Broken Outside Door Handle Fix

[sv1cec]

I'd like to add a little something to this thread, although I am not sure about its value.

This summer we went to Ukraine (the motherland of my wife) for vacations, spent about a month there. Usually, I do some service there, prices are cheap compared to Greece, so I had planned to do the regular service. Unfortunately, a few days before, my driver's door handle stopped working, it stayed proud of the door. When I took it to the shop where I had planned to have the service done, their body repair guy had a look and asked me if I wanted a new part installed or have it fixed.

Knowing about the problems with the handle carriers, I was surprised to hear there was a fix, so I told him to go ahead and fix it (if the fix didn't work, I could always install a new part for about $100).

So the guy took the door apart and removed the carrier. The little part that holds the axle in place, towards the rear end of the carrier was broken. And then I witnessed what people do, in countries where money are in short supply. The guy took the carrier to the bench and drilled a small hole on it. He then passed a piece of steel wire through that hole and through another opening on the carrier, twisted it with a pair of pliers and secured the axle in its place with that wire.

The handle worked just fine, although it was not sitting perfectly on the door. The cost was less than $10 for his work. My door is still like that, it works fine after a whole month, so I plan to leave it that way, until it breaks again.

[anthonytexas]

And then today, the passenger side handle gave out. $40 on ebay. I'm an expert now. LOL.

Passenger Right Front Outside Door Handle Carrier for x5 BMW E53 51 21 8 243 616 | eBay

[four.8is]

Maybe worth saying that for parts like these it's worth to go buy them directly through your local dealer..
BMW parts from the dealer carry a 2year/unlimited mileage warranty whereas the aftermarket 1 year and it's not always a perfect fit.

Just wanna mention this though...OE parts bought from bavauto, ECS, oembimmerparts etc will not be covered under the 2 year warranty from BMW. The part will be exactly the same; what differentiate them is the dealer one will have the roundel stamped on the part and the other won't. That's how bavauto and all the others can sell same part as the dealer but cheaper..you get the idea..

I recall I paid about 160$ for my door carrier not too long ago but the piece of mind is something that I like experiencing as often as possible

[LVP]

Originally Posted by four.8is

Maybe worth saying that for parts like these it's worth to go buy them directly through your local dealer..
BMW parts from the dealer carry a 2year/unlimited mileage warranty whereas the aftermarket 1 year and it's not always a perfect fit.

Just wanna mention this though...OE parts bought from bavauto, ECS, oembimmerparts etc will not be covered under the 2 year warranty from BMW. The part will be exactly the same; what differentiate them is the dealer one will have the roundel stamped on the part and the other won't. That's how bavauto and all the others can sell same part as the dealer but cheaper..you get the idea..

I recall I paid about 160$ for my door carrier not too long ago but the piece of mind is something that I like experiencing as often as possible

You raise a good point on the warranties. I get a decent amount from ECS, so I looked up their warranty. It's so tight, you'll likely never succeed in a claim. It would be only worth pursuing for a big ticket item, but then it requires dealer install, original packaging, shop diagnosis, etc. So for any big critical item (think tranny, diff, etc), it may be worth going the dealer or even the indy route to get a warranty that will actually mean something. Sorry for the thread hijack.

[anthonytexas]

Here's a video for this door handle fix:

Repairing door handles on a BMW X5 2000 thru 2006 - YouTube

I've done it 3xs now so I'm an expert, but this video is good.

[anthonytexas]

Also, the use the 'engineering hack' with the screw and washer. You won't regret it.

[higreenx5]

On Amazon you can buy a Hamman carrier it is only $30 and made in Europe.

[bmwx7]

Am NEW to this forum..came to know frm bimmerforum. Wish had seen Dante Pg14..tips earlier as i tried opening the psgr side front and the mini light is already broken from where it connects to door opener. Have to try superglue. Other than that this seem to be a detailed thread hats off to personagata for his time.

[TiminIndy]

I bought an `06 E53 a few months ago and this is the first repair needed - driver's door handle won't open from the outside. I'm getting ready to order the carrier and the discussion above is the same thing I am pondering. Prices for aftermarket from Amazon and ebay sellers ranges from $25 to $80, and OEM $85 to $115. My thoughts are that the OEM ones have failed quite often, so might as well get aftermarket. I don't know how to tell what may be better between all of the aftermarket ones, but I'm thinking about just getting one at the bottom of the price spectrum and hope it lasts for a while. The cost of the part is less of a hassle than doing the repair. Unless someone convinces me otherwise, the cheapest on Amazon is from 'KOOLMAN' for $25.90 & free shipping. They have many good reviews.

[jgold47]

Originally Posted by TiminIndy

I bought an `06 E53 a few months ago and this is the first repair needed - driver's door handle won't open from the outside. I'm getting ready to order the carrier and the discussion above is the same thing I am pondering. Prices for aftermarket from Amazon and ebay sellers ranges from $25 to $80, and OEM $85 to $115. My thoughts are that the OEM ones have failed quite often, so might as well get aftermarket. I don't know how to tell what may be better between all of the aftermarket ones, but I'm thinking about just getting one at the bottom of the price spectrum and hope it lasts for a while. The cost of the part is less of a hassle than doing the repair. Unless someone convinces me otherwise, the cheapest on Amazon is from 'KOOLMAN' for $25.90 & free shipping. They have many good reviews.

NOOOO

OEM only for the door carrier. I tried the cheap crap and it lasted a month before it broke again. Did OEM and 2 years later, no problems. Its not a difficult repair, but its a PITA to strip the door down, and requires some maneuvering out of site to sit the carrier.

You'll thank me later