Let me explain the ins and outs of one of the poorest designed aspects of the 914; the outside door handles. They can break in several different ways and without warning, but they can be repaired and broken parts can be replaced. New repacement handles are about $200.00 from the retail outlets.

Why it breaks:

First an overview. The handle is made of "pot metal" which is a cheap material which is cast in a mold and than chrome plated. I believe there are several things that cause the handle to fail.

1. First of course is simple abuse. People pull on the handle as if it were a door on a truck. Pulling too hard will cause the handle to bottom out and puts way too much stress on several different parts. Don't pull the handle to open the door. Only pull the handle with enough force to hear it "click" and release. The hatch is spring loaded and the door will pop out when the handle releases the latch.

2. The pivot pin becomes clogged up with 30+ years worth of crap and the handle become harder to release, so you pull harder on it. See item #1.

3. As the cars become older and when rust starts in the longs this weakens the structure of the car, the car sags at the doors. The door gap begins to close up. This effects the alinement of the door latch and the pin that is mounted on the body of the car in the jamb. As the door gap changes the pin and the door latch become harder to release. So you pull harder on the door handle. See #1 again.

Parts of the Handle and How They Can Break:

Handles are different from the right side and the left side and they have a "R" and "L" on the back to indentify them. The difference is the flapper piece is shaped different to follow the curve of the door. You can use a right side handle on the left side and vis-a versa. But a right side flappers can not be used on a left side handle.

1. The "Slider" is the plastic piece that actually strikes the release piece in the door to unlatch it. This can break in a couple of different places but when it is broken your door can not open. It is plastic and over the years get hard and brittle and breaks. The slider has a tab on it that pushes on the door latch, this tab is what break off in most cases. When you go to remove you handle you'll find this little piece of plastic in the bottom of your door. The good news is this piece is being reproduced and sold by Pelican Parts and several other suppliers. It costs less than $20.00 to buy it but you do need to take the handle off of the door to replace it. It can be replaced without taking the handle apart but be careful with the arms of the "flapper" when you do it as the arms are also a weak point and will break. See the first picture below. It shows a stock yellowing one, the broken one in the middle and the black replacement from Pelican.

2. The "Flapper" is the hinged piece that you grab and pull to release the door latch. The flapper has two "arms" or "fingers" which break off. The handle will work with one of the arms broken but not for long. A broken arm allows for the flapper to hit the body of the handle and the other arm will soon break. Once both arms are broken, the handle won't unlatch the door. The left (driver's) side being that it gets used the most use, is the most likey to break. Pelican has them in thier catalog but the are "NLA" (no longer avaible). Mid America has them in thier printed catalog but not in thier on-line catalog. (Mid America's 2004 catalog had them listed for $49.99 and the 2005 catalog has them listed as $129.99!) When I spoke to them they said thier vendor dropped out about 6 months ago. Finding good left side flappers is getting harder and harder. You have to shop for one in the classifieds, find a shop with one or hope one is being sold on ebay. Picture #2 below shows broken flappers, the one on the left has a crack in the arm and is ready to break, the right one is broken off. The fifth picture below shows two left flappers with the arm cracked. Be careful when shoping for a good handle. This crack is hard to spot. To remove a flapper you'll need to grind/file the pin head off and than drive it out of the handle body. But putting it all back together with the spring is a PITA. Go slow and easy and you'll get it after several trys.

3. The rear mounting "Tab" often breaks off the body of the handle. The tab is the piece that you can see when you open the door and look under the flapper. The tab has a short stud, nut and small rubber gasket which holds the rear of the handle to the door. When the tab breaks off the handle will become loose on the door, but in most cases you can still get in the car by holding the handle tight against the door with one hand and pulling the flapper with the other. The stud can also pull out of the tab. This can be repaired by drilling a hole through the tab and installing a bolt and nut. You don't need to remove the handle to do this, but be careful. You will now have to be careful when reaching for the flapper that you don't jamb the end of your fingers into the head of the bolt.

I can repair a broken tab but you need to remove it from the door and send it to me. I take two pieces of aluminum angle and file them to fit inplace of the plastic bushing which are on the pivot shaft. I need to fit the pieces to the handle and drill a hold for a tension pin to hold it all together. I also provide a stainless steel counter sunk machine screw and nut. I counter sink the the head in to the new aluminum tab so that you can't catght you finger on it. I made my first one of these 20 years ago and no one have ever come back to me and said it failed. The third picture below is of a broken tab on the left and a original tab on the right. The forth picture is of one of my repaired handles with the new aluminum tab..

Changing a Lock Cylinder in a Handle:

If you have found a handle with a good flapper and mounting tab to replace your broken one, you don't need to take it apart to exchange good parts for bad. Just switch out the lock cylinders. Remove the handle from the door and put the key in the lock. Remove the small phillips head screw that is on the back end of the cylinder. Carefully pull off the gray end piece which has the offset pin on it. There is a spring below this piece so don't let the spring fly across the room. The spring returns the cylinder to vertical when you turn the key. With the key still in the handle, push the cylinder out of the handle body from the back side. Don't pull on the key or it will just back out of the lock. Once the cylinder is out of the body of the handle DO NOT remove the key form the cylinder. If you do the small key plates that the key is holding in the cylinder will fall out on the floor. The plates (my word for them) are what your key is matched to. If the plates get out of order your key won't work. It is a PITA to figure out the order they all are arranged in to fit your key. I've had to to this before.

Tips for Longer Door Handle Life:

1. Keep the pivot pin and return spring clean by shooting it with some WD40. Open the door, pull the flapper out and you can see the pivot pin and return spring.

2. Never force the handle if you think there is a problem. Go around to the other side and open it first and open your door from the inside.

3. The door will still latch without having a handle on the door. And you can get in from the outside by sticking your finger in the door and pushing on the plate which releases the door. So if you need to send me your handle you can still get in and drive, but of course you can't lock it.

4. Most importantly, to extend the life of the Flapper, ALWAYS PULL THE FLAPPER USING YOUR LEFT THUMB. Sounds stupid I know. If you pull on the handle with your right hand you end up pulling too hard and you usually "over-pull" the flapper. This causes too much stess on the weak flapper. Just pull with your thumb with enough force to release the latch.

Here is a link on how to remove the handle from the door. http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarticles/9...door_handle.htm

And another from a member: http://www.icbm.org/erkson/personal/porsch...replacement.htm

If you have questions PM me.

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