Door Handle Fix, 1hr and $6.67

[atljar]

My interior door handle has been broken for sometime. I decided to tear things apart and see what could be done to fix the problem, rather than replace the entire panel, or get parts from a liberty and try to make them work. This should work for any of the doors (mine was drivers front)

Materials:
Plastic epoxy from Loctite
Nylon spacer 3.8" x .171" x 1"



Once you have materials, time to take off the door panel. There are three screws to remove


Next remove the window switch pack. Gently pry it upwards, then disconnect the three pack wire connections

Then the rest of the panel comes off with standard push clips. You can pry them out with trim tool or pull with your fingers. Clip locations below in black arrows. You will also need to remove 3 more wired connections (red), and the door handle release (green) in order to get the panel off the car.



From there, you can see where the handle is broken off at the pivot pin. You want to take a large drill bit or dremel and grind out a nice little pocket for the nylor spacer to sit in.



Next take the nylon spacer, and drill out the center slightly larger so the pivot pin can slide in and out easily. I used a 13/64" drill bit. Then cut the spacer in half. Time for a trial fit. You may need to do some additional trimming of the spacer and the door panel to get a nice level fit, and one that will not impede with the door handle itself.



Once things line up well, go ahead and mix a little of the epoxy. Leave the handle and spring out, just use the pin and the spacers. Take care not to glue the pin to the spacers, or get any glue on the inside pin area where the handle rides.


Let this dry for 20-30 minutes, then remove the pin. Grind off any epoxy that is in the way of the handle, and the reassemble the pin, spring, and handle. Glob some more epoxy over everything to make sure you have a good bond Once again, make sure you dont glue the handle in place. (SEE EDIT ON BELOW POSTS, DONT ASSEMBLE SPRING LIKE THIS)




Let dry. Epoxy will turn dark yellow, and get very hard.



Handle from other side, before reinstalling



Put the door panel back on just the way you took it off. Dont forget the wire connections or hooking up the door release wire. Sucks to take everything back apart again when you forget.

Enjoy the cheap fix! This looks like it is going to work and hold for a long while!

[Firehawk45cal]

I had the same thing happen to my back passenger door handle. I used plastic epoxy like yours but i also imbedded some of that nylon mesh drywall tape to try and strengthen it up. Thanks for the great write up.

[powerslave1966]

Thanks for the write-up, now we have a cheap and easy fix for those weak handles!

[atljar]

Hmm, on a side note. Dont install the spring like in the pictures above. It needs to be tensioned so that it is pulling the handle shut. I was able to fix it but it took some time.

[indymtb]

Awesome. That had to have saved big $$$.

[ER NURSE]

"Put the door panel back on just the way you took it off. Dont forget the wire connections or hooking up the door release wire. Sucks to take everything back apart again when you forget."
That green plastic part was making a vibrating sound and I took the panel off. When I put it back on the door window didn't work.

[jeepnvinny65]

Originally Posted by atljar

Hmm, on a side note. Dont install the spring like in the pictures above. It needs to be tensioned so that it is pulling the handle shut. I was able to fix it but it took some time.

UPDATE: Finally got her in. You have to line up the spring as shown in the picture, except that the exposed end of the spring should be on the other side of the pin. When you have the spring positioned correctly, you have to push straight down (which is really an SOB since you are putting the spring under tension) and insert the pin at the same time. Good luck!

Hi guys, I am new to this forum as I just bought a Commander over the weekend. Anyhow...

One of the things that needed to be fixed was that the door handle was broken, just as this thread describes. (Gosh I love the internet!!!) Well, I have glued everything back together but I can not get the damn spring to go back in. Any suggestions? I know that the spring is not tense in the picture, the open end needs to be tucked under to put tension on the spring, if that makes any sense. Thanks!!!

[atljar]

Originally Posted by jeepnvinny65

UPDATE: Finally got her in. You have to line up the spring as shown in the picture, except that the exposed end of the spring should be on the other side of the pin. When you have the spring positioned correctly, you have to push straight down (which is really an SOB since you are putting the spring under tension) and insert the pin at the same time. Good luck!

Hi guys, I am new to this forum as I just bought a Commander over the weekend. Anyhow...

One of the things that needed to be fixed was that the door handle was broken, just as this thread describes. (Gosh I love the internet!!!) Well, I have glued everything back together but I can not get the damn spring to go back in. Any suggestions? I know that the spring is not tense in the picture, the open end needs to be tucked under to put tension on the spring, if that makes any sense. Thanks!!!

Late reply, sorry in advance...

The Left side of the spring you have in the correct position. The rest of the spring needs rotated 180º clockwise so that the spring tab is resting opposite of where it is now. (it should on the side closer to the handle opening) This tension will be so that it is pulling the handle shut. I was able to grab mine with needle nose to tension it, then slide the pin back in place to hold everything. Glad you ended up getting it though!

[funplace]

I am not mechanically incline whatsover. So, I am putting it out there. The circular plastic part on my doors is broken in so many pieces. Are there anyone in Orange County, CA that will and can fix these doors for me. I will pay. Thanks in advance.

[funplace]

anyone here that can help with this?