i have a 99 subaru legacy and i want to replace the ds door but i want to take off the original door handle and lock and use it on the new door.......i have come to figure out that its not that easy. has anyone done this before and would like to give me any tips or step by step instructions so i dont waste the whole damn day doing this. thanks

It's a pain, there's the spring clip for the lock and 2 10 mm nuts. The aft nut is the one that's tough to get.

 

Roll down the window

Pull the door panel

Pull the switch out of the door so you can roll the window up and down while you work without the panel in the way

Pull the plastic back at least half way

Disconnect the control and lock rods and move them out of the way

Remove the Lock Spring Clip

Remove the two 10 mm nuts

Pull the handle out.

99legwag,

 

I've done many of these on lots of cars over the years, and I advise that you take several digital pictures of the lock rod placements on the lock assembly and the door handle, etc., before you start unclipping the rods and removing bolts.

 

Put them back incorrectly and you'll have a nightmare on your hands.

 

The door glass must be fully up before you start pulling things apart, and disconnect the battery if you don't want nasty fuse and wiring problems. Once the inner door panel is removed and the plastic weather shield underneath, you'll need a trouble light or flashlight to see where things come apart.

 

Hint: place a small piece of masking tape over the open end of the 10 mm socket before you put the scket onto the 10 mm nuts that hold the door handle in place. The masking tape will fill the gap between the socket and the nut, preventing it from falling out of the socket and getting lost in the bottom of the door. Use the same plan when reinstalling the nuts on the handle.

 

Good Luck!

if you don't ''need'' the handle, just the lock, you only need to remove the rear bolt, closest to the door edge and the spring clip. that will get the lock set / cylinder free. of course the other bolt is easy to get to, but the handle can be a little tricky .

 

on the re-install, the bolt is REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, hard to get back in. the tape trick on the socket may help. i hope it does. but i have been driving a 95 lego for 10 years, over 130k miles, with only the front bolt holding the handle in and only the spring clip holding the lock in. works great.

 

good luck.

that helped a lot! thanks everyone!