Driver side door locked me out!!!!

[greekprincess]

So, someone broke into my 2 door 2000 explorer. Now I can't lock and unlock the driver side door. The lock seems to be jammed but it's not the motor cause you can see and hear it trying to unlock. I finally got it unlocked but then I can't lock it. If I physically push the lock down it gets stuck and I can't unlock it. I don't know if this is a typical problem or if when whoever broke into damaged it. Can someone please help me I'm sick of climbing over the passenger seat to get in the driver seat. Thanks.
-Ann-

 

[MountaineerGreen]

Its probably one of the rods in the door out of adjustment- I don't really have any way to tell you how to look for and diagnose the problem though.

 

[greekprincess]

If it is a rod, do I have to take the door apart or just take the panel off? Would I be able to fix it or would I need a certain tool. I can get into a shop and use their tools but I would like to have an idea what I may be looking for. The one person I spoke to said it was the motor, but it definetely is not. Thanks for the help.

 

[KLW]

I wonder if it's a combination outer door handle rod adjustment (was messed up in the breakin) and a broken spring in the latch assy. Open the door and look inside the latch, work the lock rod up and down and see if you see a lever hitting another lever. If you take a small screwdriver you can push the offending lever over to allow the lock rod to move up and down properly. Also if you look into the latch you should see a small spring attached to the the area of the offending lever. Look at the other door latch to see if both sides look the same as far as the springs.

 

[joshuaj0214]

everybody I have talked to that has 96-01 explorers have had similar problems. the is something with the factory door handle that just gets wore out and does exactly what your saying. I temp. fixed mine with a carefully placed spring and wire tie. there is no room in there at all so you kind of have to feel your way through there. my friend took his entire door apart to try to figure it out and went to the local ford dealer to get a new handle assembly. they had "more than a few" hanging on the wall right behind the counter. they said it is a common problem. im going to tackle mine sooner or later, but good luck!