Exterior Door Handle PRoblems

[High Desert Ranger]

I posted this here because my problem relates to my exterior door hand on my 87 Ranger.

The handle doesn't work. I have the door panel off and had to put the exterior door lock actuator rod back on, after bending back into a normal shape. But the drivers door exterior handle acts like the door is locked. I can roll down the window and make sure the lock is in the up/unlocked postion, but can't get the door to open from the outside. The inside door handle works just fine and I can use the key to operate the door lock and make sure it is unlocked and no matter what I do I can't get the outside door handle to work.

Any ideas?

 

[Mutant Pony]

Well, I have the same problem with my '87 but, mine is because of rust. If I soak the latch down with penetrating oil it will work for a while.
In your case it may be that your latch is gummed up with sand.
The outer door handles do break fairly often. You'll have to pull the door panel and see what isn't working.

 

[High Desert Ranger]

Well, I have the same problem with my '87 but, mine is because of rust. If I soak the latch down with penetrating oil it will work for a while.
In your case it may be that your latch is gummed up with sand.
The outer door handles do break fairly often. You'll have to pull the door panel and see what isn't working.

The door panel is already off and the exterior door handle is just find. Must be something with the latch.

 

[High Desert Ranger]

I've compared the 2 door latch mechanisms with them still in the vehicle and found that a spring was off from inside the the latch assembly on the drivers side door. This was after soaking the latch from every angle that I could find with Liquid Wrench. Good thing is my interior door lock now allows me to lock the truck from the inside (something that I haven't been able to do for over a year).

Now I'm going to have to remove the door latch to figure out how to put the 1 1/2" spring back into place and hopefully the is my proble. The spring is not broke, it looks fine, make me wonder why and how it came off.

 

[High Desert Ranger]

Finally got the latch assembly out to supposedly put back the missing spring. Turns out that the tab that holds the spring is gone and I need a replacement latch assembly.