Outside Door Handle Sticking

mljenkins · April 3, 2010

FYI for anyone with an '06 or similar model where the outside door handle begins to stay in the pulled out (opening) position: After removing the door panel and removing the handle assembly, I found the rod that the handle hinges on was severely rusted. I had tried to spray WD-40 in that area previously with no avail. I had to resolve the issue because people were getting in my passenger side door and forgetting to push the handle back in. This caused the door to not open or unlock from the inside, creating a great inconvenience (roll the window down and let yourself out, hah) and somewhat of a safety hazard (someone needs to exit quick for whatever reason I'll leave for you to imagine).

After I removed the handle I tried to fix it with some oil to the inside of the handle assembly with no luck. I finally decided that a slightly smaller screw of I think it was 1/4" in size was going to do better than that stupid metal rusted rod (thanks Chevy for not using a stainless part in a rust prone area, yeah I had to get that in there). So, I dremeled off the top of the rod, pushed it out with a nail and hammer, and put the screw through there with two nuts on the other side to keep them from falling off (I made sure the screw head was at the top). Works like a charm.

I found really good instructions for removing the door panel at: http://www.bodyshopzone.com/archives/trim/...move_02_CK.html

I then had to figure out how to get the manual window crank off, which was accomplished from some tips here: http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/index.php?...mp;#entry995546

I left the window in the up position the entire time so I could get to the nuts holding on the door handle assembly.

There were three nuts holding the handle assembly on there. I first removed the rod going to the door lock by gently twisting the rod and little green piece of plastic at the same time and then sliding the rod out. I then removed the nuts on the handle assembly, starting with the most difficult one that was behind the window glass first (I had to roll the window down about 1" so I could see through the glass to see the nut). I used a closed end 10mm wrench to get to the nut.

The second nut was easily gotten through a hole in the door. I didn't have an extension to reach it so I ended up just using my ratchet up inside the door. The final nut was gotten after removing a little black plastic/rubber cap from the side of the door. I carefully removed the last nut while holding the handle so the handle (or nut) didn't fall to the ground. I then removed the rod going to the door latch by twisting it and sliding it out of the white plastic holder.

I then took the handle assembly to my bench, tried some oil, gave up, and removed the rod that the handle hinged on with the screw (I think it was 1/4").

To put it back together I put the door latch rod back on, inserted the assembly into the door, tightened all three nuts, put the rod back on that went to the door lock, and put the door panel back on.

The only downside was that I lost the clip that held the window handle on. Oh well. Now I get to hear people complain about that. <sigh>

Anyhow, I look forward to doing this on my drivers side in a year or so. I can already feel it starting to tighten up. Oh well, I still love the truck.

Grebbler · April 4, 2010

Thanks for the info. Mine are a bit stiff, also, and now I know where to look.

mljenkins · April 5, 2010

The only negative I have seen so far is the handle is just a tad bit loose, I mean just ever so slightly it has a tiny wiggle when you pull on the handle. To me not a big deal because the major issue was fixed at no cost other than my time. I managed to pickup the window handle retainer clips at Advanced Auto for $2.49 for an assortment of them.

Vortec-Z71 · April 5, 2010

The only negative I have seen so far is the handle is just a tad bit loose, I mean just ever so slightly it has a tiny wiggle when you pull on the handle. To me not a big deal because the major issue was fixed at no cost other than my time. I managed to pickup the window handle retainer clips at Advanced Auto for $2.49 for an assortment of them.

This can be fixed by turning the rod that connects to the handle inside the door. One way tightens it and the other loosens it. If your handle is a little bit loose, a turn or two in the right direction should fix it.

Also, I would use something other than WD-40 to lubricate the handle. WD-40 tends to dry up over time. I have the GM Superlube at the link below. That stuff works great.

http://paceperformance.com/index.asp?PageA...p;ProdID=148448