VAM Fits 98-03 Sienna, 01-07 Sequoia Metal Rear Exterior Liftgate Handle

I bought mine specifically from DIY auto parts here on Amazon. I have no idea why but they have identical parts with a 2 dollar difference, so find the cheaper one, I paid the more expensive one and it was too late to cancel. It is NOT all metal, the handle is still plastic and the arm that snapped in the first place is also plastic. I'm hoping it won't break like the OEM one. Shipping was fast and the part was almost identical but not exactly OEM exact fit.First problem was the two bolt areas that go into mounting area was off by maybe .3 mm, but that is enough to cause friction going into the mount area and make it harder to get it straight dead on. I forced it in and had a slight problem bolting it in. I was forced to use a ratchet to make it go into place as I tightened it. I am positive it warped a little of the metal frame but it's not a big problem.Second was the mechanism that holds the cable in place. It was a completely different design but the accuracy of tautness was dead on. The ball of the cable fit snug and perfect but the place where the plastic cable frame slips in was too small. It was very noticeable and I tried to force it in to no prevail. I then thought maybe it was supposed to just sit outside in a very small pocket where the slit was but that didn't work because the cable was already pulling so much so that the liftgate would not close. I used a makeshift method but using a knife and just shaving the plastic cable clip area a bit. After a bit of manipulation it fit snug and tight. Pretty sure it won't be coming out any time soon. Put everything back together and it works perfect.Took a little more work than I would have liked but it did it's job. Minus 1 star for the bolt inaccuracies and minus 1 star for making me shave the plastic cable holder in order for it to fit. Other than that, it fits snug now and should last as it is a simple mechanism with few areas that could malfunction.As for the feel of the handle, it's a shorter squeeze to get the gate open.UPDATE: After one day of use the cable was too taut and I had to shave off some more plastic cable and then make shift again a fit so it wouldn't fall off. If this one breaks, I either have to get an identical one or opt for the OEM one and change my whole cable line. Simply garbage. The only reason anyone should get this is to get another plastic handle and arm. DO NOT throw away your old one, the fit is perfect for the van and hopefully you can figure out how to swap out the handle only. Don't be a fool like me and throw away the OEM one.

I bought it from Nikki Auto Parts. It looks solid and made all of metal. The size and screw holes fit exactly as original one. One nut did not go too smooth on one of this handle screw, but I applied a little more force to it and the nut went all through the handle screw without any damages. The handle works like a charm.To replace the handle you need to pry out back door plastic cover, unscrew handle (on inside) and strap (on inside), remove plastic cover, unlock the door from inside (if you broke handle with door closed), then proceed from outside of your car. The lock handle hides under the bar on outside. So on inside of back door you have to remove handle's 2 nuts (10mm)+ 1 nut (10mm) on the left from handle + push out plastic clip (on the right from handle). The handle will be out but still connected to the bar by 2 screws. Unscrew them with Philips screw driver. Detach pull cable from broken handle, put the new one and assemble the rest back. If It sounds complicated check YouTube video. It's really simple. Don't pay extra buck to repair shop for nothing. It takes about 15-20 minutes in total.

fits great

Replaced this part along side watching a video on YouTube on how to do so. With not having done it before, finished in about 30 minutes and most of that time was me finding my tools.Product had held up so far.Handle itself is plastic, while the rest of the part is metal. I bought this one under the impression the handle was metal (and therefore would last longer), but I don’t think this part is sold anywhere with a metal handle.

I am glad I bought this part instead of a plastic replacement. It's been installed now for about 4 months, and I'm very pleased with it. Installation was easy (I've had the back hatch apart before to work on the wiper, so there was no learning curve there).The only negative was that the brackets for the bolts weren't perfectly dimensioned, so the trim part for the handle now sits about 1/16" off the door (i.e., there's a 1/16" gap between it and the door); with the original part, there was no such gap. I didn't see any quick/reliable way to remedy this, so I just went with it. It doesn't really affect anything. If I cared, I would just put some clear automotive sealant between the trim piece and the door.

It seems to be a quality part. It was a bear to install, and now the hatch doesn't always open. I sawed off the cargo net holder "T" on one side of the van to make it easy to get the inside hatch panel off. Not sure if the problem is the lift gate handle, or my installation of it. I don't know how it could be the handle, actually. My father in law bent the bar that goes to the latch, trying to help it un-latch, but didn't get much better.

I was very happy when I received this part. Some of the reviewers said that when they received their orders, part of the handle was plastic. Since I had the dealer replace this previously with a partially plastic handle that broke again, I really wanted this to be all metal. The one I received was all metal and while I've only had it in for a while, it has worked very well. I saved probably $100 in installation costs from the dealership. I'd had the back panel of the door off before to replace a tail light bulb, so the whole replacement process took me about half an hour. If you have any mechanical skills at all, don't waste your money paying somebody else to replace this for you. Wish I'd looked into this when my handle broke the first time.

Had issue with installation. Even though everything was installed properly it wouldn't open the tailgate. On very close inspection I noticed that the lever was wiggling when I squeezed the handle. After taking back off I found that the lever portion was not tightly connected to the base. Fortunately I was able to take the new handle and transfer it to the old lever making a unit that was all metal and worked like a charm. If you have to replace one of these because of a broken plastic handle don't throw the old lever section away. Even though I had to do extra work. The price was good.