2003 Chevy Cavalier Car Door Locks

Tiny
JWEINGARTNER76
  • MEMBER
  • 2003 CHEVROLET CAVALIER
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • MANUAL
  • 12,600 MILES
My brother in law has a 2003 Cavelier which he bought recently. We were told that the auto door locks do not work that great even though the actuator was recently replaced. In the summer the remote locks work OK but in the winter they don't work and even manually open the door can be next to impossible. Is there a way to disconnect the auto locks all together so that the locks can at least be opened manually without fear of breaking the key off in the lock?
Wednesday, December 30th, 2009 AT 11:34 AM

6 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
Have you tried lubericating the tumblers? If you want to disconnect the power locks, you will need to remove the actuators and replace them with manual hardware / linkage. However, the fact that they got hard to open when the weather changed makes me believe proper luberication may help.

Let me know.

Joe
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Thursday, December 31st, 2009 AT 6:06 PM
Tiny
JWEINGARTNER76
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  • 4 POSTS
Thank you for the information. Where can I find the instructions on how to lubricate the tumblers. I know nothing about car repairs and will need some help with this.
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Thursday, December 31st, 2009 AT 8:27 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
It is very easy to do and will take you less than a minute to do all doors. Just take something like WD40, place the small hose on the sprayer they provide and place that in to the hole where the key goes and give it a spray. After that, run the key in and out a few times, spray it again, and then turn the key back and forth to see if it loostens.

Let me know, and remember, no question is stupid!

Joe
PS: Thanks for using 2carpros. Com and happy new year!
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Friday, January 1st, 2010 AT 1:07 AM
Tiny
JWEINGARTNER76
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
Thanks, I will defintiely give that a try. Will that also resove the issue with the auto locks, because pressing the unlock buitton or even the lock button is not always successful because it appears that the mechanism is stuck or something again more noticeable in the winter than summer, but still does exist in the summer months.

Jaime
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Friday, January 1st, 2010 AT 1:00 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
Actually, what I described is more for the tumbler. If you want to remove the inner door panels, then you could lubericate everything. Let me know and I'll see if I can get more information / pictures for you.

Joe
PS: I hope you have a happy and safe new year's day.
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Friday, January 1st, 2010 AT 11:18 PM
Tiny
JWEINGARTNER76
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
I just recently attempted to do what you suggested and the straw on the WD-40 would not push through the small plate that protects the key hole and got slightly bent. Can this just be pushed opened with a small flat head screw driver to allow WD-40 to get inside?
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Thursday, January 21st, 2010 AT 9:38 PM

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