Door handles and running boards from a 4 door to a sport

[happyhourhero]

hi, I have a 2001 Explorer sport 2 door. Just wondering if the outside door handles as well as running boards from 4 door or sport trac are interchangeable with my sport. If anyone knows that would be great. Thank you!

 

[SouthernJames]

You have the shortest of the three ford explorers therefore the running boards of a 4 door and Sport Trac explorer is longer, and may will require modification to fit, as for door handles you can interchange them, though if need door handles eBay sell them for cheap, and a few coats of paint your good to go

 

[J_C]

Yeah I wouldn't reuse door handles since they're plastic and probably getting brittle by now, and the two springs on each are known to get weak or break, and those springs aren't really user serviceable, more of a hack to fix than it's worth compared to buying new handles.

IIRC I picked up 4 door handles for around $17 delivered on eBay, which were semi-gloss black which would look reasonable with some color schemes or could be painted. Here's the 2 pack equivalent of the semi-gloss style, don't know if they're cheaper elsewhere:
Exterior Outside Door Handles Left & Right Pair Set for Explorer Mountaineer | eBay

 

[happyhourhero]

Thanks guys! Big help. Now to get a new door handle..

 

[koda2000]

I've purchased 4 or 5 replacement door handles from RockAuto and off eBay. They're inexpensive (around $8) but they seem to work fine (never had one break to-date) as long as you make sure to lube up the internal door linkages and the door latch mechanism. You can paint them if you feel it's necessary, but between primer, paint and clear coat it adds significantly to the cost. I find a light grey primer can give you an exact color match. I recommend a trip to the hardware store for some dish head screws, flat washers and nylock nuts to reinstall the new handles. Stainless steel screws are a good choice, but don't use SS nuts (you'll learn a hard lesson regarding SS hardware if you do). To drill out the old OE rivets, be sure to knock the steel center pins out first.

Tip: Take note of the location of the yellow rod clip before opening/removing it.

 

[happyhourhero]

Thank you for the tips! I’ll definitely keep that in mind