How To Replace Front Outside Door Handle 2000-04 Subaru Outback
Created on: 2012-08-18
Watch this video to learn how to replace the exterior door handle on a 00-04 Subaru Outback.
-
step 1 :Removing the Door Panel
- Pry out the trim button on the door panel with a flat blade screwdriver
- Remove the interior triangular trim piece with a flat blade screwdriver
- Pry up the window switch panel with a flat blade screwdriver
- Disconnect the door lock wiring harness
- Disconnect the window switch wiring harness
- Pry off the trim button on the arm rest with a flat blade screwdriver
- Remove the Phillips screw in the arm rest
- Remove the Phillips screw near the door handle
- Pry off the door handle bezel with a flat blade screwdriver
- Pry out the door panel with a door panel clip tool or putty knife
- Lift the door panel up and off
- Disconnect the courtesy light wiring harness
-
step 2 :Removing the Door Handle
- Pry off the green clip on the door lock rod
- Remove the door lock rod
- Remove the two 10mm bolts on the door handle
- Remove the lock mechanism
- Push the handle up and out
- Disconnect the white clip and pry the lock rod out
- Remove the door handle
-
step 3 :Reinstalling the Door Handle
- Insert the door handle into place
- Hand tighten one of the 10mm bolts to the door handle
- Insert the lock mechanism into place
- Tighten the 10mm bolts to the door handle
- Insert the two lock rods into place
- Close the red and white clips on the lock rods
-
step 4 :Reinstalling the Door Panel
- Put the water shield into place
- Connect the courtesy light wiring harness
- Lift the door panel into place
- Push in the door panel clips
- Push in the door handle bezel
- Push the triangular trim piece in place
- Tighten the Phillips screw near the door handle
- Tighten the Phillips screw on the arm rest
- Connect the lock wiring harness to the switch panel
- Connect the window wiring harness to the switch panel
- Push the switch panel into place
- Push the trim piece onto the arm rest
- Push the trim button on to the door panel
Tools needed
-
Flat Blade Screwdriver
Phillips Head Screwdriver
10mm Socket
Ratchet
Brought to you by 1AAuto.com, your source for quality replacement parts and the best service on the Internet.
Hi, I'm Mike from 1A Auto. I hope this how-to video helps you out, and next time you need parts for your vehicle, think of 1AAuto.com. Thanks.
In this video, I'm going to show you how to replace a front outside door handle on this 2003 Subaru Outback. It's pretty much the same for any 2000 to 2004. The only tools you'll need are a flat blade screwdriver, a Phillips screwdriver and a 10mm socket with a ratchet.
You start with a flat blade screwdriver. There's a little pin here. Reach under, carefully pry it out and pull that out. Right up here at this triangle, it carefully pries off. Your switch plate here, if you want use a cloth underneath here to protect the vinyl, just pry it up at the bottom and then up at the top, and pull this up and out. There are two harnesses, one here. It's a little tab. Press it with your thumb abd disconnect. Then here there's a little tab. Again, press with your thumb. The switch plate comes off. Again with the flat blade screwdriver, there's a little plug here. Now there are two Phillips screws: one here and one back in here. I'll just speed it up here as I just remove those two Phillips screws.
Then once you have those screws out, you can actually just reach right in here with your finger at the bottom corner, pull firmly and quickly, and pull out on the edges here. On this side make sure it's all pulled off. Then, again, one thing I forgot here, use your flat blade screwdriver and carefully pry the bezel around your door handle and that comes off. Pull your door panel out, lift it up, and then there's just one more harness right here, pull it up away from the door panel and off. Now your door panel is off. You want to pull back the top of your water shield here, carefully, try not to rip it.
Then with the window all the way up, right back in here you'll see the back of your handle. There's a little green clip right here, push that off with your finger and pull the rod out. Then there's a 10mm bolt there and one further up. Let's show it here. It's right up above the green clip there. It's a little difficult to get to but I'll show you the angle. The flat bolt that's up in there, using a 10mm socket with a ratchet, and actually I have to stick my head up in there so I can see the bolt and get the ratchet on it and then undo the bolt. Once you have it loosened, it seems to come right out on its own. I'm just using my fingers to turn it counterclockwise. Once that starts coming out, you want to try and be very careful and do your best not to drop the bolt down into the door. Then you reach up in and grab the back of the lock, that's where the green clip is and the lock actually pulls right out.
Now I'm going to do this easy to get to nut or bolt. Now you want to unsnap the handle, and you basically want to come in from here, push up on the front of the handle and out. You want to push up on the handle and pry out with my hand out here. Then, as I pull the handle out, I can look up in there and you'll see a white clip and a rod. Now you want to reach up in there and push that white clip back towards the inside of the door. It's pretty hard to film but then you pull the rod towards the back of the car and now the handle comes right out.
To reinstall the handle, just put the handle right in and snap it in place. On this side, you put the first 10mm bolt, the easy one to get to, put that right in and just hand tighten it. I'll take my lock mechanism and the eye should point straight up. You just look back in there and put it in place. This is kind of the fun one. Get your hand up in there and feel it into place, get into the hole. Get it finger tight as well. Now this next part is all by feel. You want to grab the larger rod and then feel up in there for the clip and the hole where it goes. It's actually not too difficult, you pull it away from the outside of the door a little bit, slide it forward, and it finds its way into the hole. Once you get the clip rod in, it's actually pretty easy to reach up, grab the clip, and flip it down. This one, the lock is right there, put it into the green clip and flip that clip locked. Make sure you have your wrench on the tighten mode and tighten up these two bolts. The first one's easier. The second one, again I have to almost go upside down, peek in there, get the socket on the bolt, and tighten it up.
Put this water shield up in place. To reinstall the door panel, just make sure you plug in your courtesy light. Then bring the door panel up, a little higher than it goes, make sure it hangs on the window sill correctly, and look here at your door handle and make sure it's lined up correctly. Then push your clips in gently at first, and then apply a little more pressure and push that in right around the edge of the door panel. Put this trim back on, put this triangle piece back in place, reinstall your two screws, push this little pin back in, and it does take a little bit of pressure to lock it in place. Take your switch panel, and this wire goes through there. Make sure you fish this wire through the top here, plug that in there, one to this in there, and just take this and push right down back into place. Last but not least, this little plug goes back in place.
We hope this video helps you out. Brought to you by www.1AAuto.com, your source for quality replacement parts and the best service on the Internet. Please feel free to call us toll-free, 888-844-3393. We're the company that's here for you on the Internet and in person.
How to Replace Exterior Door Handle 1995-2000 Chevy Tahoe
Watch this video to learn how to replace an exterior door handle. The experts at 1A Auto show how to replace a broken or snapped outside door handle on your 88-98 Chevy Silverado, Suburban, or Tahoe; or GMC Sierra or Yukon.
