Door jammed shut

[stevrock]

As the title says, I figured it was the same as last time. Bolts fell out of the hook in the door and you could only pull the handle from the outside to open it.

Not the case this time. Now I just got my car back from paint, last night actually, and I put the door panel on today because it was hot out. I put it together and put the window down. I went over the gf's, door worked fine. Went to get coffee, door worked fine. Get out at Canadian Tire, door worked fine. Go to get back in, the door won't budge.

So I crawl in the passenger door, hit the unlock button. I hear the noise, and try from the inside handle. Nothing. Go around to the driver's door again, pull the handle, nothing.

So I crawl through the car, drive home and now it's parked in the driveway.

If I hadda waited to put the door panel on, I wouldn't have this problem, I would have pulled rods (shut up) until it opened up, but now the door panel is hiding the door and I don't know how to get it open so I can fix my door.

Somebody help me please!
TIA

[Funkycheeze]

prolly need to get the inner panel off with the door closed - i know its possible, if difficult

[Dave A.]

Perhaps try locking and unlocking several times with the door lock switch and see if that helps get it unstuck.

[stevrock]

Well I tried playing with the switch, that didn't work. I was pocking around at different rods with a paint mixing stick. I think I'm going to have to save it for a sunny day where I can see what's going on.

How would I go about getting it off with the door closed? I'd probably have to take the seat out for that wouldn't I?

TIA

[Dave A.]

I know this is a very dumb question; but what happens if you use the key to operate the lock?

[stevrock]

The lock is ceased up solid. It has been since I put it in, if I try the lock it will fall into the door, and that's no good.

I had it working fine, the door worked great up until yesterday. Man this sucks. Any more ideas?

[stevrock]

Alright, so I got around to getting the door open tonight, and boy it was not fun.

I am inside the wash bay and I unclip half the door panel, not an easy chore. I am poking away at things and my friend comes up to the passenger side window, and we talk about it for a little bit and grabs his flashlight. Se he's poking with the paint mixing stick and I'm grabbing and pulling on different rods in the door (shut up) until he shakes the door a little.

He sees that the latch assembly is not moving with the door, it's moving with the little loopy thing. So now I'm trying to hold it tight while he goes and tries to open in, pulling the door up this and that.

Then it finally opens.I go to inspect it and the screws for the latch assembly in the door are missing. Now I'm pissed because that was one of the issues I told the body shop about. My door pins and bushings, the latch. That and the leaky sunroof, and windsheild. So he never fixed that, and he replaced my sunroof with a cheese greater. But that's a different story.

So now the holes for the screws are all chewed up, made bigger from the loosening of the assembly and the play in it. The threads are all stripped on the inside, and I'm taking a gamble on if the door is going to work on the next attempt.

So the latch assembly got all screwed up because the pins and bushings were bad in the hinges, making the end of the door sag and let the assembly hit the striker and loosen the screws, causing play in the assembly and enlarging the holes for the screws, all while striping the threads......

Goddam I'm pissed. :mofomad:

[lanky189]

a cheesegrater...wtf?

[stevrock]

a cheesegrater...wtf?

It's an analogy. The sunroof keeps the water out as well as a cheesegrater would.

On a side note, an pretty funny one. Don't get mad at your door not opening until you check the lock button. Happened to me tonight, with two of us working the door.

[Black_fin]

Something similar happened to one of my cars. The passenger side door locked one day but wouldn't unlock, So i rolled down the window and pryed the panels apart about an inch to see down inside but could not figure out what was going on. So i grabbed a breaker bar and slid it down into the window opening and started ramming it towards the locking mechanism. After ten blows the door finally pops open. I end up cutting the wires to the power locks on that side figureing that i'll just have to use the key whenever I want to lock and unlock the door. Well i can lock it but to unlock it.. ..out comes the breaker bar. To this day I never lock that door.

Stevrock, sorry to hear about your misfortune, i don't understand doors at all. they're just a mystery to me so i cannot help your problem but hopefully my spiel has lightened your mood.

[stevrock]

Yeah, tearing apart your door with a breaker bar....... ok fellas, lets really try to not piss this guy off......

[Black_fin]

Yeah, tearing apart your door with a breaker bar....... ok fellas, lets really try to not piss this guy off......

I didn't mean to come off like that. Tore the door apart? Hardly. I thought the whole ordeal was rather amusing, that's why i posted it.

[stevrock]

I know, I'm only pulling your leg. I don't think somebody could be so cruel as to do that to their own car.

[Black_fin]

Oh, lol.

[lechner]

Now I just got my car back from paint, .....
..., and he replaced my sunroof with a cheese greater.....
It's an analogy. The sunroof keeps the water out as well as a cheesegrater would.Just a thought, but since the sunroof is not designed to keep the water out so much as to channel it via gutters and tubes down the pillars, and this guy that installed your sunroof also painted your car and may not have been to bright, Definitely check that he did not plug the drain tubes in the four corners of your open sunroof with paint. Most 'leaky' sunroofs are actually clogged gutter tubes.

[stevrock]

That was another thing I pointed out to him, I told him about the gutters and channels etc. He said he'll run a coat hanger down them...... To me that didn't sound like a good idea. Is the a certain way to do this so I can do that here before my car rots out?

But the sunroof could better prevent the leaks if ti were atleast sitting right in the roof, you should see this thing, the front right is about 5mm above the rest of the roof, and front right is about half of that. The abck sits flush but it's pulled a couple mm away from the back edge of the roof. He didn't even line it up right.

Thanks for your input.

[Chrisfrom1986]

you have two front rights on your sunroof? :whutthefu no wonder it sucks... :D

[stevrock]

My bad. Front driver's is about 5mm up and the passenger side is about half of that. :D

[FordRocks21]

Same thing happened to me except a tow truck driver slimjimmed my passenger door. That's my best guess anyway. Now the lock is jammed and the handle seems to not be attached to anything inside the door. There's no resistence. So basically you just screwed around with it till it opened?

[CJSREDPRA]

To me that didn't sound like a good idea. Is the a certain way to do this so I can do that here before my car rots out?

Coat hanger does work. Otherwise, a VERY strong shot of compressed air. This does work well in clearing out the debris inside the drain tubes.

[stevrock]

I'll get it at work over the weeked, I pulled the headliner and the roof is spotless, but there's now condensation on the tray that houses the sunroof, any suggestions prof? Also, would it be a good idea to put some type of water/woisture repelant coating on the roof to keep it from rotting?

TIA.

[drftsupramk2]

Wow my friend jard could probably beninfit from the usage gung out thanks lecher. BTw steve I have a somewhat similar problems due to some thiefs they used a breaker bar on my f**king door handle and now it's all warped and the handle really doesn't sit right on the door. Have to press in the handle for it to open.

[stevrock]

I gotta push in the whole door, and I can't use the insde handle, the latch is shot from hitting the striker. At $62 for each hinge for the car, it's going to wait until after storage season for work to procede on the car....

[lechner]

Tidbit of info for those of you poking and prodding around in there looking for the right combination to open the door with a non-working latch:

When it works right, As you pull the door handle to open the door, it pushes Down on a rod near the rear edge of the handle. This means if you pry the handle out or if it is missing, you need to push DOWN on this rod to open the door.

My 82 has been missing the drivers side door handle since the day I bought it. I was gonna replace it, but soon discovered I can walk up to the car and open the door instantaneously and effortlessly by pushing down on this rod, and no one else can figure out how to get into the car. It's great security.

[FordRocks21]

I kinda force pulled part of the panel away from the door so I can see down in the door. My problem is the lock is jammed so there's no way to open it. And I can't figure out how to unjam it. Anybody have any ideas? There's 2 wires going into a little box and one of them is disconnected. Would this have anything to do with it? I also found a spring at the bottom of the door. Not sure where it came from...

[stevrock]

disconect the rod from the power lock to the latch and start fooling around with it.

[FordRocks21]

I'll see what I can do. I fooled with it tapping on stuff trying to get it to budge for about 15 or 20 min the other day. I guess I'll give it another shot tomorrow. The problem is I'm not sure of the name of anything in there. I'm not real proficient with locks and the such...