"i can't get out!...."
 

this is what my passenger says when she tries to get out of the car. years ago the car was repainted(not just a re-spray)...i mean, windows were removed from the car, door hinges were replaced...the whole 9. this is when the problem began with unlocking the doors. on cold/chilly nights in early spring/late fall the doors wouldn't unlock using keyless remote. the only way to get into the car would be to use the key while pulling up on the handle. but once the warmer weather rolled around the keyless would work fine. but this year is different...finally got the car out of the garage last weekend and the passenger door will not open unless i do the whole key/handle trick. i cant even open the pass. door from the inside! :uh: so, my question is: has anybody experienced this after getting your car repainted? any suggestions? i know its not the worst thing in the world... but on the rare occasion i do let someone in the Lex, i feel all embarrassed my girl cant get out of the damn thing! :egads: thanks in advance everybody! :thumbup:

explain the trick for me please... if i or the passenger accidently locks the door on the inside, its a doozy to get the passenger out.

oooh, you too? haha, well the "trick" is cranking the key hard to the left while pulling up on the outside handle at the same time. sometimes it takes me 2 or 3 times till the door pops open. so annoying and GHETTO :mad:

i have the exact same issue here...i put some WD40 in the door latch and it fixed for a little while. Also every time i go to open it i feel like the handle is about to come right out. It might just be me though....

Its you :rolleyes:

Thanks for the trick man, ill try it.

If those paint guys took it apart for paint I would start asking questions. When you take the door handle assembly off there is a small white sensor attatched to the backside of the key hole. When you insert your key and the lock is turned it sends a signal to the actuator which unlocks the doors. It is very easy to damage especially if you're pulling off the door handle and you don't know its in there.

wow..........

oh and here i complain when its cold my pasenger window wont roll down fully sorry to hear you have a greater problem good luck

this was very helpful info. i need to get the front bumper re-sprayed this month anyways(hate all those darn rock chips!)... when i do ill "start asking questions" :) maybe ill have them rip apart the door and replace that actuator. do you know where i can get one besides the stealership? I'm obviously a newb here. thanks again... :D

i know exactly what you mean... sometimes i feel like im gonna rip the damn thing off the car! :sad: oh well, will get it figured out soon i'm sure...

i have the actuator in queens, ny, 80 picked up. that is the problem, needs to be replaced.

I have this issue with my brothers fixer upper. The key hole won't line up correctly to bolt into the handle. The bar/rod that opens the door might be bent when they tried to remove the handle out. That and there is a white box of doom I call it that has a metal bar that comes out that connects to your key lock. That breaks you can't open the door at all. Your going to have to take the door panel off and check the bar/rod to see if it needs to be bent so you can open th door correctly. Check for that broken metal bar that comes off of the white box that might be a cause of the issue. I don't have pics for this sorry. I might take some later if I care enough.

thanks for all he helpful info. i will make sure i check this rod and make sure it's not bent when i take everything apart. i'm ordering the actuator from aliga tonight when my girl gets home(she has pay-pal). im gonna start there and hope for the best... thanks again. :thumbup:

i must say...i havn't been a part of CL for very long but i can tell already you guys are much cooler than my old maxima.org crowd... :woot: