Exterior door handle return spring

RitualHabitual

Jeep "wrangler"
Supporting Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2019
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Oregon (Willamette Valley)
I couldn't find a thread on this topic so I thought I'd start one. Please redirect if I'm missing something.

I'm searching for the paddle handle return spring that I imagine many TJs with floppy exterior door handles need but so far can't find it anywhere. I'm wondering if anyone on the forum has had better luck. I thought it would be a common part but alas..

I know you can get new handles but in my experience aftermarket versions are of inferior quality. I prefer to restore the originals so no need for new handle recommendations. If I end up having to find something similar (many older cars use something similar) and alter it I'll go that route. Thanks in advance.

Here are photos for reference:
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In case anyone happens to come across this post looking for the same thing, here is the solution I found which works great (so far, at least).

NORS DOOR HANDLE PUSH BUTTON RETURN SPRING 1950 1951 FORD
https://www.ebay.com/itm/3718627607...d=link&campid=5337789113&toolid=20001&mkevt=1
s-l1600.jpg


These are very similar to the original Mopar return springs except the the bend at the end of the straight portion, which you can clip off. They are the same thickness as the original so they stay in place well. I'm sure there are other similar springs that will work, but this one does for sure. If they happen to fail at some point I'll be sure to post an update.
 
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If I would have seen this thread with zero replies a few hours or days after it was started, I would have at least replied to bump it to the top to help get an answer. Obviously I failed at that but here I am (we are) just a hair under 12 hours since the OP has made the only reply (before this one) to let everyone know how to fix the problem he had even when he got no help from any of us.

It may not be the biggest Jeep problem out there but finding the part probably wasn't easy and it's been almost a year and a half so I think he should be given the title of WTJFMOTM (Wrangler TJ Forum Member Of The Month).

Keep up the good work RitualHabitual
 
this highlights the frustration of many a Jeep owner that it's easier to find obscure parts for a 70 year old Ford than for a 15 year old Jeep. I've never owned a vehicle that was as poorly supported by it's manufacturer as my TJ's.
 
this highlights the frustration of many a Jeep owner that it's easier to find obscure parts for a 70 year old Ford than for a 15 year old Jeep. I've never owned a vehicle that was as poorly supported by it's manufacturer as my TJ's.
Actually, most manufacturers stop support for cars at the 10 year mark because taxes on inventory kill them and their distribution network partners. The only reason OEM parts stay available beyond that is when they are still used on newer vehicles. I just rebuilt the engine of my daily driver Subaru - a '98 with 367k on the odometer. I had to re-use the pistons (which looked amazing for such high miles) because Subaru stopped making them years ago, and now the aftermarket manufacturers have even stopped making them.

Try finding parts for any other 15-year-old vehicle, and you'll find the same situation - some are still available, but many are not. It's just the way things are.
 
Actually, most manufacturers stop support for cars at the 10 year mark because taxes on inventory kill them and their distribution network partners. The only reason OEM parts stay available beyond that is when they are still used on newer vehicles. I just rebuilt the engine of my daily driver Subaru - a '98 with 367k on the odometer. I had to re-use the pistons (which looked amazing for such high miles) because Subaru stopped making them years ago, and now the aftermarket manufacturers have even stopped making them.

Try finding parts for any other 15-year-old vehicle, and you'll find the same situation - some are still available, but many are not. It's just the way things are.

I don't know, maybe Nissan, Ford, Toyota and BMW all just do better than Chrysler and Subaru. I stand by my statement as I've owned over 30 cars in my lifetime, many older than my TJ's, and never found as many discontinued OEM parts.
 
The 10 year lifetime is probably not exactly the same for all manufacturers, but they all stop ordering parts at a certain point. There are many factors at play in the service parts world:
  • How many years does the manufacturer order parts after the last vehicle using the part is sold?
  • How many parts do they order each time to restock their warehouses, and at what quantity level do they re-order (because those two factors will determine the maximum amount in inventory when that magic day to stop ordering comes)?
  • How many parts per year do they sell?
  • How many vehicles of that year are still on the road?
That last factor is a big one with Jeeps. Jeep owners seem to keep their vehicles running longer than the average, and that eats up the final remaining inventory quickly, if they're not considering that in their service parts strategy. Other vehicles that are junked more readily may see 10 parts in inventory last 30 years (remember the Yugo - when's the last time you saw one of those on the street?)

Having worked for vehicle OEMs before, I can tell you that the service parts strategy is complicated. There are many people involved, and each person represents a different stakeholder with different needs. Much to our chagrin, Jeeps and Jeep parts are currently manufactured to make Stellantis N.A. as much profit as they can, not to help us keep our beloved buggies running indefinitely...

I'm not saying you're wrong, just trying to give you some insight into why we may not find all the parts we need.
 
There's a million piddly little fixes that need to be done on these jeeps. It's easy to find posts addressing major things but minor things seem to get less attention. I post for the next dodo-head like me that comes along with the same question. Seems like it would be useful if we all posted our solutions to the little conundrums we come across--however insignificant--just to make the forum more robust, even if we resolved the issue completely independently.

I get a lot of useful insight here. Just paying it forward.

By the way, I ended up just getting aftermarket replacement handles after the original post. Now I'm prepping for door revamps on TJ#2 and it came up again (floppy handles on both doors). Interestingly the solution revealed itself quickly this time around. Amazing how a little time away from a problem makes it simpler to solve when you re-approach it w/o all the mind-baggage. Zen and the art of Jeep maintenance :)
 
Interestingly the solution revealed itself quickly this time around.

It does seem interesting enough to request some details as to how that happened.


Zen and the art of Jeep maintenance :)

I've read the original two or three times. To me it floated around to the point that I wasn't following the story but I think I got the message at some point the last time. Maybe not, but now I'm going to dig it up and read it while replacing every word "motorcycle" with "Jeep" and see what happens.
 
I've read the original two or three times. To me it floated around to the point that I wasn't following the story but I think I got the message at some point the last time. Maybe not, but now I'm going to dig it up and read it while replacing every word "motorcycle" with "Jeep" and see what happens.
It's been over three decades since I read it, but as I remember it, it was neither about Zen nor motorcycle maintenance. Rather, it was about self-discovery and reflection during a cross-country motorcycle trip of a father with his son. I agree - it was a difficult read, but interesting, nonetheless.