Door locked will not open

OTRUSTME

MEMBER
GMC

I have a 97 GM Lumina. The front passenger door will not open. I was able to remove the inner door cover to expose the linkage. I am able to reach into the door cavity and feel the latch. All the levers move but I cant't figure out which lever needs to be repositioned for the door to unlock. I have tried moving all the levers on the latch mechanisim but nothing nothing happens when I pull the door handle. Is there a way short of cutting off the door to rig the lock mechanism to open? Are there drawings of the lock/latch online that I can look at to get a better idea of what I am dealing with?

1 Reply

DANAROTHROCK

MEMBER
9 POSTS

I went through this nightmare with an 86 Caddy. The locksmith gave up. A body shop tore the lock up and got the door open. Then you can remove the lock from the door and see the trickery.

Try removing the lock on the working door, then spend the night studying it. Real piece of work.

Ultimately, the part responsible was plastic, worn-out, and irreplaceable (too old).

There are secondary latches, auto and manual locking mechanisms, and they are probably different for each model. Just try flipping, rotating, pushing and pulling things until you get lucky.

I don't know if there are detailed manuals.