C3 door handle

[Tony 38901]

On my '72, the drivers side door handle is droopy. I've seen the cheapie door handle springs that sell for $8 to "fix" the problem. These are the ones that involve no unassembly. Has anybody used these springs? Are they worth it? Is it better to fix the handle the right way? And what components would I need to fix it the right way? Ho much labor is involved?

[Gary S.]

Re: C3 door handle

I have seen these and it looks like putting a bandaid on instead of fixing it. Nothing more than spring steel, bent to form an angle, then stuffed under the handle. A more lasting fix is to remove the door handle, pull the rod that the handle rotates on and replace the spring. The whole process takes about an hour although the 7/16" nut, at the back of the door opening, is a royal PITA to remove. I got my spring from another door handle that was extrememly ugly, scars, scratches, and such, but didn't have any rust on the rod or the spring. Still working two years later.
Gary

[Patrick H.]

Re: C3 door handle

I just replaced the whole handle. No muss, no fuss, with the exception of the fact that it's still a PITA to remove and reinstall.

PH

[Michael W.]

Also, steer clear of

the cheapo-repo parts. These are usually half the price of the top quality items and seem to feature a self destruct mechanism that almost guarantees your door jamming shut.

Been there done that.

[Tony 38901]

Re: Also, steer clear of

Are there any specific tools that would make this job easier?

[Harmon C.]

Re: Also, steer clear of

Small hands and 1/4" drive ratchet set with flex joint.

[Patrick H.]

Re: Also, steer clear of

Yup. First thing I thought of was "a wife with small hands" rather than my large hands. It takes me a LOT longer to do some things on the car when my wife isn't around.

PH

[Michael W.]

Re: Also, steer clear of

Other than borrowing Patrick's wife, I suggest taking out the three screws on the rear of the door that hold in the latch ass'y. It will hang from the pushrod attached to the handle and the extra space will allow even a Doctor's delicate pinkys to manoeuvre more easily.

[Tony 38901]

Re: Also, steer clear of

Looking at the AIM, there is a "Door Lock Adj. Procedure" that says "Adjust the threaded pin on the lower end of the rod asm. to provide full travel of the handle in the outside door handle housing."
Would this fix my droopy door handle?

[Patrick H.]

Re: Also, steer clear of

Nope.

After this many years, it's more than just a spring problem. It's a wear problem. Even a little Viagra won't help your door handle at this point.

PH, MD

[Patrick H.]

Re: Also, steer clear of

Mikey,

I've done that too. It's still not an area made for large hands.

Patrick

[Klaus Friedrich]

C3 door handle

Gentlemen,

what do we learn from that?

Have you ever (think about it), ever maintained your door handles ???

Some drops of oil or a sprayable grease every springtime is enough to keep the door handle in good shape.

Klaus Friedrich #33362
Corvette Freunde Bodensee
Germany

[Tony 38901]

Re: C3 door handle

Shopping around for door handles I found that the major parts vendors sell the OEM versions for $50 +. I found (what I think) are the same handles on gmgoodwrench.com part #14011819 for $24.99. Is this what I would need? Sounds like a deal to me!