No problem, good luck with the repair!

Thanks Gerald! The "very reasonable price ones" like the one I got work fine, but use different bolts indeed. Similar, but not quite the same.

They all break at one point or another. When I was a kid, door handles were metal, and nobody would have it any other way.

Thank you!

thanks for the tip. i have been fighting my replacement door because the self tap screws dont match up

OK, good luck, it's trickier than it looks. Hope it goes well--looking forward to hearing!

Excellent, great to hear!

Thanks Keith! Glad this helped you out!

Me too. Finally, for once I avoided getting screwed over by a mechanic. Yea!

keith jones There are several other fix-it videos I have on this car, you might want to check them out. Not that you want anything to happen, of course, but just in case.

I hear ya! They mechanic told me $120 a door to replace both the inside and the outside as most of my doors are broken on either side. Its going to take a bunch of time but looks like I'll save a ton of money and this vide3o will help speed things up. I ordered all the pieces needed on Amazon for around $50 bucks to replace all 4 doors.

Yes, it's the very limited room that makes this job a lot more difficult than it seems. I appreciate your tips, perhaps that will help someone else, as ours are all done. Thanks for watching.

No problem!

Sure, no problem. Yep, these cold days are just too cold to do anything outside.

Both, huh? Terrible. The inside handle on this car broke as well, I haven't gotten around to changing it yet. When I mentioned this to my dad, he asked what I meant by it being broken. He asked me "Aren't they metal?". Of course the last time he bought a car was over 25 years ago, and he's still driving it! Back then, they WERE metal, inside and out! Thanks to breaking pieces of plastic on our cars, they are now somehow "safer". I'll bet anything that an old American "road sofa" from the 70's won't so much show a dent, as a new car will be totalled due to the "crumple zones" now. Funny--car's in an accident, it crumples up, and you throw it away. Disposable everything. But make sure you recycle--oh yeah, there's no metal anyway!

Hey Jaykay, I replaced mine today and I think Ebay really sent me a Generic Brand because the OEM bolts did not fit as they should. The metal grommet for one of the bolts came off. I snapped it back in but now it has a slight gap where by the seam where the lock is. However, did works, everything else is nice and tight. You were right though, it was suppose to be just a few minutes and took about 3 hours. I had to saw off the old handle cause I could not get the automatic metal bar to pop off. Again, thanks for all your help!

sly Same here! The ones you find online are super-cheap, direct from China to you (on a slow row boat). That's what I got too, and the same thing happened. Bottom line here is that it works. I can promise you that even with the original handle when the car was brand new, one 10mm bolt holding the lock cylinder in is no match for Mr. Big Screwdriver. If they want in, they're getting in. The seam is caused because the handle was not installed EXACTLY correct; there are 3 small plastic clips on the bottom of the handle, and believe it or not, they are what hold the handle assembly in place against the door. I couldn't understand how these tiny clips were responsible for such a big job, but they are! As long as it works...

+paradox.c.moron That depends on what handle you got as a replacement. If you got an el-cheapo, you'll need 1 new bolt. If you got OEM, you can reuse the same ones. I just looked around for a bolt I had that fit, so I couldn't tell you what kind it was.

Yeah the used ones are probably all used up! The one I got was from banggood.com, it was $7 including shipping. Problem is it takes a month to get.

+therosses5 That works too. Usually they'll just loot whatever money or electronics are in there. A friend of mine has a neighbor that leaves a $5 bill in plain sight as bait, and the doors unlocked. When the thieves come around, they take the bait and leave without touching anything else.

+jaykay18 LOL. Yeah we've had windows broken just to get a few quarters while other goods worth a few hundred dollars in the back seat were left untouched. It's sad. Take care.

therosses5 I had the same thing happen to me, they took nothing. Fortunately the glass was covered but such inconvenience and aggravation.

+jaykay18 We must be neighbors! :-)

+WindowReplacementAgencyOfMilwaukee Thank you.

+Maeanne Saechao One bolt goes back as it was. The other hole on the new handle had a threaded insert, which I used an appropriate sized screw for.

Oh, not at all! The handles on my 67 Buick Riviera still work fine after 51 years!

jaykay18 the grandfather’s 67 fairlane has good handles as well... Darn how I miss old cars...

I don't have to since I own one.

+Sung Ku No problem, thanks for watching!

Thanks!

+Maeanne Saechao Since a lot of these replacement handles are Chinese knockoffs, they will often alter stuff like that. Best to bring the new part with you, and tell them you need a bolt to fit it. You might also stop into a local hardware store where they actually have people that can help you. They could also find the right bolt for you.

Matthew Brishke You're going to need to get the door panel off inside the car. It's not going to be easy, nor comfortable. You might start with the inside door handle, see if you can manually pull on the rod once you get the plastic off. If the rod doesn't move, you'll need to use brute force. If the rod moves but feels like it's disconnected at the other end, you'll need to remove the entire door panel. Honestly, if the door is damaged, it may have damaged some internal components which would require the door to be replaced.

Thats what i was thinking i have a new door with new components and everything im jist trying to replace the entire thing

Thanks jaykay18

jaykay18​

Excellent question. I actually dealt with this on a 1990 Honda Civic (I think it was). Since the child lock was on, you can't use the inside handle. Usually when the outer handle breaks, you can still use a screwdriver to pry between the bottom seat of the handle and the frame of the handle. That may be enough for you to move what's left of the handle to open the door. If not, then plan B is to take the door panel off inside the car with the door closed. It will be tricky, it will be tight, you'll probably need some stubby screwdrivers. You'll also likely break some door panel clips (you can usually match them up at an auto parts store for replacement if need be). Once you have the door panel open, find the lever that is actuated by the outer door handle and pull/push it to open the door. Then proceed replacing the handle. It's a shame, too, since they used to make door handles out of metal. If they still did, this type of problem wouldn't exist!

It's fairly straightforward, in fact most repairs on cars are straightforward, if it weren't for the problem of accessibility. Some cars are worse than others; I found this job to definitely be a bit more challenging than it should have been. Good luck!

I believe I actually ordered that from banggood.com

@@jaykay18 That was fast! : ) I only found "the Outer Door Handle Driver Front Left for Toyota CAMRY 1997-2001" I need it for my right rear side passenger door but can't find it anywhere. Heeelp! www.banggood.com/Wholesale-New-Toyota-CAMRY-1997-2001-White-Outer-Outside-Door-Handle-Driver-Front-Left-p-52778.html?rmmds=search&cur_warehouse=CN

Unfortunately you'd have to look elsewhere. Amazon? Ebay? I'm sure you'll find it for not much money.

@@jaykay18 Got it on eBay. Thanks! Kind of you to help.

Great!

It's called an "outer door handle driver front left", but you're probably best just searching for "2000 toyota door handle" until you see a picture that's right, and then verify it against what you need very carefully, so you don't get the wrong one. Remember, most of what you'll find are Chinese-knockoffs, including the one I bought. I got mine at www.banggood.com. For this item, their website states 2-6 business days. In actuality, it's 7-15 business days, plus lead time until they ship, so expect it in a month and no sooner.

Thank you I have a 2001 Camry

jaykay18 i too have the "exact" same problem, even appears to have broken just like yours. i also agree with restoremyaudio , though you were a tad bit harsh, lol. in what he said i feel it's too bad. though, i've had a bad stroke so only my left arm works, i NEVER get into something without googleing the heck out of it first. same thing with the car. i had to replace the little spring thing that goes in the fuel door. that was the first in a rather long line of car fixer uppers that i'm glad to say is about done. PartsGeek.com is where i get most all "heavy" stuff. but at yours, banggood.com , i did find a swell data code reader! for the rediculosly low price of 20$ m/l!! thank you in advance, lol

David C Akemann Thanks Dave!

Thank you.

These handles really don't have the best design. At this point my car is 16 New York years old, so the handles don't have to match anymore, just work. There are small tabs on the bottom of the handle that keep it flush with the door, and of course the bolts snug it up.

jaykay18 My car's been in Cleveland since 2005, but it's debatable if it's been here since production, or the previous owners moved from California to here. 0 rust though, since it's been well maintained, get's waxed every year. Under body still has the coating they put over it. Will be hitting 140,000 miles tomorrow (6/20/2016)!!!

Not once in 11 years has it not started, by the way. I plan on driving her as long as I can, until the point that it becomes not worth my time to fix it, or value wise.

CoinHuntingDrew I hear ya! Mine is starting to leak oil pretty bad but still runs fine.

See, my water pump went a few months ago. I caught it early, brought it to the mechanic. Turns out they ended up finding it needed a new water pump, which had been replaced ~2 years ago and should have lasted longer, so I got a discount since they did it last time. They found an oil leak as well, I always would had a bit every few weeks because I always thought it was burning oil. They fixed it, and also found a few more issues, saying I needed a rear sway bar that my dad did himself and a few other things. They said the struts were going bad in the back, but they appear to be fine. Several days after they replaced this all, I checked my dipstick and there was no oil on the stick. Found out it all leaked out while I was driving, left a stain in my driveway too. Had it towed back, in case, to the shop, and they ripped apart the engine again because they didn't replace one of the seals, and the seal broke due to rotting. They did that for free, since they should have done it a few days before this incident, lol.

+vu Ha No problem.

Not at the time this video was recorded, you couldn't.

Now you know why I said what I said. Sounds and looks like a 5 minutes job. 2 and a half hours later it's done. Should Toyota have made these out of metal for an extra $10, like they used to do years ago, we'd have never met.

Yep. Didn't watch it all the way to the end. Watched it as I was running out to the garage and back. Thanks for the video! It did help.

Chris Lyon No problem Chris!

Yes I agree. They don't make cars with door handles like this anymore, they all stick out. My first car had metal door handles, inside and out.

An even cheaper design.

Thanks. You might wish to inspect yours. Just keep the door locked, pull up on the handle, and reach underneath with your other hand to hold the handle up. Then flex the part you normally pull on, or look on the underside to see if it is starting to break away. If it is you might try some glue before it shears off so you won't have to go through this.

jaykay18 What kind of glue should I use for that?

NJ Zhang To get a good glue job on plastic is nearly impossible.

NJ Zhang Best I could possibly recommend for first attachment is Krazy Glue (cyanoacrylate). Once attached the bond is probably not going to be strong enough to hold for long, so I would follow up with 2-part epoxy. If epoxy doesn't hold it, nothing will.

They all break. I have a video on that topic as well: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/iLpnY7Gn1LDFpp8.html

If you're stuck you had no business doing this job to begin with. Putting in the new handle is simply the reverse of taking it out. Pay attention to your work use the video simply as a guide and you're golden.

restoremyaudio has

Tony Samson you telling him to pay attention BUT you’re video skips the hardest part of the job. Removing and reinstalling the lock rod !! lol 😝

That's the fun part. There's no "successful approach", it's more or less a "grind it till you find it approach".

I hear you there, but I live in MN and am doing this in a driveway, meaning, in addition to freezing my fingers because gloves don't allow for any feel and are bulky in that little space, the neighbors get to watch my temporary "Type A Tourettes" kick in every so often. LOL It could be worse though, so I suppose I'm thankful it isn't. Have a good one.

I get that same syndrome from time to time when doing stuff like this. Keep warm, best of luck!

+EvendimataE That's true. I only paid $7 for the handle, so it's not really worth spending almost double for the color to match. The car is getting up there in years, it's at the point where it doesn't matter much what it looks like, as long as it runs.

Fix it just like this.

+Basile Verhulst No problem, thanks for watching.

+david k b Thank you very kindly!