How to replace a 2000 Toyota corolla door handle?

Answer 1

Replacing the handle is easy, but be careful not to force anything as there are a few small plastic parts that can break.

first you need to completely remove the screw that is inside the door handle.

next, slide the whole assembly forward, towards the front of the car. there are some tabs on the back of the handle that hold it in place. once you have pushed the handle forwards about a half of an inch, it should pop out of the door. you may have to help it a little bit with a flat prying object, like a putty knife, but if it doesn't come out easily you probably need to push it further forward.

once you have it popping out of the door, pull forward a little more. there is a rod hooking the handle to the latch assembly with a 90 degree bend and a small white plastic clip to keep in in place. the plastic clip will stay attached to the door handle until the rod is removed. to remove the rod you have to unclip the plastic piece from the horizontal part of the rod and twist it around intill the rod is free to pull strait up and out of the handle. before you let go of the rod it's a good idea to put either a long piece of tape on it or tape it to the inside of the door so that it doesn't fall down inside.

the installation of the new one is just the reverse of the removal. if your new handle didn't come with a white plastic clip to secure the rod you will have to transfer it from the old one. get it into place and then insert the rod, and rotate the clip to secure it. insert the handle assembly into the door forward of where it should go, making sure that the plastic "hooks" go into the corresponding slots in the door. slide the handle backwards, using a putty knife or something similar to get the door skin underneath the handle, and install the screw when everything is lined up.

if your white plastic clip for the rod breaks it is possible to secure the rod using another method. at either the hardware store or the auto parts store they have an item called a "push nut". it's basically a thin metal washer with a bunch of radial cuts on the inside, and is pushed out a little to one side. if you get the correct size for the metal rod inside the door, you can use one of these push nuts on the bottom to keep the door handle from slipping off of the rod. so you would put the door handle onto the rod and then push on one of the push nuts just until it gets a good bite on the rod, then install your door handle as above. This is what i used because i couldn't find the plastic clip for less than the price of an arm and a leg.