Driver Door Lock Problem | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

Driver Door Lock Problem

Mazior R.

Active Member
Joined
April 15, 2018
Messages
54
Reaction score
7
City, State
MI
Year, Model & Trim Level
2000 Ford Explorer Lim.
Hello, I have a 99' Explorer Sport and I recently started using the key fob remote to lock my car again and recently the driver door lock won't go up. If I press the unlock button, it will go up a little and then go back to being locked. You cant open it from the outside after unlocking it. So I have to get in through the passenger side to unlock it by pulling on the door handle to open it. The driver side lock switches don't work (stopped working a long time ago) and I wouldn't attempt to unlock it manually as it's old and barely work. So getting in and opening it through the passenger side whenever it's lock is what I'm doing for now. Anyone know how to fix this problem and also how to make the buttons to lock the car on the driver side work again? Thanks
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





There's an electric actuator in the door that pops the lock up and down. Common failure point, and pretty cheap online. Lots of Youtube videos to show the process of replacement.
 






My bet's on the small broken spring inside the latch. Regardless of what's broken or disconnected, the door panel and glass run channel must be removed to diagnose or replace faulty parts. Only exceptions would be broken wiring near the hinge or door panel switches.
door latch problem solved - temporarily maybe??

Door handle isn't your issue but many useful pics. Do you hear any sound when pressing the lock/unlock door switches?
How To: Drivers Exterior Door Handle Replacement
 






Thank you, will look into it
 






I had the tiny broken spring in the driver's door latch of our '97 Sport. It would work normally 8 out of 10 times, then the latch would jam the latch. At that point the door would not unlock using the key, keypad or remote fob. You had to fiddle with it until it would unlock. I looked inside my latch (w/out taking anything apart) with a strong flashlight and was able to see the tiny spring loose in the latch. I carefully removed the spring with a pair of tweeters, or a dental pick and the latch worked fine afterwards.
 






For preventative maintenance always keep door latches, locks, and hinges lubricated and moving freely. Amazing the threads you'll find of these parts binding up and not working because of non-use or neglect. Most use a light penetrant such as WD-40 to clean and flush the latches, followed by heavier white lithium spray. For lock and ignition cylinders, Lock-Ease graphite, or Tri-Flow PTFE aerosols seem to be preferred choices on many locksmith forums.
 






I had a similar issue and replaced the actuator. Not difficult if you take your time and watch the video.
 






Was just out piling my doors and looked in a low and behold.

71FFA388-AF02-417E-8243-3BAADAA88011.jpeg


40D4C232-37ED-4B7D-A8F0-B84E921807B2.jpeg


3990551D-C480-4068-9D89-EBD5BF99AAE1.jpeg


87760200-D166-46EA-AFF8-4C42CF8D4CED.jpeg


459FDCD3-75ED-4BA2-8E93-B3CC1F259D0B.jpeg


6A1DED84-C021-4004-BE4E-85A681A24047.jpeg
 






Back
Top