Pit5Bull

Wassup peeps!!!

I have a 2000 GXE and the rear door on the driver's side will no longer open from the inside or from the outside and I don't exactly know what to do about it. The power door locks still functions but the door will not open when the handle is used either outside or inside. I was able to open it at one point in time from the inside after the handle on the outside stopped functioning and don't quite know what happened to the exterior handle. I was able to remedy the issue from the interior handle by figuring out that one of my sons must have switched the child safety latch to the "on" position, but the exterior handle still does not work.

If this is something I can fix myself without having to hassle with the dealership, please let me know because I'm tired of having a 3DSC instead of the 4DSC that I bought nearly 3 years ago...

Thanks in advance!!!

Lontar1

iTrader: (5)

Seems like the Safety Child Lock is jammed... you will have to take the door panel off and see if it jammed or not.

Squirrel82

iTrader: (30)

Take the inside door panel off and look around.Something is bent or loose.

bert

Taking the door panel off might be a bit of a pain since the door is stuck.

The child door lock certainly sounds like something to look at.

You may be able to get in to the door by unscrewing the trim on the inside door pull. Once open the pull should be hooked up to a rod, which may be able to actuate the door latch if there is enough play.

You could consider calling towing / taxi / police to open the door with a slim-jim. Once open you can take off the panel and the inner plastic lining with rubber glue seal. It may take some time figuring out what order the latches, switches, plugs have to be disconnected, but it's not rocket science. Sometimes you just have to pry panels off. Once opened look at the pivot points for the door latch, door lock, door pull (inside and outside) system and lubricate them. NOT WD-40. Something silicone based, please.

nsnrider

iTrader: (59)

check the rod that connects the outer handle with the lock mechanism, it might have bent.

Pit5Bull

Thanks for all of your suggestions guys!

I discovered that there is a piece of metal that looks like a very thick wire that is connected to the outside door latch and it completely came loose and was sitting at the bottom of the door well. It apparently slides into a hole and is then held in place by a piece of plastic that clamps down and around it, and it basically opens the door by pushing down on the door latch mechanism when you lift up on the exterior door handle. There are no screws or anything holding it in place. If you ever have any issues with your exterior door handle, this is likely the cause, and that piece of metal is sitting at the bottom of the door well. It's a very weird looking piece of metal and you'll likely have to pull the opposite door panel off and play with the door handle in order to see how it works and how it is supposed to fit. Once you understand how it's supposed to fit, and as long as that plastic clamp isn't broken, it should only take you a few minutes to get it back in there, but be aware that you'll only have room for one hand in that tight area, and it does take a bit of maneuvering to get the piece of wire back in the right spot. I placed the bottom of the piece of metal into this cup-like orifice attached to the locking mechanism first and then slid the upper part into the hole in the exterior door handle and put the plastic clamp down over it.

FYI - In order to get the door opened in the first place, it was the child safety switch. I took a thin wire hanger and slid it between the door and the frame of the car and pushed until I heard the switch click, and then I was able to open the door from the inside. The rest was a little deductive reasoning and then I discovered the missing piece of twisted mystery metal at the bottom of the door well. Hopefully this lengthy explanation will help out the next person that has to deal with this issue.

The .ORG is the BEST!!!

Thanks again!