Q: My passenger door won't open from inside or the outside on my 1997 Ford Explorer

asked by on January 09, 2017

So I purchased a 97' Ford Explorer and the passenger door will not open from the inside handle or outside handle. It has automatic locks which sound and look like they are working fine when pressed. The inside handle did not seem to be connected but the outside has some tension to it. I started off by taking the inside handle apart and moving the rod connecting to it. No luck. Next i partially took off the door panel (since the door does not open I could not fully take the panel off) I located where the inside door handle rod connects to the base of the mechanism and turned it back and forth which has to tension at all and moved freely . Next I unlocked and locked the door while watching the mechanism and everything seems to be working( everything moved back and forth including the rod connecting to the automatic lock). Can someone please give me any information possible as I really don't want to spend a ton of cash and bring it into a mechanic
My car has an automatic transmission.

Door Latch Replacement Get a Quote

Hi there. This commonly happens when the door latch assembly breaks. I have seen this often and it takes quite a bit of work to get it open. The door panel needs to be completely removed. in a lot of cases it is damaged when this occurs and it will need to be replaced. With it removed the door latch can be accessed and it can be popped open. The latch assembly needs to be replaced. If you need some help with this, consider YourMechanic, as a certified mechanic can come to you to [fix the door latch] https://www.yourmechanic.com/services/door-latch-replacement

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