snaphappy

Opened my door from the inside and the door handle sounded like it exploded. It sounded like little parts fell down inside the door. The handle still works, but it’s hanging loose, kinda flopping around. And now the window doesn’t go up when I close the door.

What happened? Where do I begin? I’m gonna DIY this for sure

sbbarnett

jkoravos

You been working out?

Steph1

This is one fix you can do yourself. Most of all, on this particular part, it is cheaper at the dealership by quite a lot. $80-$100 ebay and amazon, $30 at the dealer. I was surprised and glad I checked with them.

As for installation, a good $20 worth of automotive panel removing tools is a good investment to save the $350 the dealer would charge you for the job.

Just buy the part and tools and follow the youtube videos. Straight and forward.

blairb

Had the same thing happen to me a few months ago. The forum and videos were very helpful in helping me repair it!

Dartmouth

Easy fix. Door handle axle is the part name. Buy from Pelican Parts part #997-555-381-03 or Suncoast Parts #9X7HL ( which includes the cable which I didn't use and found not necessary to replace. Follow the YOUTUBE video for replacing the speaker for the best step by step for removing the door panel itself, and then follow the door handle axle video replacement for step by step for removing the broken door handle axle. This is an easy fix for anyone! A difficulty of 3 out of 10. Cost $25-50.

TheBruce

The only thing to remember, which he doesnt seem to mention in the video, is that the new lever has a slightly different design where the cable connects to it. You definitely can use the old cable but need to remove the plastic sheet thats on the old cable to make it fit. It confused me when I first tried to install but was eventually able to find some posts about it.

Another tip that @Petza914 gave me was to put the handle back on and align it BEFORE u put the door panel back on.

Petza914

We're talking about the silver door handle on the inside of the door that screws onto the post. The reason is that has to mate properly with the door spear when in the closed position for the pin that's molded into the back of the silver handle to go through the little hole and mate with the microswitch that controls the window drop function that happens when you pull and release the handle. The way that part attaches to the backside of the door panel is with 3 screws that reside in little slots. If you don't do this step, you'll put it all back together just to find out you need to take it apart to loosen those screws and adjust the assembly so they handle lays down correctly when it's reinstalled.

All of this should make sense once you're in there. Until you get the parts, pushing on the inside door handle after you've closed the door, should make the microswitch so the window pops back up, but when you hit bumps it may do a little window dance as that switch gets made and then open.

Good luck.

doclouie

My driver’s side door became floppy today. Time to buy a new part. This is pretty much the first issue I have had in owning the car for 20 months. That is not bad in my book. I love working on cars.

snaphappy

It’s a pretty easy job. Let me know if you need any help or have any questions.

doclouie

Thanks. I will.

Jack667

Just happened to me yesterday! Must be an epidemic!

doclouie

I fixed mine this weekend. It actually was pretty easy. Took like an hour. They have changed the part even since my 2009, but you can just use the bottom portion like everyone has said. Part was surprisingly cheap.

Jack667

Question for folks who have had this issue - how is functionality impacted? Is it still safe to drive the car around like this for a while? I ordered the part in from Suncoast, after navigating their site and matching the item to the number above (#9X7HL) but I had it shipped via ground and it will take a while to get to me.
In my case, for now, it is floppy but still seems to work just fine. There's a moment of 4-way flasher blinking, but otherwise everything seems normal.
Thx!

doclouie

Completely safe. I drove around for 2 weeks like this while the part was being shipped. Being floppy it just will not hold it against the micro switch on the inside so the window might stay down the 1/2” when you close the door. It will close when you start driving or when you lock the door. If you don’t lock the door it may stay open the 1/2”.