Good evening all, I have a 1997 4runner with 120k, which I bought a year ago. I've just spent a small fortune for service and repairs at Hollywood Toyota and I'm trying to find less expensive fixes for some not so crucial repairs. 1. Broken driver side door lock. I can only unlock the door with my remote. Hollywood Toyota quoted be upwards of $600 for the lock and accentuator. Is there a less expensive way of repairing the lock? 2. Broken antenna motor - or cable - or something... My antenna stays up all the time and the antenna motor whines every time I start or stop the engine. I asked the dealer if they could just disconnect the antenna motor but I guess they couldn't because it's still whining. Should I take it somewhere else - try to disconnect it myself - or maybe have someone replace the antenna with a screw off antenna tht I can take off at the car wash? 3. Broken cup holder. Stupid expensive repair. Is there a decent alternative anyone's found that actually works without spilling drinks on a regular basis? Any suggestions? Thanks... Kristin Hollywood, CA

Kristen, I have a 96. When I bought it, the antenna was broken. Go out on ebay and do a quick search for the antenna. It is not hard to replace, and only costs about $30. The door lock might need to come froma junkyard, and doors are historically a PITA to fix. The dealer is quoting the unit price and (my opinion) gouging. Cup holder - junkyard again. If you don't want to go out to the junkyard, most are on the internet now. Let us know how the repairs go. Charlie.

Hi Kristen, Ref item # 2 the antenna ... don't remember the cost, but Toyota has the replacement antenna. <If> there is not a piece broken off in the motor you can replace it easily without taking anything apart except the nut on the antenna guide on the fender ... turn key on, radio on, when antenna motor stops running, insert geared end of new antenna drive in guide, turn key off and it will pull it in. Even if it doesn't go all the way in the first time it is supposed to self adjust. However if it will not take, you probably have a piece broken off in the motor which entails gaining access to the motor through the wheel well. That is the problem I have and I haven't gotten around to that yet. The last time at Toyota parts they mentioned something about a fixed antenna replacement ... you might want to check on that. Howard

DO NOT buy the antenna at a Toyota dealer. I have replaced the antenna on my 99 4Runner twice, and at least twice, three times I think on my Camry. They cost about #30 on E-Bay and takes about 5 minutes to replace. Loosen the nut at the bottom, turn on raido, and pull while it comes up until you pull the entire white nylon strap all the way out. Rember which way the gear teeth were facing as it came out. You feed the new one in the same way then turn the radio off, letting it pull the full length in. Replace the nut, and you are done. Or......pay Toyota about $200 for an antenna and a lot more if you want them to install it. Don;t get me started on "genuine Toyota parts."

Yes, the Totota dealer antenna and installation was so expensive my service rep wouldn't even tell me how much it was. I had already told him I didn't want to do it if it was going to be crazy and he just said it was crazy and we moved on. I asked about a fixed antenna and if they could just shut off the motor so it wouldn't keep whining and I couldn't get a response from the mechanic on either of those questions. I'm going to try the ebay, do it myself plan with David's instructions below. I'll let you know how it goes! Thanks everyone, Kristin