Has anyone been successful with replacing the door handle on a wagon hatch? i took a look at mine yesterday, and couldn't figure out how to disconnect the rod that runs from the actual handle assembly to the latch mechanism. any suggestions?

 

thanks again,

 

jared (94 Legacy wgn)

I don't know if your 94 would be the same, but here are some instructions for the 95-99 Legacy / Outback.

 

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=2513&highlight=hatch+latch

 

Commuter

On my old 98 OBW I had to use a pair of pliers to squeeze together the nylon bushing/lock that kept the actuator rod in place. The rod had a detent just after it goes through the metal finger, that the nylon bushing clicked into. Squeezing the nylon bushing/lock forces the nylon lock into the detent further, giving enough clearance for you to wiggle the rod and the bushing out of the metal finger it is attached to. Whenyou want to reinstall it, you just push the nylon bushing back onto the rod and push the entire unit through the hole in the metal finger. Hope this all makes sense.

Unclip the plastic thingie from the rod, turn the plastic thingie a little bit, and then pull the rod out of the plastic thingie. You can then remove the plastic thingie from the handle assembly without difficulty.

 

Tis is exactly the same procedure you have to use on the door locks.

 

Basically, the plastic clip fits into a hole, the bent end of the rod fits into the plastic clip to expand the clip so that it can't come out, and then the plastic clip clips onto the long part of the rod to keep the whole works together.