougher with no flex, and the mechanism is much smoother. Best to just shell out the extra coin unless you plan on popping new cheap ones in every couple months.

 

It's fairly easy. Be very gentle with the plastic clips that hold the door and lock rods together. If you break those you are going to the dealer to get them. I use this stuff.

$14 Houdini Lock Lube

https://www.amazon.com/HOUD1-Houdin...1515903336&sr=8-1&keywords=houdini+lock+spray

It's some amazing stuff. Smells like a fresh orange peel. I spray it on all the inside levers and such. I also spray it in the keyholes.

 

Here's where mine was broken at. The plastic piece snapped off and wouldn't push the lever down. New one's well greased now

 

I broke that same piece on mine this winter. Replaced it with one from Amazon that feels junkier than the one that broke.

 

Mine just broke in the same spot the other day. Super glued it together and let dry for a day. Then I drilled a hole thru it on an angle and put a very small screw. Works great now. Be sure to lube up all the rods and latch