1985-1998 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
Noel:
Did you by any chance pull the exterior part of the latch works off the end of the door? The piece with the three fat flat-head Torx bolts, that has the swiveling notched latch piece in it, to hook onto the part on the door post?
If you took it off, there's a trick to putting it on to get the Door Ajar light switch re-engaged. I'm going to presume that's what happened to you and explain things from that standpoint first.
That part that goes on outside, I guess I'll call it the strike plate, has two pegs sticking out of it. One, fatter, goes in to the inner latch works inside the door and as it moves through its arc, it moves the swivelling latch piece or holds it latched.
The other skinnier one goes thru into an arc-shaped slot and should go into a slot in a nylon arm on the interior latch works. As it moves it moves the nylon arm too and on the end of that arm is a magnet. The magnet moves close to a blue reed switch permanently mounted to the inner latch works, or away from it, signalling Latched or Not Latched.
To put it all together right you need to first of all have the exterior latch piece trigged in "latched" position, with the notched arm pushed in till it stays in.
Then when you put it up to the door to bolt it home, the skinny pin will be at the top of its arc and just fit into the slot in the nylon arm inside there, that I mention.
If you put that plate back on in unlatched state, the skinny pin is down at the bottom and the nylon arm (which has a spring on it) has been pulled off to one side and the pin won't engage the slot in the arm, instead falling just outside of it.
I did this on a rear door; the pressure of that pin then kind of collapsed the slot in the nylon arm, but not enough to break it, and once I figured it out and got it into position it works just fine again - - the slot bent back to original shape.
Then before you close the door, release that latched latch arm, by pulling on the door handle, either inner or outer.
Now, if that's not what happened in your case you're probably right to take the door apart to investigate further. The entire latch works on these cars has several swivel points that get corroded and won't move smooth and would benefit from attention.
I detailed door panel removal and some of latch disassembly on an earlier post or two, worth your looking up on search, or someone else's, as I'm a little shaky on the how-to now and don't want to bother telling it all again, maybe partly wrong.
Once the several door inner panel bolts and screws are out of the way, and any switches and wires on driver side, you have a couple panel fasteners to pop, up from the bottom edge of the door a few inches, front and rear. Then the panel has to be popped up on from below, quite hard, to get several spring clips in a channel at its top to release from the top of the sheet metal at the glass. Start at one end, get it to start moving, then it comes easy.
Have the window down when you tackle this as it contributes a little to the difficulty. I found it to be major force compared to most cars, and once panel was off I siipped the clips, four I think, down the channel and pitched them, as not needed.
Then run window all the way back up again to do the rest of things.
You may have to deal with a plastic guide at back of glass, bolted to door frame with two 10mm headed bolts on outside of door, that really is there to hold the wire from the lock cylinder out of the way of the moving window. The wire is hooked into two notches in that plastic, then runs up to the key cylinder. I don't think you need to remove the outer door handle, with the key cylinder etc., but it might be a good idea as the roller on the end of the arm off back of key cylinder is what pushes the paddle on the latch and opens the door from the outside, and it freezes up and stops rolling. Freeing it with solvent and oil is a good idea as it makes the door open easier.
The inner latch works will be almost free if you have undone those three massive Torx screws in the outer latch plate, but under that outer plate you'll find a tiny round-head torx screw that also holds the works, and I think on the inside door tin, a little push-in-the-pin plastic fastener, besides the wiring for the door-ajar reed switch.
I lubed a lot of points on my rear door latch internal works and I think you'll find a few points that move stiff and need oil on the front one. I still have this to do for both front doors, when I install the new matching lock cylinders I cadged from a junkyard car this summer.
Oh yeah, have window all the way down when you put the inner door panel back on too, it hooks easier at top, with door lock button poking up thru its slot, if glass is out of the way.
posted by 64.222.2...
No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
