I've been having problems with my drivers side door lock actuator. In the winter something would freeze and I would not be able to unlock it with the key until it thawed. I thought water got in there so I replaced it. I put a new one in and it worked fine for a couple of months but eventually I had a hard time unlocking it in the summer and couldn't do it at all. I had to go in through the passenger side and even pulling the handle from the inside would not raise the lock up. Yesterday I took off the panel and saw that the lock was slightly out of it's perch and no longer worked at all.

I put a new actuator in and at first had trouble raising and lowering the lock rod that comes up out of the panel up and down by hand. Ditto when trying to turn the key to lock/unlock. I loosened the perch and jiggled things around. I looked for any bent linkage but I couldn't fine anything. But I've been here before and I'm worried something is going to happen and ruin this actuator.

When I bought the new actuator kit it came with several rods. I used the longest rod that came in the kit as that matched what was previously used. What I don't know is if the actuator was replaced by a PO who used the wrong one.

Anyone know which rod to use or any advice?

 

Sounds like you have issues with the latch mechanism. Something is binding up causing the handle to be tight and burning up the lock actuators.

I've had to do both in my '89. You have to carefully set it up so that it works properly. The actuator is basically a motor that turns and threads a shaft IN/OUT and that raises/lowers the rod to move the lock mechanism.

I would unhook the lock actuator and manually work the rod(on door) to see if it works freely. If it does then rotate the actuator arm back and forth to see how much travel it has. Compare and set it up so that it's either IN or OUT as to how the lock mechanism is set. Then attach everything and see how it works.

Maybe someone attached it improperly and the actuator is bound up due to it running out of travel? That would make it hard for the key or door handle to work lock.

 

Are there any schematics out there of the door linkage?

 

Maybe? Do a google image search. I've found alot of stuff there, though you might have to wade through alot of crap to find it.

I'm guessing this is what you got?


I'd just mount the actuator with the actuator in the "up" position(unlocked) and see what rod fits to the mechanism with it in the up/unlock position.
Pretty sure I used one of the straight rods with just a Z bend at the top. Not the horseshoe models.

 

yes that's essentially what i got. i used the rod on the extreme left. I'm wondering if I'd have been better off with the one 2nd from the left.