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Door latch/lock issue; Need input please
Topic Started: Jan 7 2011, 09:10 PM (6,433 Views)
jaevans
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Greetings all,

Well, Frankie has a problem - the door latches are very hard to lock and unlock (I had to push on the interior latches with a rod from the hatch - so I thought I'd check to see if there were any Metro specific issues with the latches. Now Frankie is waiting for a decent service manual that probably would answer my questions and searching didn't exactly yield an abundance of solutions so forgive me if I ask here.

Are the latches electric? Because if they are, then that must be my number one problem. If they are mechanical though, I am betting that the inner latch/lock mechanism could use some lithium grease. I did see that a special tool is needed to even get the window cranks off to remove the door panel, so if they are pointers to solutions, I'd appreciate it. I have time this weekend to work on Frankie. I'll try to get pix of what folks wanted to see - better dash pix, some underbody shots, and some more engine bay pix.

I figure if I can get this ready to drive I can commute with it after our cold and snowy snap starting on Sunday.

Thanks,
John
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1DCGUY
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Don't be a "Richard"

You don't need the special tool, you can use a rag behind the handle to pop the clip off. Just make sure you don't loose that little clip.
As for the locks being hard to turn, once you get the door apart and can get to the latching mechanism, spray it with some kind of lube. (be generous)
After doing that, check to see if it free's up the mechanism. Those things seem to geet dirty pretty easy, and a good shot of lube does them wonders. I do this everytime I have the door panel off, as I live on a gravel road. :(
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GA Geo


Mine were the same way but after taking off the door panels and applying a little spray grease to the mechanism they operate slick as a button now.
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allmountain40
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1DCGUY :gp
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JellyBeanDriver


Grease worked for mine for a while, then got gummed up even more.
This past year I took out each doors latch mechanism, disassembled them and cleaned them up in mineral spirits and lubed with bike chain lube. Wow, actuates like a new car now.
Edited by JellyBeanDriver, Jan 8 2011, 01:53 AM.
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Jezza
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Boost Junkie

Where to start? (sigh) Both of my doors have problems... both outside and inside.
Right door outside handle is broken (it just lifts without opening) and inside latch wont lock.

Left door inside latch wont lock either and outside lock wont turn (key only goes in halfway and it is NOT blocked by a broken key)

Is the door panel for the 91 screwed on or glued on?? :ermm:

Car is VERY open for theft ...
Edited by Jezza, Jan 8 2011, 02:05 AM.
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Jezza
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Boost Junkie

:'( :(
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idmetro
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Jezza
Jan 8 2011, 02:04 AM
Where to start? (sigh) Both of my doors have problems... both outside and inside.
Right door outside handle is broken (it just lifts without opening) and inside latch wont lock.

Left door inside latch wont lock either and outside lock wont turn (key only goes in halfway and it is NOT blocked by a broken key)

Is the door panel for the 91 screwed on or glued on?? :ermm:

Car is VERY open for theft ...
Door panels are held in place by:
- The window crank handle (wire clip on the backside holds it in place, the rag trick works great)
- The inside door handle (one screw in the center, then it slides to disengage from the door at that point you will need to disengage the plastic clip on the backside from the actuator rod.
- The armrest has screws going through the armrest and panel attaching it to the door (these are covered by plastic plugs, remove the plugs unscrew the screws)
- The two sides and bottom of the panel are held in place by plastic "fingers" that pop into receptacles in the door (work a putty knife, screwdriver or your fingers behind the panel, lift it away from the door and these will pop free)
- The top of the panel where it contat the window sort of clips down over the door frame. Once you get to this point lift the panel out and up and it will come off the door.

When you do that you will find some plastic glued to the door (unless someone was in there before you and tore it off), pull the plastic off the door starting from the bottom and working up. If you are gentle you can save the plastic for re-installation later. At that point you are inside the door and ready to begin your exploration.
Edited by idmetro, Jan 8 2011, 05:55 AM.
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Jezza
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Boost Junkie

Thanx idmetro! About the locks now ... can they be fixed or would they have to be replaced??
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idmetro
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Jezza
Jan 8 2011, 07:46 AM
Thanx idmetro! About the locks now ... can they be fixed or would they have to be replaced??
You're welcome.

As for the various issues, here's my initial thoughts:

Outside door handle is possibly broken (not too unusual) but could also be that the plastic clip which connects the handle the actuator rod that goes inside the door to the actual latch has broken allowing the rod to disconnect from the handle itself. Resulting on you lifting up on the handle with no result. If the issue is the rod has disconnected (this could happen at either the handle end or the latch end) but the clip is intact simply reconnect it. If the clip or the handle itself is broken then a trip to the local wrecking yard for a replacement is in order. Door handle is held in place by nuts accessible from inside the door.

Lock cylinders are held to the door with a spring metal clip on the backside, you will be able to see this once you get inside the door. Disconnect the plastic clip holding the actuator rod to the lock (be gentle, it is old plastic), disconnect the rod from the lock cylinder, pull the spring clip allowing the lock cylinder to come out. Take the lock cylinder and give it a good cleaning with a solvent (inside and out), spray some lubricant into the lock cylinder, then try to work the key into it and gently (our keys are known to break off the tips if you twist with much force) attempt to work the lock itself, keep working on it, it may take several cleanings to get it to free up. You could have all manner of things stuck in there, dirt, a key part, spider webs, etc. It is also possible you have a key that is worn so badly it is no longer moving the lock tumblers enough to allow the cylinder to rotate. If after all the cleaning you still can't get the tumbler to free go to the passenger side of the car and remove the lock cylinder from the door, take it with you to the locksmith and he/she will be able to make you a factory new key from the code stamped on it. One other thing to consider is that someone may have put a different ignition in the car so your key no longer matches the doors. Does your existing key work on the hatch? If so then your locks are probably all the same and just full of crud. Least likely choice is that the lock is worn out (not impossible but not typical). If you find you have a different ignition from the door locks you can take the locks (while they are out of the car) to the locksmith and either have a new key made (a new key is the cheapest of the options but re-keying is not much more and well woth it for the convenience - from the code on the passenger lock, you will then have one key for the ignition and one for the door locks) or have them re-keyed to match the ignition key, then you are back to having one key do everything again (this has been my choice in the past). If you find yourself with worn out lock cylinders you can get replacement cylinders from your local pick-n-pull and if you want to have one key operation get them re-keyed by the locksmith.

Good luck and go easy on the key! Patience is your friend here.
Edited by idmetro, Jan 8 2011, 08:39 AM.
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Bad Bent
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Facetious Educated Donkey

Door handles...

Posted Image
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JoeBob
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Why you Mutt!

Bad Bent
Jan 8 2011, 12:53 PM
Door handles...

Posted Image
This works OK, however I've found that the clip tool from Harbor Freight or Autozone (the same one used on pretty much all GM cars since the Corvair days) works a little better (IMHO, YMMV)
Edited by JoeBob, Jan 8 2011, 01:02 PM.
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pvt_pwn
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Diesel Technician

Is there a trick to getting the window clip back in?
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JellyBeanDriver


Not at all. Install it on the handle, then push the handle on.
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econoboxer
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I am the one on the left.

It is possible to purchase new interior and exterior door handles on Ebay. Look for The cultus door handles. You can pm me, and I will send you a link. I am not the seller of these handles.
When I bought my metro (93) only the driver door opened from the outside, but the door lock would not unlock on the driver door. I could open the passenger door from the inside, and unlock the passenger door with a key, but not lock it(useless anyway since it didn't open from the outside).
Long story short, I was tired of leaning across the front passenger seat to open the door for my passengers (read kids), and then on one especially cold day, the drivers' door wouldn't open. Luckily my passengers were with me, and one nimble one was able to crawl through the hatch, and open my door for me from the inside.
The door handles came from Florida, and it took a week. Pulled the doors off pulled the handles off, installed new handles, but re-used the plastic clip that attaches the throw rod to exterior door handle. This is where it gets tricky. If you don't turn it enough turns, it will not open the door. After much trial and error (by using a screwdriver to move the door mechanism with the door open, we found the correct length and re-installed. While the door lock cylinders were out, we were a wee bit lazy. Lots of time with graphite had both cylinders turning freely once again. As an end user note, the way these handles are engineered, the least amount of torque on the plastic, the longer the life of the plastic, so now we all open the doors with the most exterior pressure on the door handle being nearest to the lock cylinder.
Edited by econoboxer, Feb 28 2011, 11:31 PM.
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