Hey there, have a 2004 E150 raised roof conversion van. The side door has a problem where the inside handle does not ope the door though the outside one does (there is like no resistance on the inside handle). I did not see any access screws so I was wondering: is the panel on the door just held in with those push connectors or are there hidden screws I should look for. I would rather not break the panel...

 

e150 side door
an image of the side door panel

 

There are cables that run from each handle ( inside and outside) to the actual latch. They break or the ball on the end of them break. You can find them on ebay or amazon in the $15 range. A whole assembly at the dealer will be between $75 and $100 I believe. I have seen threads on this forum about it.

I had the same one fail on my '96. It takes a little snaking around to get the old one out and the new one in, but it is possible. FYI the rear door is the same setup. I had to do that also. Watch out, there are sharp edges on the metal inside the doors.

Good luck.
Chuck

 

Don't remember what the rest of the fasteners are, but I do remember that there are screws on each end of the pull strap under end cap covers.

 

Ah cool, once I get in I hope to know better about what went wrong. I tried looking at a couple videos before to see if anyone did a similar side panel but could not find any though did see those likes you mentioned. Hopefully dig into it today.

 

I had a feeling it was like that. The lower part of the panel has some give to it where I can see the hint of a plastic fastener and the capping on the handle made me wonder if the pull strap screws just affixed the pull strap or the top part of the panel. Today will be exploring that I think as not being able to open the door kinda sucks.

 

Yours is a conversion so it may vary greatly, but the Ford trim panel requires to remove the window frame first, remove the bolts that secure the straps, and then you slide upward. The door has square holes and the trim has “L” hooks pointing down that latch on those holes. The holes are about 0.5” wide x 1.0” tall .

 

Check this post for a 2001. The pic. will give you a pretty good idea what they look like striped. Not exactly like yours. " Rear door panel removal, 2001 e-350 passenger " Posted 2/16/2015 by Watercamper

 

Success!
I took off the wood trip and the window piece just because it sounded like some models slid the panel up. No go, turns out this is one of those push pin type panels. Got the door frame out, removed some fiberglass insulation.

I felt around inside first and it felt like both ends were connected, from the inside frame and where it felt like it was attached to the lock mechanism. The cable was fine actually...it turns out right by the door latch there is some metal sticking out to hold the cable housing so when the latch was lifted, it was affixed to that and let the cable get pulled. That came loose. Pushing it back in place I was able to unlatch the door from the inside. Current solution required, as all good solutions do, duct tape to hold the cable housing against the door frame. I expect there is something better I can do, but it is some 40 degrees out :P

Only casualty was that there were a pair of screws holding the panel in place near the bottom; they were in no way accessible (the furred trim at the bottom covered it and I did not see a way to remove that. Most important: after reassembly I did not have any left over screws. Mission accomplished, in my mind.