I'm looking for some kind of outside door handle modification. Not just the simple switch to 4th gen handles or the old school "just shave them". I would like to find a nice looking handle with the key in it or not. Post your suggestion with a pic, this may be my next project

 

Depends how much fabrication skills you have.

Late model flush mounted door handles can easily be grafted onto the doors for a smooth clean look. It you don't want the unsightly door locks, use the back door handles.

I'm sure there's a thread somewhere in the archive showing smooth door handles. Use the search function.

 

Here are mine. Toyota Carrolla rear door handles.

 

 

Amazing how many different threads we have on the same subject, when the Search feature takes you to many, many of them.

These are the coolest ones I've seen. It looks like the guy 'Stephen' pretty well spelled out all the details needed, including that the S10/S15 versions are slightly smaller & would look better than the C/K full sized truck handles.


https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/sear...archid=4127778

 

so how much would something like this cost?

 

Simple cut and weld sheet metal. Find a donor vehicle and remove the handles and cut out the sheet metal around the opening. Cut a hole in the third gen door to match the piece to cut out of the donor vehicle and weld it in.

For body man, it would probably only take a few hours then it needs to be prepped (bondo etc) and painted.

You don't have to stay with GM or rectangular door handles. There are nice looking oval handles on other car models. Walk through a parking lot and look at handles until you see something you like.

 

Ive been walking thought the virtual parking lot of ebay( its hot outside and i like my ac)..... so many things I want!

 

fueledsoul what handels did you use those look great.

 

look like 90's pontiac handles on fueledsouls car

 

you could always do shaved door handles. and solenoids as door poppers with a keyless remote.

 

Those are a pain in the butt when your battery goes dead and the hood release is on the inside.

 

like alky said, i was always weary about those shaved handles, especially for a summer dd. a show car is a diff story i guess

 

Been there done that, on a daily driver. NEVER AGAIN!

 

The handles i got off some rear doors of a Cadillac but there are a lot of GM cars that have them A LOT!

Here's a look at how i did mine

I used a combination of a high speed body saw (couldn't do with out it) cut off wheels, die-grinders, grinders, sanding disc's.

 

i have a hidden release on my monte carlo that has shaved door handles for when i figured out that it wont open when the 12 volt is dead. its in the gas cap.

 

^ not so hidden anymore now that a few thousand people who read this know about it...............just kidding

 

Thanks for the pics and the suggestions. Heading Pull A Part in the morning to look for handles

 

Just don't forget to pull your door glass before you start welding or you'll be making another trip back to look for a set...

 

yeah and cut a nice sized square out, dont try to be a master and just cut out the handle, that will lead to trouble

 

dang now where should i hide the button? also i like taking older parts and stuff to try and work on my camaro. i wonder how a set of 69 push button chrome handles would look.

 

it seems to me to mount a terminal under the car somewhere and run a wire from the positive side of the battery with a fuse.since you will need jumper cables to jump off the car anyway feed the new terminal hot first so the door solenolds will work and then open the hood and jump it off.

 

im looking to put in some handles from the older corvette's the push in style, always loved those

 

FueledSoul's look really nice, gonna have to keep that style in mind. was always a fan of the C/K truck handles before, but the caddy ones look a more clean and refined version that fits pretty well with the other body lines.

 

Any pics of it painted? I'm assuming that is the passenger side, hence no door lock. Gonna have a key door lock at all? No battery + shaved locks + locked door equals bad day.

 

Most newer cars only have a key cylinder on the drivers door.
I have one of each.
I opted for dodge doohandles myself.

 

I already know that, but your Reply does not answer my question to him.

 

I wasn't answering for him. I simply made a statement.

 

i'm just going to say this for the sake of saying so...

it's pretty common knowledge between thieves that you can break the plastic out of the bottom of the type of door handles that you guys seem to be adding to your cars, and pop the lock in about 3 seconds flat...

every truck you see today that's been broken into was broken into that exact way... and most of you know that having a non factory stereo in your cars is a HUGE magnet for them little bastards to wanna break in. they'll steal a $10 walmart radio just because it isn't stock. (i learned that the hard way)... seriously, i've had several cars broken into this exact way...

plastic handles is the STUPIDEST idea the car manufacturer's have come up with - though yes i agree they look much cooler than the kit kat bar hanging off the side of the door.... but your not going to break into the car through the door handle with the stock ones. guaranteed. (yeah, they can always bust the window, but it's noisy, so they usually don't)

so i guess if you really want to do something, fab in a box around the back of it, or a plate to keep hood-rats from popping the lock from the door handle...

make them fish around for it with a coat hanger like the old school days.... lol

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as far as solenoids, that works, but i would retrofit the existing KEY LOCK to the DOOR LATCH instead of the LOCK that way when the battery in the car, or your REMOTE battery go dead, you can still open the car with the key....

sure, you'll have a key hole there, but so what... you can get into your car without having to hide some sort of emergency cable that anyone else can find.

 

Well, you can "what if" these mods to death if you wanted to. Prior to the install of these door handles, I had a thief hammer a flat blade screwdriver into the stock keyhole, then pried downward, which ripped the sheetmetal and allowed him access, probably took him 5 seconds. If you look at mine above, they have no keyholes on either side, and the lock linkage has been removed from that area, so even with the handle pried off, it is extremely difficult to reach the lock linkage. As for access in the event of a dead battery, I left the stock cylinder in the rear of the car. Yes, i'd have to crawl in, but it isn't that bad for something I may have to do once every 5 years.

 

Considering how the glass is not "locked" into a channel up top & can be pried outwards? It doesn't really matter what you do to a handle. The glass can be pried outwards a good 1.5" & either busted for easy access to reach in & unlock the door, or they can reach down & unlatch the latch, all the door handle "safety" means squat.

I had to get in my car that way one time in the middle of the day, front row parking, so easily seen, and NOBODY ever said squat. I was in my car in under 2 min & driving away. Had I been a thief it wouldn't have taken me that long because I would not have cared about not damaging the tint on my glass.

 

yeh, i guess both of you have valid points....

and as for crawling through the trunk, that's really not a bad idea either, totally forgot about that.

i guess the point is, they'll get in one way or another if they really want to, so it doesn't matter...

and if your car is nice enough, they'll do it just out of spite...

so, the real lesson is, don't put a stereo in your car unless you're willing to lose it.



but as far as the MODS go, they do look pretty slick. i'll think about that when it's time to do the body work on my car.

 

A saying in the locksmith/door industry... 'doors and windows are only for honest people.'

 

lol...

and unfortunately, honesty isn't something the people in my neighborhood know anything about.

 

No exterior locks at all....

 

No locks keys dead battery = climb thbrough trunk, I tried that argument already, and it makes sense lol..

 

Mid 90's GM Plain AM/FM Radio with iPod hook up in the back

 

Battery's in the rear so no worries for me.