Front Right Passenger Door Won't Unlock / Stuck Closed

[Research_guy]

Hello All,

New to the forum, but have had my car since May 2008. One day out-of-the-blue the front passenger side door didn't unlock while attempting to use the keyless entry. Re-tried to no avail. I physically attempted to move the lever over inside the car and it still won't open. Tried physically moving the latch and then trying to open from outside the car. No luck. Now my wife has to crawl across the center console or ride in the back a-la Miss Daisy. Anybody know if there's a schematic for the door lock assembly floating around? Seems like the joint between the lever and the locking mechanism has been disrupted. More than that I don't know how I could get to the problem (since getting the door card off would require the door being open if I'm not mistaken). Does that leave me with the dealer and removal of the front wing?? Any help/advise would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

RG

[kerrton]

Hi there, welcome to the forum!

Here is the link to the factory service manual, there will be a detailed drawing of the door and it will indicate how to remove the interior panel to access the door mechanism...I'm in a bit of a hurry so didn't have time to look up the exact section but if you have trouble just post back and we'll help you find the drawing you need...good luck!

http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/Rogue/

[Nick 568]

Your Rogue is still under its bumper to bumper warranty. Take it to them and have them fix it for free.
There's been a TSB issued for an issue with the door latch mechanism coming disconnected inside the door. That's probably what it is.

[Research_guy]

Kerrton, thanks for the diagram (found it in DLK pg 78 I think).
Nick, I'll give a call into the dealer and see what's up. I'm past the 3 years and 36K so I don't know if it will be covered. Just thought if it was something simple I'd do it myself instead of sitting there for 3-4hrs waiting for it. Thanks again to both of you.

[kerrton]

That's right, there is a service bulletin for front door mechanisms, if this fix was not applied to your Rogue then the dealer should retroactively apply this fix free of charge. I'd definately give them a call and check before you go to the trouble of digging in to this yourself.

[Research_guy]

Well, I took the car into the dealer and left it for the day. Got a call early afternoon from them saying they weren't able to get the door open. He said they could see the linkage was apart but couldn't open the door (I'm presuming by looking in between the seals for the window when it's rolled down). I was told they need to get the door card off but need the door open to do so. They could theoretically attempt to pry it off but if they crack it would cost ME $900 to replace. So, the end result was a "Sorry, maybe you should take it to a body shop". So looking around it seems that this is a mildly frequent occurrence (>300 owners reporting this issue). I'm thinking I'll call back in and try to speak to the Manager and if that doesn't go anywhere I'll call another dealer (competitor) and see what they can do. It seems irresponsible to me that they would just leave this potentially dangerous situation unresolved.

[Research_guy]

So, my journey on this has come to an end finally. I sourced the door insert from ebay and purchased a used one for $105 with shipping. I used a cutoff disc on my dremel and attacked the existing door insert one night in the garage. I essentially had to cut almost the entire way around to get it free, but after about an hour of very careful cutting I had the insert off. I checked the mechanism on the inside of the door handle and the cable was still attached so it wasn't that. I honestly couldn't see a way into the other part of the mechanism other than removing the plate at the bottom of the door (which also has 4 bolts that hold the carriage for the window mechanism). In typical rookie fashion I managed to unbolt all of the bolts (yes including those for the window mech) but without having taped the window up. The window drops to the bottom of the door and took 45 min of fiddling with to get it re-seated. What's worse is that I couldn't get to the door mechanism. So, I swallowed my pride and took it in to the dealer. They were great about it and it cost me $100 for them to get the door open/working again (and the window properly seated). Turns out it wasn't the lock that wasn't functioning, but that the mechanism for the door opening was the problem. I was told it was all gummed up and just required a good cleaning to get working again. So, instead of the estimated $1300 with parts and labor it cost me just a hair over $200. Here's hoping in another 3 years it doesn't happen all over again.

[ImStricken06]

So, my journey on this has come to an end finally. I sourced the door insert from ebay and purchased a used one for $105 with shipping. I used a cutoff disc on my dremel and attacked the existing door insert one night in the garage. I essentially had to cut almost the entire way around to get it free, but after about an hour of very careful cutting I had the insert off. I checked the mechanism on the inside of the door handle and the cable was still attached so it wasn't that. I honestly couldn't see a way into the other part of the mechanism other than removing the plate at the bottom of the door (which also has 4 bolts that hold the carriage for the window mechanism). In typical rookie fashion I managed to unbolt all of the bolts (yes including those for the window mech) but without having taped the window up. The window drops to the bottom of the door and took 45 min of fiddling with to get it re-seated. What's worse is that I couldn't get to the door mechanism. So, I swallowed my pride and took it in to the dealer. They were great about it and it cost me $100 for them to get the door open/working again (and the window properly seated). Turns out it wasn't the lock that wasn't functioning, but that the mechanism for the door opening was the problem. I was told it was all gummed up and just required a good cleaning to get working again. So, instead of the estimated $1300 with parts and labor it cost me just a hair over $200. Here's hoping in another 3 years it doesn't happen all over again.

man what a nightmare. i wish you the best of luck, and thank you for posting up a follow-up on here for everyone else to read. this is a common problem with all cars where links are involved.
-you want to hear even worse stories - visit the Audi or Mercedes or VW dealers. Those manufacturers use vacuum pumps instead of links to use as door lock actuators.