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drivers door will not unlock

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Old Oct 1, 2011 | 09:27 PM
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drivers door will not unlock

I have a 98 explorer, i try to unlock the drivers door with the key and i can turn it to lock the door but it will not unlock it however i can go as far as i can and unlock all the doors, now the strange part ( to me anyway ) i can not unlock the door from the inside either by using the power lock or by trying to unlock it manually, i am wondering if anyone has experienced it, any help i can get would be fantastic.
 
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Old Oct 1, 2011 | 10:13 PM
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You need to get the door open then repair the broken wire in the accordion between door and frame.... then clean and lubricate the latch connections... Philip
 
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Old Oct 1, 2011 | 10:34 PM
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how would i be able to get the door to unlock so i can get it open??
 
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Old Oct 2, 2011 | 12:43 AM
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Use a "SlimJim" to trip the mechanism...
Slim Jim Instructions | eHow.com
Philip
 
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Old Oct 2, 2011 | 08:46 AM
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And if that doesn't work, you may need to remove the driver's seat so that you can pull the driver's door trim panel and access the linkage and latch mechanism that way. If the key will not unlock the driver's door, I suspect the issue is with the latch or linkage and not due to a broken wire.

-Rod
 
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Old Oct 2, 2011 | 10:19 AM
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Old Oct 11, 2011 | 07:10 AM
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I have had a problem with both left hand doors on my '97. There is a spring inside the door latch mechanism that breaks and prevents the doors from unlocking. I fixed both on my own. It was a bit of a tedious repair....
 
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Old Oct 11, 2011 | 04:27 PM
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ok did you just replace that spring or the lock mech. i got the door open last weekend all the rod are attached i can open the door from the inside ( with some resistance trying to open it ) but it does open. i have tried to penetrating spray on everything, it seem it would work but not all the time right now i have the door panel off for easier access, do you or one of the other folk here know of a set of instructions to repairing this spring??
 
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Old Oct 11, 2011 | 05:13 PM
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It was just one spring end that broke off. So I went cheap and rebent the missing end on the current spring and reassembled it. Works great now. In both cases, I was able to get the door to unlock after hitting the unlock button repeatedly while also working the outside handle. In the case of my rear door, my inside handle was also broken by the kids, so I have no idea if it would open from the inside. I went ahead and replaced the inside handle when I fixed the broken spring. Now the other side's inside handle is broke too (I dispise plastic in heavy use applications as this).

What I remember the spring doing is: The door does actually lock/unlock. However, when the door is locked, there is a lever that moves out of the way so the opening mechanism doesn't push on anything. When the door is unlocked, the spring pulls the lever back to position so that the opening mechanism hits the latch lever and opens the door. Wish I had a picture....
 
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Old Oct 11, 2011 | 05:24 PM
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I can somewhat get a visual to what you are telling me, I was peeking around and from what i could see i thought i saw a piece of spring floating aroung and i have a pretty good clue to what lever you are describing to me it is a huge help thanks..
 
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Old Oct 13, 2011 | 05:58 PM
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Sometimes the Door Lock Actuator will hang up causing all described issues
 
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Old Jan 17, 2012 | 03:04 PM
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Were you able to get just the
New spring?
 
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Old Jan 17, 2012 | 05:34 PM
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No - I just bought a new latch assembly was about 65 dollars or so at the dealer here. went easier than i thought it would the it is kind of a puzzle to get it in and out with all the rods attached. still need to adjust the handle rod some more but the door open and it can wait till spring ( no garage to work in )
 
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Old Jan 18, 2012 | 02:46 PM
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I have a similar problem, this is mine,

1.my drivers side door handle is loose on the outside a litlle floppy, but the door opens.

2. the door will not unlock with key or code drivers side only from the outside, i cant unlock the power door lock from inside the car with the door closed using the unlock switch, but it will unlock if the door is open. the only way i can get the door open while sitting in the car is to pull on the door handle. i guess it sounds like the actuator might be ok since the door lock goes up with the door open. maybe is is just a spring? thx for the help
 
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Old Jan 18, 2012 | 07:41 PM
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i am assuming that once the door has been opened from the inside it works from the outside then, when you take the door panel off look at the latch assembly if everything appears ok my gurss the latch assem is going to be the problem the spring is on the inside of that which is creating your headache,
 
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