So yesterday my driver's side outside door handle broke, and I'm on the hunt for a replacement part. While waiting for Ray to return my call for help, I Googled the part # FD01-59-410C, and this came up:

https://www.legafrmstore.com/index.p...ucts_id=202145

At $99, the price for this part seems too good to be true - Atkins wants more than 2x that, as does everyone else online. Just wondering if anyone here has done business with these guys before, and if so, how did it go? I did my usual checks to see if it's a scam site, and haven't found any red flags yet.

They don't claim speedy delivery, but it's winter now so I can live with that if the part is legit at that price.

 

Check their homepage, it looks like they claim to sell EVERYTHING. The saying of "if it looks too good to be true..." probably applies.

As you said, it's the winter still and you aren't out driving. I would wait for Ray to respond or reach out to Fritz Flynn to ask about a used one. Its better to pay slightly more for a known good part from a reputable source imo.

 

If they take PayPal I'd give them a shot. You can get your money back that way. Pretty low risk.

 

they say they only take Visa and bank transfer. I also noticed a foreign language at the bottom that Google translates from Malaysian. Their "About Us" is generic that it almost sounds like a fake website. I wouldn't trust it.

 

As it turns out, I was able to repair my door handle so I didn't need to buy a new one in a hurry. Time will tell if my repair holds up, and if it does I'll post a detailed how-to. The gist of it is I had to disassemble the handle mechanism, bend the metal tab bearing surfaces that wrap around the handle back to the way they were, and lubricate everything. Only problem I had was that stupid plastic retainer clip that secures the door release mechanism lever to the release rod linkage in the door broke, so I came up with a creative fix to that - Fix involved drilling a tiny, perpendicular hole thru the end of the rod, using what was left of the plastic retainer as a bushing for the lever, put a metal washer over the end of the rod/bushing, and secured it all with some wire thru the hole I drilled in the rod. That prevents the rod end from popping out of the lever bushing when you operate the handle. If this doesn't work, at least the mod is reversible - just buy a new door handle assembly.

FYI, Ray did get back to me and said Mazda doesn't sell the plastic retainer bits individually, and as usual he had the best deal on buying the whole handle assembly. So if/when I need one, I'll be getting it from Ray.

Back to my original post question, I decided to do some low risk testing of the subject online retailer by trying to buy something cheap. I found a $4 trunk organizer on the site that I could use in my daily driver, so I figured that would be a good candidate. Turns out that if you get into their shopping cart to the point where you select a payment method, they DO in fact take Paypal - I used Paypal for the extra layer of protection, and then had Paypal charge it to the credit card that I have on file with them instead of my bank account for double protection. The Paypal receipt stated that the vendor is 国 刘, which the Google translator says is Chinese for "Guó liú" or "Country Liu" in english. We'll see if/when the product arrives, and what I end up getting for my $4. Worst case, I'm out $4.

 

Buy it before it's NLA

 

they don't list anything for the FD, but they sometimes do for other cars, i think the 80's pickups listed them, or maybe the miata. there is a Mazda number, but you would need to dig for it...

 

so the LHD left handle is FD01-59-410C, and its ~$200 give or take. i happened to notice that the RHD left handle, F100-59-410F is like $99, so i wonder if;

A) that is what these guys are selling
and B) why is the US twice the money, isn't it the same?

 

Hmmm, I wonder... They do list the LHD part # FD01-59-410C on their site FWIW. I also wonder if there is any fundamental difference in form/fit/function between the RHD left handle (F100-59-410F) part and the LHD left handle. Only difference I can think of is the RHD left handle might lack the keyhole illumination feature that the LHD version has?

 

I think the US door handle has more electronics for the security system. I seem to remember that you can just swap the electronics that are missing over. Big thing is the position sensor for the key cylinder, I think that's the difference.

I checked amayama.com - that site is a great source for JDM parts but you have to know the part number. The JDM door handle is $79. That's a great way to go, they are a BIG and reputable company.

Dale

 

Dale is correct. The version that Atkins sells is complete with switch, harness and connector. The less expensive version that is being sold on Pete's link and Amamaya looks like the picture above. You can swap over your harness and also the courtesy light bulb for the LHD driver's side key cylinder into these less expensive handles.


Full version sold by vendors like Atkins

 

IMHO it's not worth paying a ~$100 premium for the wiring harness which typically isn't a problem. I'd get the plain JDM handles, that replaces everything that's broken and tired.

Dale

 

i'm pretty sure they are either a dealership group, or some kind of wholesaler, probably the latter.

the price list they have is the Japanese one, so if it is a USA only part, it doesn't come up.

that being said, when i shop for stuff, i check them, they are way better on some things, and worse on others

 

These people are definitely scammers!! Ordered item from them several weeks ago through Paypal. Seemed legit, but after not receiving any emails on order or shipping details, I emailed them many times and never got a response. Started a dispute with Paypal and hope to get a ruling in my favor and funds sent back to my account. If it seems to be a deal that's too good to be true, it probably is. Test them with a question to see how their correspondence is and any reviews on them. There are some really good deals online......you just have to be careful. Don't be so quick to order like I did.