How to replace top portion of door trim 1999 SR5

[shayzima]

Hello,

My late Queensland Heeler, Zima, chewed up the inside of my 4Runner door panels. Please see attached pictures. Does anyone have any ideas on how to remove the old and install the new on the front and the back? She got all four doors. Also, does anyone know the technical term for this part of the door panel. That would be helpful in locating the part.

Thanks,
Shay

 

[THEREALTOR1]

ToyotaPartSales.com

Ouch, them ain't cheap. I'd be checking some junk yards.

 

[shayzima]

Right but it has to be done. I'd rather do it myself so the question is, how do I remove the old and install the new ;o)

 

[THEREALTOR1]

Right but it has to be done. I'd rather do it myself so the question is, how do I remove the old and install the new ;o)

Its not really that difficult to do, its actually more difficult to explain how to do it. I would do a search for a write up on how to replace the door speakers because the first step of that would be to remove the door trim, and maybe somebody has already done a write-up and posted it. Just be cautious with the clips because they are plastic and they do tend to break if you're not gentle with them. You might also want to invest in a door clip removal tool. I know they sell them at Harbor Freight for like $5.

here

and here

There's a ton more threads in the audio section. Just do a search for "door speakers" in the title only in the audio/electronics section and it returns like 80 threads. Good luck

 

[shayzima]

Thanks! Now this is something I can run with. I had googled all over the place (prior to requesting help here) for some info and had seen the lower half demo'd but couldn't find anything related to the top portion of the door. I saw the tool mentioned in a post as well. Harbor freight - nice! Thanks for you're help!

 

[brian2sun]

Once you take the "button" style rivets out along the edges of the door panel (the ones you press the button in and pry them out with a knife), take the 1 screw out of the handle. The handle comes forward (towards the windshield) as it comes out.

Then pop the window/door lock control panel out and unplug it. That panel also sorta slides forward or backwards as it pops out (but I don't remember which way off the top of my head).

The big door panel is now only held on by plastic rivets that you just pull on carefully (or use the tool) to pop out. The top of the panel has a lip on it that hooks over the window "sill" so you have to pull up on the entire panel as you pull it away from the door.

When you have the whole door panel off, now you can separate the pieces that are screwed together from behind and replace the ones that are torn up.

A junk yard will probably be the cheapest, but that color may be harder to find (tan is more common). Try Certifit Online They are usually pretty reasonable.

 

[shayzima]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

 

[brian2sun]

I should also add...
Once you pull the door handle out, it's still hooked to a cable. Just let it dangle until you get the door panel separated from the door. Then you can squeeze it through the hole in the panel so you don't have to disconnect the cable.

 

[shayzima]

Good idea. I need all the help I can get. I needed to see if it was possible before I began working on the first door. It appears that I can do it and get help if I get stuck so now I'm off to look for parts. I'll probably use these tips at the salvage yard first. I should get lots of practice by the time I go to install these. Thanks again.