Saving Hundreds in Repairs: Lincoln MKZ, Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan

If you have a Lincoln MKZ, Ford Fusion, or Mercury Milan from the 2006 to 2012, you're going to need to make the door handle repair at some point. Somehow, Ford managed to make every piece of the door handle out of plastic, so it will eventually fail. You'll want to blame your wife for yanking too hard on the handle, but when you look at the construction, you'll realize it was not her fault. However, you'll probably avoid the all-metal replacement that costs several times more because your car already has over 150,000 miles and isn't worth the upgrade. I'll recommend the Amazon overseas version of the door handle for your money-saving needs.


The one in the above link is for the driver door. That's the most likely to break unless you have kids. Our kids semi-broke both rear door handles, but they can deal until I decide to order those. If you bust the driver's side handle, you can still get out of the car by using the lock button and some force. Or open the window and pull the handle from the outside.


If you take this into the dealership, it's probably a $50 part and $100 labor. Find a strapping young man in your family to do the labor for free. Make him some lasagna for when he's done, and you can tell him he's learning a life skill.

Whether you find someone else or DIY, watch a video tutorial for getting the door panel off. I totally missed one of the screws holding it on and nearly ripped the panel off without loosening the screw, which would have resulted in my wife telling me we should have taken the car in to the dealership, and nobody ever wants to hear that.

The replacement part above is as cheap as the original. Some people said it stuck out further, but mine seems to be the opposite. It probably doesn't matter to you.


Currently, there are 33 cars for sale within 50 miles that will eventually need this repair. And the airbag if it wasn't done. There are probably thousands of them on the road not currently for sale, which means a lot of people around here will eventually need a new door handle. I wonder if sitting out in the Florida sun played a role in the plastic's demise.

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