I had to take off the handle, the lock, etc. Then, I sort of did what RB did, except I didn't drill any holes. I got some wire at Home Depot (I forget the guage, but I can look in the garage and see) for about $6, and just threaded it through the mechanism, very similar to what RB did, but w/o drilling holes.

I put it back in, and it's held together.

Honestly, I kind of forgot that I had done it. I intended that to be a short-term fix, and to get a replacement part. it was sort of an emergency repair. But, since it has worked, I forgot about it.

My car is my daily driver, that I share with my 19 year old daughter. Between us, someone is in and out of the car pretty often.

Of course, now that I've typed this, it'll break again, so I better start looking for parts.