Driver's Door kinda difficult to open

[BobLoblaw]

My '94 Pathy XE's driver's door has a few problems.

 

First, the lock is pretty hard to turn open when the key is inside. I actually have broken 2 keys off in it!!! Is there anyway to fix/lube the lock?

 

Second, the door is difficult to shut. You gotta slam the door to get it to close properly. When you open the door from the outside, it kinda 'pops' open, not like the rest of the doors. It feels like it could be under tension almost. It's a real pop when it opens. There is a little sag in the door, (but nothing like my old Thunderbird lol). Can this be fixed? Can I adjust the striker bolt to fix this?

 

Lastly, Have you guys noticed the amount of cold air that comes through the vent in the door. Is it supposed to let air in like that? My left hip get damn cold in the morning! Is this fixable?

 

 

Thanks

[unccpathfinder]

First, the lock is pretty hard to turn open when the key is inside. I actually have broken 2 keys off in it!!! Is there anyway to fix/lube the lock?

powdered graphite sometimes helps

 

but try this...if its mostly on cold mornings give a nice lil whack with your hand right above the lock when its being stubborn and it should work...my 87 does the same thing on the pass side and the drivers started it and noticed if you give it a whack it unlocks...i've actually had problems with not being able to pull up the lock from the inside and this remidies that too for me

 

Second, the door is difficult to shut. You gotta slam the door to get it to close properly. When you open the door from the outside, it kinda 'pops' open, not like the rest of the doors. It feels like it could be under tension almost. It's a real pop when it opens. There is a little sag in the door, (but nothing like my old Thunderbird lol). Can this be fixed? Can I adjust the striker bolt to fix this?

 

i'd check to see if the hinges may be bent and try to make adjustments it may be that as you said the striker should be adjusted to allow it to close smoothly

Lastly, Have you guys noticed the amount of cold air that comes through the vent in the door. Is it supposed to let air in like that? My left hip get damn cold in the morning! Is this fixable?

 

i havent noticed a ton of cold air coming in but i'd guess if the door isnt seating well its letting more air in and I know theres some plastic on the inside to help keep airflow down you may want to pull the door panel and see if maybe its moved or been removed previously during speaker installs

[94extreme]

cold air, what unc said.. there is a fair amount of air coming through that vent though.

 

the lock, definitely lube it.. that's it's issue.

 

 

same thought as unc on the hinge.

[BobLoblaw]

Is there a certain type of lube for locks or should I just use Moovit (or some other generic lube)? Should I spray the lube into the lock or remove the door panel and spray the back, or both?

 

I adjusted the striker bolt and the door doesn't pop anymore. It still doesn't close as nicely as the passenger door, but my guess is that it's because of door sagging. Thanks for you help tho!

[94extreme]

well, at least shoot some lube intoi the lock.. best do inside too but that's a little more involved. use whatever you feel comfortable with. i use what ever i have around. i do it 2x a year or whenever the locks start acting up a little.. winter salt tends to give them hell.

[BobLoblaw]

Well, I got some lock lube and it work great. the only thing is that I still can't lock the door from the outside! Open the door is butter-smooth which is great but shouldn't I be able to lock it from the outside using the key?

[nige]

i have the same problem on my truck. take off your interior door skin and have a look at the linkage. I've heard there is a plastic piece on the linkage that is prone to breaking.

[edicer2]

I had the same problem with the lock being hard to open i just sprayed WD-40 in it and put the key in and just try to work it in then squirt some more in a nd it seems to do a fairly good job. Only problem is your key gets greasy the first few times you use it after.