HELP! Driver side door wont open

[simonfleming]

The driver's side door will not open on my 2001 focus. The inside handle is ajar and will not go back into place and the outside handle only pulls part way. Locking and unlocking does nothing. I cant get to the torx screws to open up the panel. I think I'm screwed. Any suggestions?

[Sponsor]

[Ft_Knox_Focus]

As Far As The Torx Screws, Until I Got My Full Set I Used Channel Locking Pliers And Locked Onto The Screw! A Lot Of Work But Hey, You Gotta Fix Your Baby!

[whynotthinkwhynot]

That's a difficult nightmare to encounter. Sadly Ford didn't design the door panels to be removed with the door closed. You can remove the panels around the door handle- remove what you can and perhaps you can see something that is blocking the action of the handle and allow it to release- or you can release the cable manually. I doubt that this will help, but it's worth trying.

I believe the latch is locked up, and the door panel will have to be destroyed to gain access to repair the problem.

[whynotthinkwhynot]

OH, you can try removing the outer window trim. First roll down the window, then you should be able to access any screws holding the trim. If you don't see any screws then it should just clip or push on. It will be difficult to loosen it, but eventually you can remove it. Then you can roll the window up, and you might be able to spray some penetrating oil in the direction of the door latch and possibly free it without removing interior door panels.

[bluefront]

Those door panels can be expensive....find out how much. Then call around some local lock-smiths.....they may be able to hook you up with somebody who knows how to trip the lock with a "slim-gym" or something without hurting the door or trim. Dealers usually know people who can do this. Might be worth having it done...

[emsvitil]

Most likely the door latch mechanism has failed.

Try locking/unlocking with the remote and you may get lucky........

Once you get lucky, R&R the latch mechanism.

[rwunfocus]

Change out the inner door assembly (Driver side), problem solved. See pic why and ford part#.

[Dianes05FocusJunk]

Lots of problems with this breaking... obviously a long-time problem forced upon the consumer to repair/replace.. thanks Ford