1999 Toyota Corolla, Driver's Door Won't Open After Replacing Interior Handle

by Julia
(Tucson, AZ USA)

1999 Toyota Corolla
All of the interior door handles have broken one by one and I've been able to replace them myself. However, when the driver's handle broke, I replaced the handle yet it still will not open. Someone told me the wire rod that opens the door may be warped. My question is, can I fix this myself? If so, how do you "un-warp" the rod? Thank you.

Steve Says,

It is very unlikely that the rod is "warped". It is possible that it is bent, but even that is unlikely. If you really think this is the problem then probably the only thing that might work is if you remove the rod from both sides of the car and make sure they both match.

The most likely cause of your problem is something else inside the door that is not working correctly. It is possible that one of the other rods or plastic connectors have broken or you could have a problem with the latching mechanism. It probably has to do with the plastic connector that is on the rod that goes from the handle to the latch.

To check this just remove the handle that you replaced and try pushing and pulling on the rod that connects to it. See if it will operate the latch. If it does not then you will have to inspect further to see what is going on.

Most of the time these rods are also adjustable. The little plastic pieces that they clip into can be re-positioned so the rod pushes out further or doesn't push out as much. This definitely could be the problem that you are having. Sometimes you cannot buy these little plastic parts from the dealer even so you either have to try your local auto parts store to see if they have a generic one, or you can try getting a used one. Many salvage yards and used parts recyclers will sell them cheap or sometimes even just give them away.
The other thing that you might need to check is that your linkage is not binding. If anything is bent inside your door it could be binding. This is pretty common when you have door latch problems because when they start wearing out we tend to be harder on them. Most people push and pull on them harder and that can cause them to fail.

I hope this has helped. Please post the fix when you figure it out.


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