The reason why I used a nail vs a screw...the threads in the screw can cause cracks in the plastic as the threads are sharper and contacts the plastic with less surface area. Only time will tell how well the repair stands up.

I've been thinking about reinforcing the unbroken handles before they break. Does this seem like a good direction to head towards?

 

The reason why I used a nail vs a screw...the threads in the screw can cause cracks in the plastic as the threads are sharper and contacts the plastic with less surface area. Only time will tell how well the repair stands up

Also, just and FYI - Amazon has Dorman replacement handle assemblies for about $18 plus shipping. I have no idea of the quality, but if the handle breaks in an unrepairable spot at least it's not too expesive to replace. And it looks like you just swap over the lock cylinder (and maybe the cable holders) and you're good to go. :thumbsup:

Well that didn't last long! Well the door handle busted again...and this time it was a big chunk of the plastic handle that split and it's now non-repairable.

So FYI, follow Bam's advice and use a nail and epoxy if you have a fixable unit. Nail good, screw bad (at least in my case). The plastic looks a little brittle. :thumbsup:

Looks like I will order a Dorman unit, unless I get a good deal on an OEM unit (if they are even still available).

 

Yeah I thought about the screw cracking it, but I am gambling on the gripping properties of the screw, and the epoxy to fill in any gaps the screw edges may have left (making up for surface area). At any rate, the force required to push down the mechanism isn't that great so if it breaks again that means the plastic is shot. And if the plastic is that brittle, I'll just replace the handle anyway.

Reinforcing the unbroken handle isn't a bad idea if you feel like tinkering. Once you have some epoxy and few spare nails or screws you're kinda set.

 

Thanks for this SC! Now I will know what to look for if mine breaks!!!

 

Thanks for this SC! Now I will know what to look for if mine breaks!!!

No problem! It's a pretty easy fix for a really inconvenient failure.

Also, just and FYI - Amazon has Dorman replacement handle assemblies for about $18 plus shipping. I have no idea of the quality, but if the handle breaks in an unrepairable spot at least it's not too expesive to replace. And it looks like you just swap over the lock cylinder (and maybe the cable holders) and you're good to go. :thumbsup:

 

I use the cheap aftermarket door handle and it broke in 2 weeks so I ended up getting a new one from Toyota it was expensive but it will probably last another 18 years.

 

There's 12 pages of door handles on www.car-part.com but some of them are the new aftermarket crap.

You might git lucky on the ones on CL...but there's no guarantee...

 

Well I should have my Toyota (OEM) door handle tomorrow. It is a bit expensive, but I didn't feel like putting a cheap one in and replacing it again in a few weeks/months.

So in my case the best way to fix the door handle is to get a new one. :thumbsup:

Ps. TOYOPARTSMAN definitely has the best prices online. But I happen to have a family member working for Toyota. But the only difference in this case between the "family/employee discount" and TOYOPARTSMAN's was shipping and time. So if you need parts, definitely order from him.

Also, there are apparantly 9 door handles for the T100 driver's side sitting in the local warehouse. Seems they break all the time!

 

Thanks for the info. I had to replace mine over the weekend, driver door handle broke. Sure wish they werent made of plastic

 

Sure wish they werent made of plastic

True, but the plastic ones last about 15 years, so it's not too bad. And if you get the dealer part (genuine Toyota), while a bit expensive, it should last another 14-15 years. :thumbsup:

 

My neighbor's Chevy Colorado's tailgate handle broke...so I got and installed a new handle in fer him.

That meant I had a broken one to play with...so I did my nail mod to it.
http://www.355nation.net/forum/exterior/25395-broken-tailgate-handle-2.html#post1779580

See...I can show some love to the Chevy trucks, too.

 

Grrr...my driver's side door handle finally gave out this morning.

Looks like my priority this morning will be doing my nail mod to the handle once I git the door panel off and the door handle removed.

 

I used a 9/32" (1/8" would work as well as it would be a little tighter) drill bit to drill my hole. I'm guessing it was a 8d (8 penny is about .131" diameter) nail as it was one from a nail gun that I had to pull from some scrap wood.

I was lucky that my piece didn't snap all the way off so I didn't have to worry about alignment or sticking on there while I drilled the hole. I did have to push down on the metal bar so it would take the pressure off of the plastic nub so my hole would be straight.

I drilled the hole so it would pass underneath the pivot bar and out the back side of the support beam. I found a broken piece at the bottom of the door to show you where it should pass through.



I cut the nail to 1.25" long so there would be just enough to apply a little bit of support past the hole. I will round off the edges of the cut part so it doesn't bite into the plastic and cause potential problems later on down the road. I don't have any epoxy so I'm not sure what I will use to secure the nail.


Total time to do this mod/repair is just about 30 minutes if yer not taking piccies and posting them in a thread. It only cost a few "pennies" to do this mod compared to finding a door handle, gitting it shipped, and waiting fer it to show up or finding one in a parts yard that's not broken...yet.

 

Funny you mention this. There's a T100 in the LKQ near me, but it's a regular cab 3.0 auto, so there isn't much I can salvage for my truck.

I looked long and hard a the door handles though, but decided they are likely old and would probably break in the not-too-distant future. Wish I knew if they had been replaced recently!

 

Reassembled the door handle enough to the point where I could drive to Home Depot and got some Loc-Tite 5 minute epoxy. Mixed enough to go between the broken bits and the nail. Make sure you clean up any excess epoxy and be very detailed about the cleaning. You don't want to epoxy the moving bits together. I used multiple rubber bands to keep the metal bar from exerting any stress/pressure on the handle. The handle should be able to move freely while the epoxy is setting.

Looks like it takes about 24 hours fer the epoxy to fully harden. Guess I'll be running around without the door handle on. I'll have to attach something to the push rod so I can open the door from the outside.

I didn't want to take any chances that the epoxy would go where I really didn't want it to go...so I disassembled it!

I filed the flattened end of the pivot bar so I could pull it through to release the handle without the bar breaking anything along the way. I pulled the pin (no...the spring won't fly away) and cleaned up all the excess epoxy that had oozed in between the handle and the housing. At least I won't have to worry about it fusing the handle and housing together!

Piccies!

Pivot pin end filed down...


Ready to set...


Dried up grease...


Nail epoxied in place...


I think one of the reasons why the handle fails is because there really isn't any significant support besides the plastic beam. Also, the original yellow grease dries up and the sliding portion of the metal bar starts to bind up just a little...even with the nylon washer in place. Looks like I'll have to lube this sucker up after I reassemble it as well as the rest of the door linkage. No, I'm not even thinking about using WD-40 at all as it's not a long term lubricant.

 

Yup that is how I fixed mine, BTW I did such a good job it was really hard to even see my repair and it has held up great also lubricating everything certainly helped but so far so good and it’s been nearly a year. Unfortunately my transmission is slipping so bad I cannot drive it and I am on the hunt for a cheap......or rather less expensive replacement. The truck did its fair share of towing boats in its previous life so I guess 265,xxx miles is not too bad.

 

god i got a surplus of thees handles !

every time i find a t100 is the parts yards i get most of the truck

also i remember that for some reason the chrome ones crack more then the plain jane black

 

I need to replace mine...can anyone provide a part number or such when I call the dealership for a replacement? I just want to make sure I get the right assembly. I have a '95 T100 DX (no power windows or such)..just the good ole fashioned cranks.

I found this on Amazon..will this work?

http://www.amazon.com/Genuine-Toyota-69220-34020-Exterior-Driver/dp/B005VWRORY/ref=au_pf_ss_2?ie=UTF8&Make=Toyota%7C76&Model=T100%7C1036&Year=1995%7C1995&carId=003&n=15684181&s=automotive

Also, what's the best way to remove the crank door handle? I don't really want to have to purchase one of those tools?

 

I ended up buying this one below. The reviews weren't all that bad and the price is unbeatable...hope it will work well. I just don't want to put a ton of money in my truck right now.

[ame]http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003R79NU6/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1[/ame]

 

Put the Dorman unit in today...easy install. Some reviews on Amazon mentioned the thinness of the gasket. Well I just used the gasket from the broken door on the Dorman unit and it worked fine. Just some minor trimming on the three bottom tabs. Now just hope it holds up. But for $16 shipped what more do you want.

 

Mmm odd never had to trim the tabs
That's odd

 

I have had them all dorman tyc help oem Toyota etc etc etc
Never had to trim any of them

 

Ok so my handle broke as well. I googled and this thread came up and I used it to replace mine. Thanks for posting the tutorial. I also purchased a Dorman replacement and I used the supplied gasket because mine looked like it was not in reusable condition. Got mine on amazon as well.

I did have trouble getting the rods disconnected and found the youtube video below. Which I found extremely helpful. It also showed me where a hole was to unbolt the furthest bolt otherwise I would not have figured that out because it was hidden behind a sticker on my door at least. In the video he uses a weird tool to unclip the tabs from the rods. I used a long allen wrench in the same fashion he does it in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bWib4H-XvU&app=desktop

I did have a little trouble bolting it all back up. I think the Dorman bolts were a hair off from the door mounting brackets. So I just bent the brackets gently to where I needed them.

 

I broke my handle last summer and found out how easy it was to break into a T100. I like my truck but its shamefully simple to break into:facepalm:

 

I don't keep anything of value in mine and I don't think anyone is looking to steal a 19 year old truck with over 300,000 miles on it so I'm not to worried about it. The only reason to break in would be to get the historical artifact of a tape deck.

 

Wow, I didn't realize this thread was started in 2012.

Well then, just FYI for anyone who might be interested:

My OEM Toyota handle is still going strong after two years. I'll update if it decides to break any time soon.

 

yeah, that's funny, I am the same way. I only made the reference in case a user needed in without much trouble, but I did not want to just post the directions.

And to SC T100

The metal on these aftermarket handles look softer, good thing they are cheap, it seems to be a regular problem, or at least a bit consistent.

By the way: good looking truck!

 

Gotcha. Honestly I didn't look at original post date. I just updated it in case anyone else googled and found this post the same way I did.

 

No no, don't get me wrong...I wasn't saying it was a bad thing to revive the thread. I think it's great to update them!

And thanks for the complement re: my truck...I'm a big fan too!

 

Had the same problem; tries Bam's fix, it worked for about 3 days then broke again (His fix is good:thumbsup: MY work was bad

) rebroke the part:headbang:
So went to the ol' interweb to Amazon found a replacement; hooked it up and have been opening and closing like new ever since.
My advice? Try Bam's idea first, its quick and follow his instructions, exactly and you will be OK and save some $.