2001 Ford explorer Driver side rear door wont open

[henryfarar]

On my 2001 Explorer, the inside handle wont open the door and my outside handle just recently broke.

How do I get the door open so I can take off the panel and replace the outside handle.

 

[corkey]

that's a pretty tough one,,
i think , there may be just enough room if you wiggle it right to get the door panel off enough to get it out of the way so you can get inside of the door,,

i will move this thread to the 95-2001 section, see if anybody else chimes in with a better idea,,

 

[FR-425]

If you pop the inside latch trim cover off you can reach in with a pair of needle nose pliers and grab the latch bar and push it toward the rear (latch end of door) to open the door.

Or just go ahead and remove the inside handle and do the same. Bit easier, and you will be replacing the handle anyway.

 

[ThreeJs]

I was able to lay across the back seat and remove the L/Rear interior door handle without removing door panel.
Remove the cover behind the latch and there are 2 screws that need to be removed. I lower left of the handle and 1 upper right. Slide the latch assembly forward to remove and unhook the door latch handle. You can now used a needle nose pliers to push the rod back to open the door.

 

[henryfarar]

Thanks for all the advice. I will try it this weekend. Thankfully the other doors open from the inside.