whispergarden

Hi There,

My father has a 2000 Accord and the exterior handle on the driver's side broke. (The connection on one side of it no longer catches so lifting the handle no longer releases the door. The door opens fine from the inside.)

He is the type of man that will tolerate the inconvenience of opening the door from the inside through the passenger side until the car is no longer drivable. However, he just had heart surgery and cannot lift his arm for 6 weeks so I'm determined to help him get this fixed despite all his pushback. I ordered a handle but cannot afford the labor to have it installed. Can you please tell me if replacing it is simple enough for him to do himself (and if so, please share how to do this so I can email him)? I live in another state...otherwise I'd just go over and replace it myself. :p

Thank you for your help.
Ali

75aces

Is this for a coupe or sedan?

whispergarden

Oh sorry! It's a 2000 Honda Accord 2-door EX.

75aces

I hope this link helps. Good luck.
http://www.hondapartsnow.com/body_ai...door~lock.html

whispergarden

hmmm...that helps in showing all the intricate parts related to the door opening but I didn't see where it guides you in replacing an exterior handle. Any chance you have a link to those instructions?

75aces

i'll do what i can. consult with haynes repair manual. do you see a black grommet on the door jamb? I'm not familiar with this model year. The best I can suggest is too try to follow a rod that connects into the lock mechanism and follow up to handle. it'll be difficult to see, but you may have better luck feeling inside the door. good luck. been searching and haven't found info yet.

whispergarden

Thanks 75acres. I appreciate you looking for me. It's starting to look like I'll have to send him to the dealership. (I'm sorry...I'm in GA and he's in FL so I can't get the information you requested.)

75aces

No problem.

dmark

I just finished changing the drivers side exterior door handle on my 2000 Honda Accord. It was easy as long as you know what to look for and once I realized what that was, it took me no time.

I bought a replacement door handle from my local Honda dealership for $50. As long as you still have a factory color, the door handle will match your car and it will not need to be painted.

Once you have taken your door panel off and peeled back the plastic barrier (you don't need to remove all of it) so you are able to see inside your door, the door handle mechanism should be clearly seen.

Look at your new replacement door handle. You should see two holes for the 10mm bolts and a bronze color retaining clip where the key mechanism fits. The retaining clip is the difficult and somewhat hidden part of this replacement.

Start by removing the arm which is connected to he handle used to open your door. I pried the piece out with a flat head screwdriver. Don't worry about damaging the little plastic grommet because there is a new one with the replacement handle. Next, remove the part which unlocks the door when you turn the key. There is a small plastic clip which swivels up when you pop it loose and the metal arm slides out. Be careful because this part is not replaced.

Now that you have removed those two items, look at the bottom of the key lock mechanism and you should see the bottom of the same retainer clip on your new replacement handle. I used a 90degree hook from a 4-piece set I purchased at my local auto parts store for $9.99 (the ones which look like the same tools dentists use to clean your teeth). Once I inserted it into the small, exposed v-slot, I pulled down on the retaining clip, it slid off, and your key mechanism should slide out.

Now remove the two 10mm bolts from the back of the door handle and you should be able to lift the handle up and out from the outside.

When you replace the handle, repeat the steps in reverse. If you wait to put the two 10mm bolts in last, I hope you have small hands, because it will be very tight. I started the bolts first and the last thing I did after the new handle was installed was to tighten them.

I hope this helps.

bcardinalsh

im having the same problem, mines a 98 coupe that i cant seem to get the problem resolved, done everything, theres a little lever that i cant seem to shake off and thats whats holding back, if anyone has any help id appreciate it! thanks