Car Guys: My car door won't shut. Ideas?

[Dangerously Amused]

Tonight after I left the grocery store to drive home my car door wouldn't shut. It doesn't matter whether it is locked or unlocked, I try to shut the door and it sort of bounces back. I had to drive home with one hand on the wheel and one hand holding the door shut.

One thing that might be to blame is that lately my seatbelt has been falling down to where the metal part occasionally gets caught in the door frame and then it won't shut. I thought that was the problem tonight so I made sure the seatbelt was completely inside the car and tried again, but the door still wouldn't shut.

I don't want to take the car in for a repair if something is just jammed and I can fix it myself with a pliers or whatever. But I don't even have a clue what to look for, or try.

Any ideas?

Thanks! :hi:

[KG]

1. you are screwn!

[Dangerously Amused]

9. Damned to a life of taking only left turns!

Centrifugal force can be so cruel.

:cry:

[Taverner]

2. Check out the locking mechanism on the door

Make sure it can lock (use a stick or something)

[Dangerously Amused]

15. Aha! Poke it with a stick. I can do that!

Thanks!

:7

[crimsonblue]

3. remove the dead hooker's arm from the door jam

that should fix your problem.

[Dangerously Amused]

17. No, that fixes only part of the problem.

What do I do with the rest of her?

[crimsonblue]

19. You mean you didn't put the rest of her in the wood chipper

and keep just the arm for a souvenir? In that case, you're gonna have to eat the evidence.

[Dangerously Amused]

22. Noooooooo!

I am totally out of fava beans and nice chianti. :cry:

[crimsonblue]

24. Hmm...

my personal favorite is deep fat frying and then eating with caviar. But you can always just slather the body with mayo, unhinge your jaws, and gulp it down like a snake.

[GOPisEvil]

4. I guess you could check to see if the striker is aligned properly.

You might have a loose hinge, which will necessitate the door needing to be realigned. You can do that yourself, but you will need some assistance. (And possibly some shims.)

[Dangerously Amused]

20. Oh, I have a loose hinge alright.

Thanks. :hi:

[flvegan]

5. WD40 the "hook" that hits the door catch. It's stuck open.

[Inchworm]

13. hmmm, stuck open

stuck closed

deep...

;)

[flvegan]

21. Stuck closed, the car door wouldn't come to.

You'd have not been able to close the door the whole way. It's an inch or so of difference.

[Inchworm]

23. gotcha

makes sense.

I like the stabbing with screwdriver method :D

[Dangerously Amused]

25. Is the hook on the car frame, or the door?

Also, I don't think I have any WD40 here. Can I use EVOO? (Or anything else?)

[NMDemDist2]

28. just smoosh it till it moves

how about sewing machine oil, got that anywhere

the red can with 3in1 oil

anything?

[Dangerously Amused]

51. I did! And it did!

And yes, I did find some 3in1 oil, and it worked like a charm. Thank you!!! :bounce:

[NMDemDist2]

69. YAY!!!

:bounce:

[flvegan]

39. The car door.

If you look at the painted part of the door that meets the car, it's the only mechanism you'll see.

I wouldn't use any sort of food. You might be able to wiggle it loose so it'll work a time or two until you can get some WD40 (or even better, some PB Blaster.

[ghostsofgiants]

6. Is it really cold out? Happens to my girlfriend's car sometimes...

The latch is probably stuck up inside.



When it happens I just breathe warm air on it then pull it down with my finger and that does the trick. Not sure if there's a more permanent solution though.

[Dangerously Amused]

27. Yeah, it is awfully damn cold outside.

Thanks for the visual, too. I will try your method, but if it doesn't work I may need you to come here and breathe on it. You might have magic breath or something.

[ghostsofgiants]

30. It could be frozen up inside then.

Good luck!

[Dangerously Amused]

57. Thanks! I did everything you guys told me to try, and it worked!

:7

[lizziegrace]

7. If you think it's something you can fix

but need help, I'll come up. Just let me know.

[Dangerously Amused]

32. Aw, thanks!

:hug:

I'll give these suggestions a try before I ask you to brave the frozen tundra. You would probably get a good laugh out of my efforts at playing mechanic, though.

[Inchworm]

8. Try jabbing a flat screwdriver into the door latch part on the door side

as you keep using the handle.

Do this with a light on and watch stuff you poke. Eventually you'll have a BAM! moment where a lightbulb shines over your head, angels sing and you see the latch for what it does.

Then get the latch side on the door in the "hey dude, I'm opened" position and voila.

:D

EDIT: dang I type slow :D

[Dangerously Amused]

33. Well shoot, the car is parked outside in the dark.

If I need to see what I'm doing, it might have to wait til the morning. :/

Can't I just jab at the car blindly with a really big screwdriver? Or like, a trenching spade?

[Inchworm]

36. Naw

I just said the same thing many here have said. I just said it like Inchworm which either makes sense or is confusing.

I didn't use all those fancy words like hook, receptacle and such. As far as the EVOO goes, I'd go with vegatable oil if you can't find other stuff. Hmm.. 10 seconds of Pam cooking spray! :D

Plus my way.. you get to figure it out hehe. The fact you said pliers says to me you can do it if ya just look at it.

:hi:

PS: oh yea, I'm assuming it's not frozen. In that case.. how's your aim and do you have lots of cranberry juice? :silly:

[LostinVA]

10. Is your latch frozen or jammed with ice???

This VERY thing happened to Haruka last week! She ha eit towed, fearing an $$$ repair. A piece of ice had slipped inside the latch and jammed it. After the car was put inside teh garage, the ice melted and the door was fine.

[Dangerously Amused]

34. Hey, that could be it. It IS cold and icy outside.

The car is outside now, but tomorrow I can get it inside a garage to warm up.

Thanks! :hi:


Edit: Sorry that happened to Haruka, I hope she didn't have to pay too much for the tow. :(

[Xipe Totec]

11. Try Click & Clack - The Tap It Brothers n/t

[Dangerously Amused]

35. Do they make house calls?

Kidding. Good advice, I will go there if none of the suggestions here works. Thanks!

[Schema Thing]

67. tappet

[Xipe Totec]

70. Thanks; it's hard to read over the radio.

[Schema Thing]

75. no prob; it's part of the click/clack schtick: a valve tappet will make a clic/clak noise

if incorrectly adjusted.

[Jamastiene]

12. Use duct tape.

:hide:

[4 t 4]

18. Stay Home...just kidding

really check the inner door lock where the latch meets I bet it's bent.

[Dangerously Amused]

38. Yeah, I'm thinking that it will end up being the latch thingy.

That seems to be the expert consensus here.

[Jamastiene]

53. Yes, BUT...

Lots and lots of duct tape would still help. You might have to get in and out of the car using the door on the other side, but enough duct tape and you might just solve that hanging door problem. :P

[kayakjohnny]

31. The Official Answer I Would Have Given If You Hadn't.

[Dangerously Amused]

37. Now why didn't I think of that?

Heck, I could tape ALL the doors shut and STILL get in and out via the sunroof. In fact, I think the car might even be safer with the added structural support.

Thanks!

[Jamastiene]

54. That wa you could take a running dive across the hood, then

jump in through the window like Bo and Luke Duke. Talk about fun! :P

[ogneopasno]

14. If the "hook" is stuck in the "lock" position, spray it with WD40 to get it to unhook. If

the door sounds like it's closing but just isn't, fold up an index card or tape some electricians tape on the door jamb and jam the door shut.

[Oeditpus Rex]

29. This is the correct answer

There are several potential sticking points in a car's door latch mechanism, so spray the living john henry out of it. Poking around inside the mechanism with a flat-blade screwdriver should help.

If that doesn't do it, the striker bolt (the thing the hook latches onto) may have gotten out out of alignment. It's on the door post, and if it's moved any you could tell by a close look. This doesn't happen very often, though.

[Dangerously Amused]

41. Dude, WTHF?!

Kidding. Thanks. ;)

[Oeditpus Rex]

43. What. the.

holy. fuck.



:P

[Dangerously Amused]

55. Dude, you would be so proud of me right now!

I fixed it AND I have car grease all over my hands. :7

I look like a regular grease monkey chick! :headbang:

[Oeditpus Rex]

59. PICS!!

:bounce:

[Dangerously Amused]

60. Aw, sorry babe. It's too late, I washed up.

But something like that is probably best left to the imagination anyway. :*

[Oeditpus Rex]

62. Women

Always washin' stuff.



:eyes:

[Dangerously Amused]

40. Am heading out in a few to try that. Thanks!!!

[ogneopasno]

46. Good luck! Hope it works for you -- I had the same problem.

[Ptah]

16. The red arrow points to the likely suspect (#10 in the second photo)

Try moving it.

[Dangerously Amused]

42. AHA!!! Thank you.

Now I know exactly what I'm looking for, AND I kind of have an idea of what it's supposed to do. :bounce:

[hedgehog]

26. I am really impressed with the number of people who not only gave

the answer I would have given, but who actually had pictures so you could see what they were talking about!

[Dangerously Amused]

44. Yeah, this place is amazing that way.

Gotta love that DU!

[Ptah]

47. If it was this easy to help with other types of problems, we'd all be geniuses.

I feel impotent when I read of employment or emotional problems.

Mechanical stuff is easy.

It's not so easy to offer a solution to other problems.

[Dangerously Amused]

52. "Mechanical stuff is easy." HAH!

I'm glad there are people like you around. If it were all people like me, we still wouldn't have the wheel yet. Or sliced bread. Or math, even.

Thanks. :hug:

[Ptah]

58. And without you and lizzie we would never have Lucy and Ethel.

:hug:

[Dangerously Amused]

61. Wait. You say that like it's a good thing. o0

;)

:hug:

[Ptah]

63. Life without Lucy and Ethel would be very bleak.

[Ptah]

48. If it was this easy to help with other types of problems, we'd all be geniuses.

I feel impotent when I read of employment or emotional problems.

Mechanical stuff is easy.

It's not so easy to offer a solution to other problems.

So good, I posted it twice.

[crimsonblue]

45. Take off the door. n/t

[Dangerously Amused]

49. Too late. I already mangled it with the Jaws of Life. :/

[Dangerously Amused]

50. ~~~ UPDATE ~~~ OMG, I FIXED IT!! THANKS EVERYBODY!!!!!!

:wow:


I did everything you guys suggested... put it in a garage to warm up and put a space heater on it, too... found some 3-n-1 oil and lubed the bejeezus out of it, poked and manipulated the latch thingie in the door with a flathead screwdriver... and then I recreated the problem on the other door to actually see how the mechanics were supposed to work... and worked on it some more and then the seized up/frozen latch slowly loosened itself up and decided to work again. Wow. This beats the hell out of driving around while holding the door closed with one hand. Or paying the car repair shop bookoo bucks to fix a simple problem.

Thanks again! You guys are the BEST! :patriot: :loveya:

:hi:

[lizziegrace]

56. Yay!

:bounce:

[Inchworm]

65. Yay!

I'm glad you stabbed it with a screwdriver. I didn't think to say to look at the other door. Yer soooo smart!

:woohoo:

[Oeditpus Rex]

66. Now I know what to get you for your birthday

[Dangerously Amused]

73. lol!

Okay...

First thought: Wow, that is a great photo! I wonder how long it took the stylist to set all those pieces up, probably days and days and DAYS. He had to start from the center and work his way out. And he must have used something like ice picks to get things placed in the tight spots, also sticky and props from behind for some of the balanced stuff so it stays put. I wonder if he drew it all out first, or just started from scratch. Nah, probably had at least a rough sketch, otherwise it would take too much time to keep rearranging everything to fit that particular footprint. I like the diffused lighting but I wonder why they didn't put a spot at the top, it looks like a shadow falling there. Yep, it has to be a shadow because of the way it's hitting the things around it. I wonder if they tried different lighting; I understand what they were trying to do with the emphasis totally on the design, but it would be cool to see/compare a print with just a little shadow to give it some depth. The focus/depth of field is working okay, although I think I'd rather see the shot from directly overhead. Huh, now I wonder if that wasn't the original plan, since some of the things standing up in the back are covering up part of the things behind them. Maybe they did that, but it got too abstract given the design, ie, you couldn't tell what some of the stuff standing straight up was with that view, and the client didn't want that. Well, it's professionally shot, so you'd think they'd try a bunch of different angles and lighting to see what worked in print (or whatever the final medium was), and this is the one they chose for whatever reasons. /geek

(My Dad worked in advertising, can you tell? When I was a kid he occasionally took me along to a professional photographer's studio to watch a shoot, usually they were doing a spread of food for a magazine print. It was fascinating.)


Second thought: Holy shit, what IS all that stuff? I can recognize some of it, but... :scared:


Third thought: Wow, if you pulled everything tight and welded that design (more or less) together, it would look pretty cool hanging on a wall. It would look even cooler if you did that but first took all the plastic off, and then put it outside and let it rust.


Fourth thought: OMG, this is the poster Oedi has hanging over his bed, isn't it?

[LostinVA]

71. Yay!

[quakerboy]

64. Latch mechanism

My guess, its happened to me on several cars(most often the sliding door of a minivan, but others as well).

I am guessing it has worked its way so the latch is in a closed position. Unlock it, get a screw driver, hold the latch so it is "open" and pry it back to a true open position. Then make sure you carry a screwdriver with you as long as you own this car, henceforth.

[Dangerously Amused]

76. Good idea. I will def carry a screwdriver in the car from now on.

And you were exactly right, the latch was stuck in the "closed" position.

Thanks!

[krispos42]

68. Stop using the door handle to pull it closed!

:rofl:

[Dangerously Amused]

77. D'oh!

I will start kicking it open and shut from now on. :patriot:

Thanks!

[yellowcanine]

72. Get the longest bungee cord you can find and bungee it to the other door.

[Dangerously Amused]

74. I am looking for a bungee cord long enough to make a human catapult.

Then I can forget the stupid car altogether.