Door Handle Replacment 2003 TL
03-18-2012, 01:17 AM
#1
Door Handle Replacment 2003 TL
The driver outside door handle broke (the chrome part). I have the replacement part and attempted a fix. Took off the door panel, removed the plastic so I could access the door interior, took-off two 10mm bolts attached ot teh door-handle backing plate, and the lock-sensor off. However, I could not see how to remove the handle assembly. It appears the lock-cylinder was holding things up. Any suggestions?
03-24-2012, 06:58 PM
#2
I solved this with a little help. Here are a few pointers/steps:
Notes: The replacement part comes with the chrome handle, and the whole door-handle insert that matches the color of your car (the bulk of the part).
1) Remove the inside door panel (see other blog posts for instructions). Also peel back the inside plastic lining. Make sure you have lots of room. I suggest getting a strong light on the floor pointing up from the inside to the door handle area. A strong flashlight is handy.
2) Remove the window guide (a piece of metal covered with black rubber). There is a 10m bolt low on the door that needs to be removed. At the top of the door, by the window-glass, near the door-lock-pull, there is a little notch-clasp that holds the top of the window-guide. Wiggle the window-guide to spot this notch-clasp. Remember what it looks like. Use a small screwdriver, lift-move the notch-clasp so the window-guide can be removed. DO NOT Remove the black-rubber from the window guide.
3) Remove a black rubber access-hole cover that allows you access to the key-lock area.
4) Use a Philips screw-driver to remove one screw that holds a white switch-sensor from the backend of the key-cylinder. Note the sensor switch position, particularly where the sensor-switch blade matches the slot on the key-clock-cylinder.
5) Now the hard part. There is a brass C-lock-ring that holds the key-lock-cylinder to the door-handle assembly (look at your new part for an example). This needs to be removed. The difficulty is that the backing plate covers easy access to this C-lock-ring. I took the car to an auto-body shop for assistance. The technician pulled out an ice-pick/awl tool that had a 90 degree bend. He then used this tool to slide the point into a small notch in the door-handle assembly and yanked the C-lock-ring away from the assembly.
6) Remove the two 10mm bolts that hold the backing plate. The door handle assembly will be free to move outside the door.
7) Use a screwdriver to remove the door-opening-rod from the old door handle. The screw-driver should be applied on the rod-side of the lock, next to the rod. A simple twist does the trick. No need to deform plastic or rubber.
8) Make sure to transfer the weather stripping from the old handle to the new handle. The new door-handle assembly comes with a new C-lock-ring. Leave this C-lock-ring in-place.
9) Attach the door-opening-rod and maneuver the new door-handle assembly into place. Make sure the weather stripping is properly seated.
10) The second hard-part. Re-install the two 10mm bolts that hold the backing plate, but do not tighten all the way. You will need a little wiggle room. Now maneuver the key-lock-cylinder into the new door-handle assembly lining up the various slots. Take a 10mm socket on an extension, place it through the access hole, with the socket on-top of the key-lock-cylinder. Put your hand on the outside door-handle assembly and give the socket a good little whack with a soft mallet (or the palm of your hand). The key-lock-cylinder will slide past the new C-Lock-Ring and snap into-place.
11) Put it all back together. Tighten all screws/bolts. Watch the sensor-blade alignment with the slot in the key-lock-cylinder. You did remember where the window guide attached? Note that the adhesive that holds the plastic in-place is kinda still sticky. Just put it back in place and a warm day will re-seal that adhesive (or made a hot-air dryer will speed things along on a winter day).
Good luck. Post your experience on this thread.
Notes: The replacement part comes with the chrome handle, and the whole door-handle insert that matches the color of your car (the bulk of the part).
1) Remove the inside door panel (see other blog posts for instructions). Also peel back the inside plastic lining. Make sure you have lots of room. I suggest getting a strong light on the floor pointing up from the inside to the door handle area. A strong flashlight is handy.
2) Remove the window guide (a piece of metal covered with black rubber). There is a 10m bolt low on the door that needs to be removed. At the top of the door, by the window-glass, near the door-lock-pull, there is a little notch-clasp that holds the top of the window-guide. Wiggle the window-guide to spot this notch-clasp. Remember what it looks like. Use a small screwdriver, lift-move the notch-clasp so the window-guide can be removed. DO NOT Remove the black-rubber from the window guide.
3) Remove a black rubber access-hole cover that allows you access to the key-lock area.
4) Use a Philips screw-driver to remove one screw that holds a white switch-sensor from the backend of the key-cylinder. Note the sensor switch position, particularly where the sensor-switch blade matches the slot on the key-clock-cylinder.
5) Now the hard part. There is a brass C-lock-ring that holds the key-lock-cylinder to the door-handle assembly (look at your new part for an example). This needs to be removed. The difficulty is that the backing plate covers easy access to this C-lock-ring. I took the car to an auto-body shop for assistance. The technician pulled out an ice-pick/awl tool that had a 90 degree bend. He then used this tool to slide the point into a small notch in the door-handle assembly and yanked the C-lock-ring away from the assembly.
6) Remove the two 10mm bolts that hold the backing plate. The door handle assembly will be free to move outside the door.
7) Use a screwdriver to remove the door-opening-rod from the old door handle. The screw-driver should be applied on the rod-side of the lock, next to the rod. A simple twist does the trick. No need to deform plastic or rubber.
8) Make sure to transfer the weather stripping from the old handle to the new handle. The new door-handle assembly comes with a new C-lock-ring. Leave this C-lock-ring in-place.
9) Attach the door-opening-rod and maneuver the new door-handle assembly into place. Make sure the weather stripping is properly seated.
10) The second hard-part. Re-install the two 10mm bolts that hold the backing plate, but do not tighten all the way. You will need a little wiggle room. Now maneuver the key-lock-cylinder into the new door-handle assembly lining up the various slots. Take a 10mm socket on an extension, place it through the access hole, with the socket on-top of the key-lock-cylinder. Put your hand on the outside door-handle assembly and give the socket a good little whack with a soft mallet (or the palm of your hand). The key-lock-cylinder will slide past the new C-Lock-Ring and snap into-place.
11) Put it all back together. Tighten all screws/bolts. Watch the sensor-blade alignment with the slot in the key-lock-cylinder. You did remember where the window guide attached? Note that the adhesive that holds the plastic in-place is kinda still sticky. Just put it back in place and a warm day will re-seal that adhesive (or made a hot-air dryer will speed things along on a winter day).
Good luck. Post your experience on this thread.
The following users liked this post:
victus1 (03-24-2012)
04-14-2012, 09:22 AM
#3
Thanks for the post. I was changing the actuator on my 99tl last night and ended up in a mess. This post was a major help.
The one thing I cant seem to figure out, even now that everything is back together and working, is how you remove door opening rod. From either end. After I had everything out I still couldn't see a way to remove this rod.
Thanks again for the information.
The one thing I cant seem to figure out, even now that everything is back together and working, is how you remove door opening rod. From either end. After I had everything out I still couldn't see a way to remove this rod.
Thanks again for the information.
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