Q: Rear passenger door will not lock

asked by on September 20, 2016

The car has power locks, but the rear passenger door will no longer lock. When the key fob is pressed, there is an electrical sound made, but the mechanism does not move. I disassembled the door down to the locking mechanism and it looks like the joint does not fully engage to lock. I can manually 'help' the joint, but I am lost on how to fix the mechanism. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

My car has 105000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

Power door locks are not working Inspection $94.99 - $114.99 Get a Quote

You may have a bad door latch and they are not serviceable. You will have to replace the latch and the lock actuator if it is not an integral part of the latch. If you would like to have this checked, a certified technician from YourMechanic can come to your car’s location to diagnose the door issue and let you know what should be done.

The statements expressed above are only for informational purposes and should be independently verified. Please see our terms of service for more details

Get an instant quote for your car

Our certified mechanics come to you ・Backed by 12-month, 12,000-mile guarantee・Fair and transparent pricing


Experienced Mechanic?

Earn up to $70/hr

What others are asking

Car shut down due to low battery voltage
Hello. Thanks for writing in about your 2015 Acura ILX. If the battery voltage (https://www.yourmechanic.com/article/how-to-check-the-voltage-of-a-car-battery) got that low then it will stall like this. It sounds to me like there was a bad connection at the battery or possibly the...
Engine vibration
Hello, thanks for writing in about your Volkswagen Passat. You should scan the engine computer to see if you are getting a misfire (https://www.yourmechanic.com/services/engine-is-misfiring-inspection) code for one of the cylinders. From what you've described you may have a defective coil...
Transmission shifts early
Hello. If the fluid is really dirty and if its integrity is broken down then it can affect the shifting. There are also other parts of the transmission control that can cause this. It can also be caused by a...
Periodically vibrating steering wheel at interstate speeds
Vibration at that speed is often related to the tires. It could be that one or more of the tires are out-of-balance, or that they have worn unevenly and now have a bad pattern worn into them. Vibration can also...
coolant evaporating very quickly
Hello. If the coolant continues to go low then there is a problem with the vehicle. It can be an external leak or the engine may have an internal failure which is causing the coolant to burn off. Since you...
My passenger door won't open from inside or the outside on my 1997 Ford Explorer
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...
My car will start and the theft light comes on then car jerks
Hello, and thank you for writing in. When multiple sensors and warning lights appear to fail, the culprit is typically electrical. You may want to start with a basic charging system test, which would include testing the battery and the...
car vibration
If the struts are defective (https://www.yourmechanic.com/services/strut-assembly-replacement), that can be a cause of vibration. It sounds like the struts have to be replaced anyway, so I would suggest doing that first. Check the exhaust system (is it all OEM?). Check for...
1999 Ford Ranger 2.5L. #3 and #4 cylinders are not firing, #2 sometimes doesn't fire.
You should first check the fuel pressure is within specification. Then check plugs are getting fire and then do a compression test on all 4 cylinders. If all this is normal then remove injectors to look for clogged injector inlet...

Related articles

What Causes a Car Door to Give You an Electric Shock After Driving?
Have Have you ever found driving to be positively shocking? For example, you have just driven a long distance on a cold, wintry day, in a car with leather-covered seats. Wearing a heavy woolen coat, you get out of your...
How Automatic Sliding Doors Work on Minivans
Here’s Here’s an interesting formula (don’t get bored, it’s not what you think – it’s fun): ARD=((rt+rw)+(cd+p+g)*ep) Do you know what it is and what it means? Try this: it's a description of a minivan with automatic doors. Okay, it...
A Buyer’s Guide to the 2012 Kia Soul
Known Known to a lot of people as “the hamster car” thanks to its funny and catchy TV ad campaign when it first debuted, the 2012 Kia Soul has gained a lot of popularity over the last few years. Some...